by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM
The United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) published a press release in July 2016 on the risk of not breastfeeding within the first hour of life after birth. They report that 77 million newborns globally, or 1 in 2, are not put to the breast within the first hour after birth.
According to UNICEF, a baby who has not nursed within the first hour has a higher risk of infant mortality, a lower risk for exclusive breastfeeding, and the mother is at risk of a lower milk supply. In addition, the longer breastfeeding is delayed, the greater the likelihood of infant death within the first month of life. Because newborns account for nearly half of all deaths of children under 5 globally, breastfeeding in the first hour can substantially decrease the rate of early childhood mortality.
Globally, infants who are not breastfed have a 14 times increased risk of death compared to infants who are exclusively breastfed.
Based in UNICEF’s estimation, if all infants in the world were exclusively breastfed for the first 6 months of life, how many lives would be saved each year?
- 200,000.
- 800,000.
- 2 million.
- 3.5 million.
See the Answer
Milk Mob Comment by Anne Eglash MD, IBCLC, FABM
This press release by UNICEF was published for World Breastfeeding Week, the first week of August each year. It is an important reminder that breastfeeding is normative feeding for all infants, and that steps to reduce infant mortality can be as basic and low tech as putting the baby to the breast right after birth. If that is so easy, what’s the problem? It mostly comes down to education. UNICEF recognizes that breastfeeding education for birth attendants (midwives, physicians, nurses, etc) and families worldwide is needed to optimize the practice of skin-to-skin immediately after birth. Let’s work locally to act globally by teaching our communities about this practice!Other astonishing stats from this press release include:
- Infants who never receive breastmilk are 7 times more likely to die from infections than infants who have received at least some breastmilk during the first 6 months of life.
- Infants who never receive breastmilk are 14 times more likely to die than infants who receive only breastmilk.
- Globally only 43% of infants under 6 months are exclusively breastfed.
- Delaying breastfeeding by 2-23 hours after birth increases the risk of dying in the first 28 days of life by 40%.
- Delaying breastfeeding to 24 hours or more after birth increases the risk of dying in the first 28 days of life by 80%.