World Breastfeeding Week 2009

  Its We the People Who Can Bring Change:  Lets ACT NOW!!

World Breastfeeding Week starts on August 1, (1-7 August). The theme  
is Breastfeeding, A Vital Emergency Response: Are You Ready?

You can find out more download materials and find events at: http://www.worldbreastfeedingweek.org/

UNICEF and WHO have made statements in support of the week, which is  
coordinated by the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action.

UNICEF's statement includes: "Around 9 million children under five die  
every year, largely from preventable causes... According to the  
Lancet, optimal breastfeeding in the first two years of life,  
especially exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months, can have  
the single largest impact on child survival of all preventative  
interventions, with the potential to prevent 12 to 15% of all under  
age 5 deaths in the developing world... This year's World  
Breastfeeding Week provides an opportunity to sensitize policy-makers,  
donors, implementing partners and the general public to the benefits  
of breastfeeding, to its particular importance in emergency  
situations, and to the need to protect and support mothers to  
breastfeeding during emergencies."

You can find the full UNICEF and WHO statements via links at:
http://boycottnestle.blogspot.com/2009/07/wbw-2009.htm

One country facing an emergency is Malawi, one of the world's poorest  
countries, where 13% of the populations is infected with HIV.

In conditions of poverty, infants have a better chance of escaping HIV  
and being protected from other infections if they are exclusively  
breastfed. Yet in Malawi, Nestlé is promoting its formula with a logo  
claiming that it 'protects'. Formula is very expensive and those that  
believe the claim that the formula 'protects' may well use it  
alongside breastfeeding - mixed feeding is the worst possible scenario  
for the transmission of the virus.

It is a government requirement that tins have warnings that breastmilk  
is best for babies, but Nestlé refused to translate these into  
Chichewa, despite a government request to do so, because of 'cost  
restraints'. It took a Baby Milk Action campaign that led to Mark  
Thomas highlighting this irresponsible marketing on UK television, to  
change Nestlé's minds, and further campaigning to persuade Nestlé to  
show cup feeding, rather than bottle feeding, in line with government  
policies. See:
http://www.babymilkaction.org/CEM/compfeb00.html

So campaigning works. Now we need to persuade Nestlé to remove the  
'protect' logo from labels in Malawi and elsewhere in the world. You  
can help by sending a message to Nestlé. You will find the information  
you need to do so on our July Campaign for Ethical Marketing action  
sheet, which is now available on our website at: http://www.babymilkaction.org/cem/cemjuly09.html

Also featured on the action sheet is a call on Danone/Milupa to stop  
using claims for its formula that have been found to be untrue in a  
ruling last week from the UK Advertising Standards Authority. Although  
these breach the advertising code's clauses on substantiation,  
truthfulness and comparisons, the code is voluntary and it remains to  
be seen whether similar claims will be removed from labels and other  
promotion stopped. There is also a call for Mead Johnson to stop  
making untrue claims about its formula.

If politicians fulfilled their responsibility to implement the baby  
food marketing standards adopted by the World Health Assembly, then  
public campaigns would not be necessary and there would be progress  
towards stopping the millions of preventable under-5 deaths.

You can help put pressure on politicians by signing the ONE MILLION  
CAMPAIGN petition. If you have already signed, visit the campaign  
website to see what action you can take to encourage friends and  
colleagues to sign up. See: http://www.onemillioncampaign.org

Action Alert

1. Make an opportunity to call upon companies and your leaders to END  
ALL KINDS OF PROMTIONS of Baby Foods by 2015.

2. If you would like to submit the One Million Campaign Petition to  
your Head of the State, please use the opportunity to do so.

At this link http://www.onemillioncampaign.org/press-release1.aspx   
you can find the Petition letter, and petition submitted to the  
President of the World Health Assembly in May 2009.

Another link http://www.onemillioncampaign.org/doc/draft-letter.doc    
provides a draft for you to use to write to your Head of State.

3. If you have not yet signed up the petition on One Million Campaign,  
lease do so and invite people you know to sign up !


Million Thanks!

Team ONE MILLION CAMPAIGN- Support Women to Breastfeed

www.onemillioncampaign.org

Dr. Arun Gupta, MD, FIAP,
Regional Coordinator
International Baby Food Action Network(IBFAN) Asia.
Member, Prime Minister's Council on India's Nutrition Challenges.

BP-33 Pitampura, Delhi 110088 INDIA

Phones: 09899676306,
91-11-27343608(off)
91-11- 27026426(home)

WOULD YOU LIKE TO
SUPPORT BREASTFEEDING  WOMEN ?
Sign  a petition !
And invite your friends to sign up by importing your mail addresses of  
GMAIL, YAHOO or AOL.
http://www.onemillioncampaign.org/en/Details_Petitions.aspx

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