Covid-19: Infected Mothers Can Breastfeed Their Babies – WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) says its investigation showed that the risks of covid-19 positive women infecting their babies during breastfeeding was non existent.

WHO added that mothers may chose not to breastfeed their children if they are very ill.

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“Mothers with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 should be encouraged to initiate and continue breastfeeding and not be separated from their infants, unless the mother is too unwell,” WHO’s Director General, Tedros Adhanom said in a press briefing on Friday, in Geneva.

Adhanom stressed that the health benefits of breastfeeding a child far “outweighs any potential risks of transmission of COVID-19.”

“We know that children are at relatively low-risk of COVID-19, but are at high risk of numerous other diseases and conditions that breastfeeding prevents,” he said.

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