The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Tiruchi News : “Balanced diet important for pregnant mothers”

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Wednesday, Aug 06, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi

“Balanced diet important for pregnant mothers”

Staff Reporter

Ways to breastfeed discussed; tips given on nutritive diet

— Photo: M. Moorthy.

Awareness exhibition: Women and children visiting stalls in Tiruchi on Tuesday.

TIRUCHI: Breastfeeding strengthens the immunity system of the infant and the bonding between mother and child, doctors and other speakers said at an awareness programme on breastfeeding here on Tuesday.

The event, organised jointly by the Department of Social Welfare and Nutritious Meal Programme, Integrated Child Development Scheme, Indian Association of Paediatrics, Inner Wheel Club and District Administration, brought together ante and neo-natal mothers to discuss and offer suggestions on nutritive diet and ways to breastfeed babies.

Breastfeeding Week celebrations were initiated by the World Health Organisations to sensitise certain western countries, where percentage of breastfed children was abysmally low, to the importance of breastfeeding, said Collector T. Soundiah, in his presidential address.

“In India, breastfeeding is not just a part of culture. There are a lot of religious and social sentiments attached to it. But adopting westernised culture has made many mothers to feed their babies with breast milk substitutes. Such awareness programmes are to tell them that there are no substitutes for breast milk.”

A balanced diet was important for pregnant mothers to increase the lactation. He urged the participants to allay their apprehensions by seeking right medical advice. Scheming out health economics of breast milk substitutes, the Deputy Director of Public Health Services, V. Veerapandian, said that over Rs. 2 crore and 64 lakhs would be spent on breast milk substitutes every year in the district, if all mothers resorted to such substitutes.

It would increase financial burden of lower-income group and not contain even half the nutrients of the breast milk. Over 28 per cent of the children in the State, who was not breastfed, had retarded growth and 33 per cent percent of children were underweight due to malnutrition.

As stress could jeopardise the lactation, it was important for the neo-natal mothers to have a good physical and psychological health and to keep anxiety at bay.

The president of Indian Association of Paediatrics S. Paneer Selvam said that children who were not breastfed till six months would have a greater chance of obesity, hypertension and cardiac problems.

First hour after birth was crucial for babies to gain immunity power and ability to absorb nutrition. Breastfeeding within an hour, when the sucking reflex in babies was high, would save the life of both baby and mother.

District Social Welfare Officer S. Lakshmi, president of Inner Wheel Club Vathsala Sridharan, Secretary Meenakshi Vellaian and president of YWCA Devika Jason spoke.

The Collector inaugurated an awareness exhibition and distributed prizes to the winners of various competitions held to mark the celebrations.

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