(Please excuse the old date on this news item while I clean up old files, but this article is a detailed account of why breastfeeding may suffer in emergencies, and in Afghanistan.  Now it will be in the Lactnet archives
Janice Reynolds)

Breastfeeding saving Afghan babies 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4747879.stm
Sunday, 21 August 2005

Naseema desperately needed help. 






She had already lost seven of her eleven children now the lives of her six-week old twins hung in the balance. 

When Naseema, a mother in northern Afghanistan, came to her local health clinic her babies were severely malnourished. 

She said she had not got sufficient breast milk to feed them, and had been feeding them sugar water with a little bit of powdered milk added whenever she could afford it. 

Treatment 

Within a month health workers showed Naseema how to latch the twins onto her breast and feed them. 


She was also advised how an improvement in her diet, using available foods, could increase her breast milk. 

She was treated for anaemia with de-worming, iron and folic acid tablets. 

<snip>

Mrs Keith said women were often confused about the benefits of breast milk. 

She said about 40% of women do not give their baby the early milk, colostrum, because there is a misconception that it is dirty and infected. 

During this time, they often feed their babies sugared water and after this it is difficult to get the baby to take breast milk or encourage the woman's milk production. 

And when the women had difficulties breastfeeding, with sore and cracked nipples or suffered from infections such as mastitis, they were often unable for cultural reasons to go and see a doctor. 

Mrs Keith added: "They were mostly male doctors and there is this whole cultural thing about not being seen by a man. We are training women to take up medical posts. 

"Many doctors went off during the time of the Taliban and now these women doctors are gradually coming back. 

(see link for full article)



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