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If worldwide breastfeeding was more prevalent , though almost all allattassero mothers - now do less than 4 out of 10 - every year conteremmo 820,000 fewer deaths among children under five and 20 thousand less among women and we would be in general a little ' richer, because the mother's milk would save, globally, 300 billion dollars a year.
They are astonishing figures those proposed by the journal Lancet, one of the most prestigious medical journals, which in late January has published a special issue dedicated just to breastfeeding. With the specific goal of returning to shed light on the many benefits it offers and to invite governments to support it so convinced. Because it is the health of mothers and children,without neglecting the positive implications for the economy and environment.
Because it is good for children
That the face of mother's milk good for the health of children is not new. Several benefits have long been known, but the Lancet has the merit of making a point very exhaustive on the subject, combining the results of a wide range of studies. And by clearly two categories of benefits: short and long term. To the point that Sue Desmond - Hellmann, executive director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, has not hesitated to call breastfeeding a real “Personalized medicine“.”Short-term benefits” Concern in particular the protection against infectious diseases, especially gastrointestinal such as diarrhea, and respiratory. A series of surveys conducted in high-income countries has also shown an association between breastfeeding and reduced risk of cot death, sudden infant death. And yet, other studies suggest a protective effect, at least in the first two years of life, against otitis .
”Long-term benefits” Studies reported by Lancet indicate a reduced risk of developing obesity and diabetes. Not only children who are breastfed show, average, an intelligence quotient (IQ) a bit ' higher than those who were fed otherwise.
Let's quickly clear: it does not mean that breastfeeding your baby, it will turn into a genius. Or, conversely, that using infant formula will compromise necessarily the cognitive development of the child. We are talking about small differences, coated on the general population. And it is precisely at the level of the general population that the result is important: if all children were breastfed, it would raise the average IQ, and this would mean having fewer children below critical thresholds, the limit with mental retardation.
Which, in turn, would result in major economic benefits. Lancet, in fact, estimated that globally, the small increase in IQ associated to breastfeeding would result in a savings of $ 300 billion a year.
Because it is good for mothers
The benefits of breastfeeding, in particular that prolonged, there are also for the mothers , especially as regards the protection against breast cancer . It is estimated that for each year of breastfeeding, a woman has a 6% lower risk of getting this cancer. And many data also suggest a lower risk of suffering from ovarian cancer and diabetes.Finally - and this is an important aspect , especially for developing countries - breastfeeding helps to space out pregnancies , working for a time as a kind of natural contraceptive ( but beware : if you want to avoid a pregnancy does best rely only on this method ) .
Because it is good for the environment
Mothers, babies and not only the mother's milk are also good for the environment. Environmental costs, in fact, are virtually zero, while the formula needs water, energy and other materials to be produced, packaged and transported.”An untapped resource” Although there are so many benefits at stake, breastfeeding is in fact rarely practiced. A little ' more in low-income countries, a little' less in the medium and high income. Overall, estimates say that breastfeeding for at least six months so exclusive only 35.7 % of women. It figures that the World Health Organization would like to bring to 50 % by 2025.
There are many reasons why women do not breastfeed or stop early to do so. In particular:
”Lack of job security” In many countries there are no maternity leave or , when present , are very short . If a woman has less than six weeks of paid maternity leave , the chances are very high that not breast-feed .”Lack of information of health personnel” which often it is not able to assist properly the delicate moment of initiating, and to support the mother in this way.
”Lack of support from the network of family and friends” Who often are the first to criticize women who breastfeed, especially if they do it for prolonged periods
”Aggressive marketing exercised by dairy farms in the formula” Who have become a big business and growing: the estimate is that will exceed $ 70 billion by 2019.
It needs more commitment from governments and health authorities
For all these reasons, the Lancet working group calls for the commitment of governments and international health authorities to give concrete support to women. Also because, as pointed out by Nigel Rollins, the World Health Organization, “the success or failure of breastfeeding cannot be seen as an exclusive responsibility of women. The ability to breastfeed depends very much on the support it receives from the environment and in which he lives. “It is to offer to all the opportunity to do so peacefully.
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