Mothers have been challenged to put emphasis on exclusive breast feeding of their babies during the first six months in order to reduce infant mortality rate.
Elizabeth Maanimake, the district nursing officer in Kabarole, Western Uganda, said when a child is breast fed exclusively for six months it increases the baby’s immunity, which helps reduce chances of getting diseases.
Manimake notes that the district infant mortality rate stands at 86 out of 1000 children, which needs to be reduced.
“Breast feeding provides a child with natural knowledge and creates good parent-child bondage. Mothers, you should really breast feed your babies,” Maanimake said.
She also urged breastfeeding mothers not to stop at six months but to go on and breastfeed up to when a child is two years.
Maanimake advised HIV positive mothers not to mix breastfeeding with the giving of artificial feeds, which she says increases chances of infections.
“HIV positive mothers should either breastfeed exclusively or use other feeds, because when you breast feed and give food to the child there are higher chances of infections. The food may cause some wounds in the mouth of the baby which will create a gateway for the virus. So please choose one at a go –you either breastfeed or use food,” Maanimake explained.
While speaking to the KC team in Mucwa, Manimake observed that breastfeeding is observed as one of the strategies the district is embarking on to reduce infant mortality.
Other strategies include routine immunization and sleeping under mosquito nets to curb malaria.
Image by KC Sharifah
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sharifah
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Araali