Thousands of pregnant mothers and parents of young children have been provided counseling under the Alive & Thrive A&T project...
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| Counseling for a pregnant woman in Nha Trang City. |
Thousands of pregnant women and parents of young children have been provided counseling under the Alive & Thrive (A&T) project in Khanh Hoa Province, helping to increase the early initiation of breastfeeding.
There has been a declining trend of breastfeeding and many infants under 6 months of age have not been exclusively breastfed for many reasons, including lack of confidence that the child is getting enough, intense promotion of commercial milk formulae and 4 months, the current four-month-maternity leave, etc.
"I am pregnant for the first time. I don't have experience about child feeding. Some friends say the baby needs extra nutrition besides breast milk when she gets 2 3 months of age," said an 8-month-pregnant woman named Tran Thi Anh Thu, Phuong Son Ward, Nha Trang City.
"I am not sure that breast milk should be baby’s primary source of nutrition for the first 6 months, said Nguyen Quynh Anh, a mother of a 2-month.
A 2011 report by the National Institute of Nutrition found that nearly 20% of infants under 6 months of age are exclusively breastfed. That is among the main reasons for child malnutrition.
Counseling offices named “The Little Sun” under A&T project in Khanh Hoa Province has helped to raise the parents’ awareness of the importance of breastfeeding.
Launched in October 2011, the project has opened 45 “The Little Sun” Counseling offices in Nha Trang City (16 offices), Cam Ranh City (15 offices), Dien Khanh District (12 offices) and 2 offices located at the Khanh Hoa Center for Reproductive Care and Khanh Hoa General Hospital.
"I have been provided helpful breastfeeding knowledge, now I know what I should do for my child's best development, siad a 9-month pregnant woman named Doan Thi Ngoc Ngan, Thuy Tu Village, Vinh Thai Commune.
At A&T counseling offices, mothers can be given advice on nutrition related to breastfeeding, complementary feeding practices, helping to reduce stunting among children under 2 years of age.
N.T
