BMJ  2007;335:574-575 (22 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.39330.522014.80

Editorials

Increasing exclusive breast feeding

Interventions are effective but must be tailored to the specific setting

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

In this week's BMJ, a randomised controlled trial by Su and colleagues compares the effect of two different strategies on the rate of exclusive breast feeding in 450 healthy pregnant women in a tertiary hospital in Singapore.¹ The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that, wherever possible, infants are exclusively breast fed for the first six months after birth²; during this period they should receive breast milk only, and no other liquids (except drugs) or solids. In developing countries, where the risk of infection is high and facilities for adequate sterilisation are scarce, breast feeding protects against infant mortality, particularly mortality related to infection.³ Rates of breast feeding are high in such countries, but rates of exclusive breast feeding are lower as a result of certain cultural practices, such as delaying the initiation of breast feeding and giving prelacteal feeds.⁴ However, starting breastfeeding on the first day after birth . . . [Full text of this article]

National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit, University of Oxford, Oxford OX3 7LF

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

Relevant Article

Antenatal education and postnatal support strategies for improving rates of exclusive breast feeding: randomised controlled trial

Lin-Lin Su, Yap-Seng Chong, Yiong-Huak Chan, Yah-Shih Chan, Doris Fok, Kay-Thwe Tun, Faith S P Ng, and Mary Rauff
BMJ 2007 335: 596. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Rapid Responses:

Read all Rapid Responses

WHO's global feeding recommendation is unqualified

James E. Akre
bmj.com, 24 Sep 2007 [Full text]