Juliet Jacob Ochenje
The Director General of the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, has advised nursing mothers to always ensure optimal breastfeeding of their children with a view to lowering the risk of breast and ovarian cancers.
Speaking during the 2023 World Breastfeeding Week celebration with the theme, ‘Enabling breastfeeding, making a difference for working parents’, Prof Adeyeye said breastfed babies have stronger immunity, and a reduced risk of suffering many childhood illnesses and infections.
As part of underscoring the importance of creating an enabling environment for child health, the agency recently created an Office of Women’s Health, a multi-disciplinary centre where issues that concern maternal and child health will be continuously addressed.
Prof. Adeyeye, who was represented by the Director, Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (FSAN), Mrs. Eva Edwards, added that breastfeeding is also associated with longer-term health benefits including reduced risk of overweight and obesity in childhood and adolescence.
She explained that breastfeeding also provides health benefits to mothers by helping to prevent postpartum bleeding, support child spacing, lowers the risk of breast and ovarian cancers and earlier return to pre-pregnancy body weight.
According NAFDAC DG, this year’s theme was apt as it was aimed at strengthening the collaboration of actors across different levels of society to support and promote breastfeeding for working parents so that women can combine breastfeeding and work.
She added that this is important because workplace challenges remain one of the most common reasons for women to stop breastfeeding earlier than recommended.
Prof Adeyeye further explained that a workplace needs adequate breastfeeding facilities to become a breastfeeding-friendly workplace, adding that lack of conducive breastfeeding environment especially for working mothers hinders breastfeeding of infants.
