In a country where only 8 percent of mothers breastfeed their babies exclusively for six months, many moms are forced to stop breastfeeding to take up work responsibilities after maternity leave.
This has prompted Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi to urge employers to support breastfeeding mothers in the workplace this World Breastfeeding Week, which started yesterday.
It is of great concern that exclusive breastfeeding rates globally and in our country are extremely low. Globally, it is estimated that only 36 percent of moms breastfeed their infants for at least six months.
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In South Africa, we estimate that only 39 percent of mothers breastfeed exclusively for 14 weeks after the baby is born, and the figure is much lower at six months at only 8 percent. Our exclusive breastfeeding rates are among the lowest in the world, he said.
Dr Sunita Potgieter, a dietitian and head of the Wellness Committee at Stellenbosch Universitys Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences (FMHS), said many mothers returned to work within three months after giving birth, which was associated with lower rates of breastfeeding initiation and shorter duration.
Employers need to focus resources to support women in the workplace to continue breastfeeding once they have returned to work,†she said.
She added that barriers prohibiting mothers to continue breastfeeding after returning to work included a lack of flexibility for milk expression in the work schedule, lack of accommodation to pump or store breast milk, concerns about support from employers and colleagues, and real or perceived low milk supply.
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Lynette Daniels, a dietitian and lecturer in the Division of Human Nutrition, also at the FMHS, said the inadequate rates of exclusive breastfeeding globally resulted from social, cultural and health system factors as well as poor knowledge about breastfeeding.
These factors include care-giver and societal beliefs favouring mixed feeding (believing an infant needs additional liquids or solids before six months because breast milk alone is not adequate); hospital and healthcare practices and policies that are not supportive of breastfeeding; a lack of adequate skilled support (in health facilities and in the community); and aggressive promotion of infant formula and other breast milk substitutes,she said yesterday.
Daniels continued: In South Africa, breastfeeding practices have been undermined by the aggressive promotion and marketing of formula feeds, social and cultural perceptions, and the distribution of formula milk in the past to prevent mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV.
According to the FMHS, babies who are breastfed have better protection against childhood infections and they have a reduced risk of becoming overweight or developing diabetes later in life.
They are furthermore protected against malocclusion (the imperfect positioning of the teeth when the jaws are closed) and have higher intelligence scores.
Motsoaledi said the country must work harder to support mothers to breastfeed exclusively for at least six months.