Thailand intensifies breastfeeding campaign

BANGKOK, August 14 (TNA) - The Thai Ministry of Public Health has intensified its breastfeeding campaign, after a latest survey showed less than half of Thai mothers breastfed their babies during the first six months over the past two years. The Ministry of Public Health has, therefore, planned to increase the overall breastfeeding rate in Thailand to 60 per cent by 2015 for the sake of Thai children's good health, both physically and mentally. Dr. Pornthep Siriwanarangsan, Director-General of the ministry's Department of Health, told journalists on Wednesday that the breastfeeding rate in Thailand remains low because a number of mothers are worried that there are not enough breast milk or nutrition for their newborns and they are not convenient to have their babies breastfed at workplaces or public places, either. Permanent Secretary for Public Health Dr. Narong Sahamethapat acknowledged, meanwhile, that his ministry now focuses on promoting Thai mothers to have their babies only breastfed during the first six months after they are born and to have their babies breatfed together with other food from six months to two years old, as recommended by the Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO), as breast milk provides immune systems and over 200 nutritional elements to children. The Department of Health’s latest survey found that only 48 per cent of mothers in Thailand breastfed their newborns during the first six months in 2012 and only 39 per cent did so in 2013. (TNA)