This week is an annual observance that celebrates breastfeeding annually. It marks a global consensus on the need for babies to be breastfed, especially in the first months of life.

Official Week: August 1-7

Key Focus Areas

• Raise communities’ awareness of breastfeeding and its significance to infants’ health.
• Educate individuals on the health and immunity benefits of breastfeeding for infants, in addition to its vital ability to protect them from malnourishment.
• Support programs, legislation, and initiatives that promote breastfeeding.
• Encourage working mothers to continue breastfeeding while working by inviting institutions to provide facilities designated for this end.
• Publish informative materials to warn against breastfeeding alternatives and their consequences on infants’ health.
• Raise awareness of the positive effects of breastfeeding on mothers’ health.
• Invite governments to subject available breastmilk alternatives to strict control to protect children from any health problems that may result from consuming them.

Top Facts

• Less than half of infants under 6 months of age are breastfed.
• Breast milk contains all the nutrients an infant needs during its first six years of life.
• Infants who are breastfed are healthier.
• Breastfed babies perform better on intelligence tests.
• Infants who are not breastfed are more prone to suffering from malnourishment and diarrhea.
• Breastfeeding reduces the chances of breast and ovarian cancer in mothers.
• Breastfeeding affects the mother and child’s health throughout their life.