This is just one of a whole slew of articles about breastfeeding in India. To judge from all the google alerts I am getting this week, WBW is getting a lot of publicity all over the world! norma http://www.ndtv.com/template/template.asp?fromtimeline=true&id=76967&callid=1&template=Health Thursday, August 4, 2005 (City): This week is being celebrated all over the world as breast feeding week But while there is a strong tradition of breast feeding in India, the practice is still surrounded by myth and superstition. In rural Rajasthan, valuable colostrums, which is secreted in the first few hours after birth, is rarely given to infants. "In the first two days, no milk comes. We give a child water and jaggery. The first milk that comes is dirty. You can't give a child that yellow fluid," says Santosh Bai. While Santosh Bai denied her children colostrum, in other rural communities a newborn is breast fed only at an auspicious time. Noble intitiative But a UNICEF initiative launched with the state government is now fighting these old wives tales. Draupadi, Santosh Bai's daughter-in-law fed her new born baby half an hour after delivery with the support of her local health worker "I tell people to feed their baby in the first half hour after birth and give them colostrum. It helps build immunity. That's very important," says Krishna, community health worker. Easy substitutes What is surprising is that denying babies breast milk is not just governed by superstition alone. In urban India, formula milk is an easy substitute for mother's feed. In many hospitals, doctors themselves suggest that the new born baby be given formula feed for the first 24 hours, especially if the baby has been delivered by caesarian. "After a caesarian, a mother feels she cannot feed her baby. But after the effects of anesthesia wear off, in two to three hours, the mother must feed her child," says Dr Usha Acharya, HoD, Pediatric Medicine, SMS Hospital. The worrying fallout of this trend is that despite family incomes going up, more children are malnourished today in Rajasthan than they were 10 years ago. Grim situation "The situation is bad in Rajasthan. Fifty-five per cent of children suffer from one or other degree of malnutrition and 19 per cent children suffer from severe malnutrition," says Dr Satish Kumar, State Representative, UNICEF. Of the infant mortality cases in the world, one fourth are from India alone where 60 per cent of the deaths are directly or indirectly due to malnourishment. While there is a strong tradition of breast feeding in india both rural and urban mothers rarely follow the correct methods of breastfeeding. This includes giving the infant only mother's milk for the first six months and giving it valuable colostrum in the first few hours after birth. According to an international study, 19 per cent of infant deaths can be followed if breast feeding is done properly. *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html