The Best things in Life are Free and unappreciated: I lost favor with a previous relationship with a high-end private facility because I was too persistent that our clients breastfeed their newborns. The urban facility’s clientele was mainly corporate and self-employed women of very high socioeconomic stature. They could afford the relatively expensive services of private healthcare – luxurious private rooms, elective cesarean deliveries, specialists on call, and not least the best-hydrolyzed formula for their newborns. I would encourage and insist as part of my newborn assessments post-delivery, for these women to put their babies to the breast. An otherwise healthy newborn baby that could latch, suckle, swallow appropriately, and a mother fairly well adept at the skill of positioning her newborn were some of my key criteria for discharging the mother-infant dyad. Many of the mums wouldn’t have it. They could afford formula, feeding bottles, and complex bottle cleansers and disinfectants that could safely clean the feeding bottles. They were not ‘poor’ so why was I insisting on breastfeeding their babies? They wondered and complained to the management of the facility. The evidence is overwhelming for the long-term benefits including lower risks for allergies and metabolic disorders in breastfed babies compared to formula-fed. There is relatively better emotional development including higher intelligence, in addition to the immediate benefits of reduced risk of infections and the obvious economic benefits. Ghana is struggling with the triple burden of malnutrition including micro and macro undernutrition and overnutrition. This is not surprising given that our exclusive breastfeeding rate within the first 6 months of life is only 52%. A developing country needs all the savings it can make by limiting the burden of preventable non-communicable diseases and raising a healthier working class to improve productivity. It starts with breastfeeding, the foundation of life. Practitioners should provide adequate information on breastfeeding during prenatal/antenatal visits, allowing expectant mothers to choose their preferred infant feeding method before delivery. Breastfeeding is an art; the natural tendency of mothercraft must be nurtured. Expectant mothers must know what to expect concerning newborn feeding to reduce anxiety and improve skills. At delivery, mothers should be assisted to practice skin-to-skin and early initiation of breastfeeding within one hour of birth, even for surgical deliveries. Choose to breastfeed. #nutrition #breastfeeding #breastmilk #breastfeedingweek
