E-Paper
Breastfeeding week: Human milk bank at Sassoon sees rise in donors
After two years of pandemic, the human milk bank in city-based Sassoon General Hospital has seen a rise in milk donors
After two years of pandemic, the human milk bank in city-based Sassoon General Hospital has seen a rise in milk donors. Officials noted that the yearly collection of 2020 was less than the milk collected till August this year. Dr Aarti Kinikar, professor at BJ Medical College and head of the paediatrics department at Sassoon General Hospital noted that there is more need of awareness to breastfeed infants till the age of six months.
August 1 to August 7 is celebrated as breastfeeding week and this year the theme is ‘Breastfeeding is crucial for the health of both mother and child’.
According to the National Family Health Survey (NFHS) - 5, there are only 71 % children under the age of six months who exclusively breastfeed in Maharashtra. The percentage of children in urban areas is just 66.9 % and in rural areas is 74.1 %.
Kinikar added that the milk bank was established in 2013 and has been a blessing for many infants during the pandemic. “We have certain criteria and tests which are mandatory for mothers who intend to donate milk to ensure that the milk is safe. During the pandemic, the donation was less as we could not go out to collect milk from other hospitals. But there was a donation which helped infants whose mothers were positive during the pandemic,” said Kinikar.
Doctors also shared that there needs to be more awareness among mothers.
“The importance of breastfeeding for both child and the mother should be emphasised from the school level as breast milk is very important for the infant. Also, there should be training of nurses and hospital staff in techniques of breastfeeding and importance of it as they interact with mothers more,” said doctors.
A total of 63.7% children up to the age of six months are breastfed exclusively in India. In rural parts of the country, 65.1% children are exclusively breastfed till the age of six months, whereas in urban parts the number is just 59.6%.
