Breastfeeding: Nursing Mothers Promised Continued Support In Bayelsa

By Eunice Nnachi in Yenagoa

Nursing mothers in Bayelsa State have been promised ongoing support aimed at ensuring the necessary resources and leverage to comfortably practise adequate breastfeeding for their newborns.

Mrs. Elizabeth Bide, Bayelsa State Commissioner for Women, Children Affairs, and Social Development, pledged ongoing support for nursing mothers during the 2024 World Breastfeeding Week launch ceremony in Yenagoa.

She emphasised the critical importance of exclusive breastfeeding for infants, which should last at least six months to ensure proper growth and development.

She stated, “At birth, infants were expected to be breastfed exclusively for at least six months before being introduced to other forms of nutrition.

“I would like to advise nursing mothers not to be discouraged from feeding their newborns with their own breast milk. Available health statistics show that, in addition to ensuring proper child growth, women who breastfeed reduce their risk of breast cancer and save money on feeding newborns,” she said.

Dr. Williams Appah, Executive Secretary of the state’s Primary Healthcare Board, echoed this sentiment, emphasising breastfeeding’s health benefits, including lower breast cancer risk for mothers.

Over 30,000 nursing mothers from across the country participated in the “Closing the Gap: Break the Record, Break Barriers” event, which was supported by UNICEF and WHO.
Chief (Dr.) Markson Amaegbe-Tamuno, Chairman of the Bayelsa Primary HealthCare Development Board, praised women’s increased awareness of breastfeeding’s health benefits.

The event included a national attempt to break the record for simultaneous breastfeeding, as well as demonstrations of various health organisations’ collaborative efforts to promote breastfeeding support in communities.