Almost half of all lactating mothers exclusively breastfeed

ALMOST 50 PERCENT OF LACTATING MOTHERS IN GUYANA EXCLUSIVELY
BREASTFEED their new-born, said Public Health Nutritionist and National Breastfeeding
Coordinator, Ms. Gillian Trim.
Trim told www.aroundtheregions.com in an exclusive that she wants to see the number increase.
“We are now at 45 percent. However, my goal is to get it to 50 percent by mid-2022,” a
confident Trim said.
World breastfeeding week was held from August 1 to 7 under the theme ‘Protect
Breastfeeding: A shared Responsibility, but Trim wants the issue remain on the national front
burner, especially
among family members.
She also wants families to monitor the daily diet of expectant mothers.
“Mothers are encouraged to register early when they discover that they are pregnant. This
ensures that they get their supplements of iron and folic acid.,” Trim counselled.
She linked the balanced meals for the safety of mother, delivery of the child, and ensuring that
the mother will have adequate and quality milk to exclusively breastfeed their newborn.
“She is then encouraged to eat a balanced diet from the six food groups and drink lots of fluid
which is eight ounces of water daily,” Trim reiterated.
Current challenges to the national exclusive breastfeeding agenda include “the three months’
maternity leave, the abundance of formula on the market, the promotion of breast milk
substitutes and the lack of breastfeeding support from family members,” Trim explained.
“One of the very long-term benefits is that breastfed children are brighter and many of them go
on to higher education, thus acquiring the better paying jobs, while being able to live healthier
lives for themselves and family,” Trim explained in an earlier interview with this media house
“We promote exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and continue
breastfeeding until the child is two years and beyond. Exclusive breastfeeding means only
breast milk, no other food or drink is given, not even water,” Trim said.