Mothers asked to practice exclusive breastfeeding
Mothers have been urged to breastfeed their babies exclusively for the first 180 days as one way of reducing the rate of stunted growth amongst young children.
Speaking to journalists, Jean Kobucunguzi, the nutrition focal person at Bushenyi health center IV noted that many mothers ignore breastfeeding claiming that they are busy forgetting that breast milk is the only source of all nutrients for the babies.
Kobucunguzi said that for the baby to breastfeed effectively, the mother should breastfeed her child 12 times a day in the first 6 months.
Kobucunguzi asked the pregnant women to always go for antenatal checkups at least 4 times saying this will help them to produce healthy babies and be helped by health workers to breastfeed their new born babies in the first 5 minutes.
Uganda joined the rest of the world to mark breastfeeding week that is commemorated every first week of August annually and this year 2023, the World Breastfeeding Week is being celebrated under the theme; “Let’s make breastfeeding and work, work!”
The theme emphasizes necessary actions by policymakers, employers and colleagues to support continued exclusive breastfeeding in working women to their infants.
