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Breastfeeding Left Out of National Obesity Strategies

Breastfeeding Left Out of National Obesity Strategies Despite Who Report

As New Zealand policy makers and health advocates continue to grapple with rising childhood obesity rates, the role of breastfeeding as a preventative measure continues to be overlooked, according to the New Zealand Breastfeeding Alliance (NZBA).

New Zealander Julie Stufkens, Executive Officer of the NZBA, has just returned from Geneva, where she was the chosen representative for industrialised nations at a World Health Organisation (WHO)/UNICEF-led external review group on breastfeeding.

Breastfeeding and its role in preventing obesity was high on the Geneva agenda, reinforced by a new WHO report which places breastfeeding alongside other public health recommendations for reducing the risk of childhood obesity.

“Breastfeeding is core to optimising infant development, growth and nutrition,” states the 2016 report titled ‘Ending childhood obesity’.

It goes on to say: “Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, followed by the introduction of appropriate complementary foods, is a significant factor in reducing the risk of obesity.”

Yet this fact is being largely overlooked in New Zealand, says Stufkens, who is urging authorities and District Health Boards to put the spotlight on breastfeeding and the wider health, social and economic benefits.

“There is no doubt that breastfeeding makes an important contribution in reducing the risk of long-term obesity and this clear link needs to be acted upon,” says Stufkens, a qualified paediatric dietitian.

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“Early infancy is a critical period for establishing good nutrition and should be a key focus of intervention. By supporting mothers to breastfeed we are taking action from day one, which not only helps to prevents obesity but a whole range of other non-communicable diseases.”

Breastmilk contains a hormone called leptin which helps to regulate appetite. Studies have shown that non-breastfed babies have lower levels of leptin and are less able to programme themselves to stop eating when they are full.

Researchers from the University of Glasgow and Edinburgh’s Child Health Information Team studied 32,000 Scottish children and found a 30 percent lower risk of obesity in those who were breastfed as an infant.

“These findings are not insignificant, yet breastfeeding continues to be left out of important public health strategies,” says Stufkens.

“Breastfeeding needs to be on the Government’s and health providers’ radar so that New Zealand’s approach to targeting obesity aligns with international recommendations.”

-ENDS-


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