What a sterling idea Magda! Good info on the importance of breastfeeding in
emergencies would be very useful (and as you said, it is very easy to
source).
BTW, the idea that popped into my head after reading your email was if you
had a lactating woman separated from her baby and a baby separated from
his/her mother that putting the two together might sometimes happen (well I
know what I would do!). In fact when I spoke about breastfeeding in
emergencies at a recent conference a former aid worker described how she saw
this happen when she was working on the Thai/Cambodian border 20+ years ago
and a colleague had left her toddler behind and breastfed a ill baby with no
mother. Indeed, in the Katrina disaster, one of the very few mentions of
breastfeeding that reached me was a military mum who stranded with other
refugees breastfed a couple of other babies in addition to her own....
Karleen Gribble
Australia


> I know this is intended for women to use for themselves, but it would be a
> shame to neglect the opportunity to mention supporting breastfeeding in
> emergency situations.  There are a number of resources, including a long
> document from WHO.  The military of many countries are often in situations
> where they have first contact with women in refugee and other disaster
> situations. Breastfeeding in disaster situations -- be they natural events
> or conflicts or refugee situations -- is life-saving and health promoting
> for infants and young children.  Having a soldier who has some insight on
> the front line could make a difference in the crucial early days of the
> event.
>
> Just a thought,
> Magda Sachs, PhD.
>

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