KARACHI, Oct 1: Senior doctors at an advocacy seminar on Saturday urged mothers to breastfeed their babies exclusively for the first six months and then continue while providing adequate, safe and complimentary food for two years.

They also urged for institutionalizing work in the field of mother child health, while coordination should be made effective between other mother and child health programmes.

The seminar was organized on “Breastfeeding and Family Foods: Loving and Healthy” by Nutrition Support Programme and Baby Friendly Hospitals Initiative here at a local hotel. Secretary Health Prof. Noshad Shaikh was the chief guest on the occasion.

Project Director Prof D. S. Akram of the Civil Hospital Karachi said the seminar was part of an advocacy to support child survival through optimal infant and young child feeding as part of this year’s celebration for the world breastfeeding week.

She expressed the global concern for those 11 million children who died every year because of preventable causes.

Prof Akram said according to best evidence, appropriate breastfeeding could prevent at least 1.3 million of these deaths and poor complementary feeding contributed another half million.

Together these two improvements in nutrition and childcare could save more than 5,000 lives each and every day. Problem of malnutrition is very severe in Pakistan contributing about 53 per cent of all deaths among the children, which are preventable, she added.

Secretary Health Sindh Prof Noshad A. Shaikh said health indicators in Sindh were not encouraging as compared to those in the developing countries due to lack of commitment. He underlined the need for joint efforts of leaders and politicians to cope with these challenges.

Dr Mahjabeen Khan said that shift in policies had adverse effects in mother and child health programmes.

Dr Kaleem Butt of the CHK, Prof Zahida Baqai of the BMU, CHK’s Assistant Professor Dr Saba Ahmed and Dr Neel Kanth also spoke on the occasion.—PPI