Tedros Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization (WHO) has blamed the stagnating breastfeeding rate on the aggressive marketing tactics used by manufacturers of breast milk substitutes to derail mothers.
He said manufacturers are using increasingly sophisticated promotional tactics including advertorials targeted at pregnant mothers’ mobile phones, and participation in online baby clubs, coaxing mothers to market formula to one another.
Notwithstanding, the prevalence of exclusive breastfeeding globally has increased by 10 percentage points, reaching 48 percent of children under six months, the highest level since the WHO began tracking it in the 80s, Tedros said.
The organisation is however troubled that little progress has been made in countries where the code has not been made into effective legislation. As a result, exclusive breastfeeding rates are stagnating.
“Experts from around the world met here at WHO headquarters in Geneva for the first global conference on the implementation of the international code of breast milk substitutes. The meeting is bringing together delegates from around 130 countries to discuss how to strengthen legislation to counteract industry tactics and give more children the best start to life,” Tedros said.
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He also warned that one of the main risk factors for non-communicable diseases (NCDs) is poor nutrition, especially in the earliest stages of life. Inadequate breastfeeding increases the risk of childhood obesity, sudden unexplained infant death, Leukemia, maternal diabetes, and cancers, he explained, noting that WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life and continued breastfeeding for two years or beyond.
He pointed out that the stagnancy seen in breastfeeding rates today dates back to the decades following the Second World War when aggressive of breast milk substitutes led to significant reductions in rates of exclusive breastfeeding.
In 1981, WHO member states adopted the International Code of Marketing of Breast Milk to respond to this threat. The code helps to protect health, nutrition, and development in the first years of life so that parents and caregivers receive sound medical advice untainted by commercial interests.
Since the code was introduced, more than 40 years ago, there has been clear progress. Over 70 percent of countries have enacted laws that put in place some of the code’s provisions, except in countries where challenges of substitute promotion persist.
Globally, the rates of breastfeeding remain lower than what is required to protect the health of women and children. From 2013-2018, 48 percent of newborns initiate breastfeeding within one hour of birth. Only 44 percent of infants under six months of age are exclusively breastfed. While 68 percent of women continue to breastfeed their infant for at least one year, by two years of age, breastfeeding rates decline to 44 percent, according to the WHO Global Breastfeeding Scorecard 2021.
The Collective targets for these global rates in 2030 are 70 percent for initiation in the first hour, 70 percent for exclusive breastfeeding, 80 percent at one year, and 60 percent at two years. Therefore, countries’ efforts toward meeting the target rates of breastfeeding must be amplified.
