Nutritionist Urges Men To Support Wives During Breastfeeding

A Minna-based nutritionist, Niger, Mrs Amina Isah has urged men to be more supportive to their wives during lactation (breastfeeding) period saying that such had a huge psychological role to play on mother and child.

Breastfeeding Isah said in an interview in Minna on Monday, that supportive husbands tended to reduce stress from lactating mother. She said that stress could certainly lead to minimal flow of the breast milk and cause the lactating mother to spend more time breastfeeding at any given time.

“Stress can certainly slow the flow as long as a mother continues to nurse her baby; stress is likely to stop her milk production. “Breastfeeding reduces negative moods and stress, mothers nursing their babies can actually be assisted by their husbands to get over a stressful time,” the expert said.

Isah also advised husbands to be of help in the house chores rather than shirk their responsibilities.

”Men should not expect their wives to do all the house chores during maternity and still be able to do exclusive breastfeeding.

“If a woman is psychologically disturbed, there is no way she can do exclusive breastfeeding.”

According to Isah, study reveals that 25 per cent of Nigerian women are engaged in exclusive breastfeeding, saying that is grossly inadequate considering the population of child bearing women.

“This is not good enough; we expect that every woman should be able to do exclusive breastfeeding.

“Sucking the breast is different from sucking; the baby should suckle the mother’s breast exclusively for six months, for adequate nutrition and good bonding.”

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NAN