Protecting Breastfeeding in Lebanon

Abstract

In March 2015, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health referred a hospital and a company that manufactures baby bottles and other accessories, to public prosecution for violating law 47/2008 for “Organizing the Marketing of Infant and Young Child Feeding Products and Tools.” The law protects breastfeeding by regulating the marketing of breast milk substitutes. This incident received wide media coverage and support from breastfeeding advocates. Breastfeeding practices in Lebanon fall short of international recommendations: rates of exclusive breastfeeding are 40% in 1 month old infants and only 2% in 4-5 months old infants (CAS and UNICEF, 2010) while recommendations are to exclusively breastfeed for the first 6 months of life. Breastfeeding is the ideal nutrition for infants and children up to two years of age and beyond. Suboptimal breastfeeding practices have been associated with higher risks of infection-related mortality and morbidity in developing and developed countries. The distribution of free infant formula to mothers, and contracts between hospitals and pediatricians and breast milk substitute companies in exchange for cash, equipment or other incentives contribute, among other factors, to the decline in optimal breastfeeding practices. The following actions could be considered in order to further support the implementation, enforcement and monitoring of law 47/2008: → Parallel implementation of the National Programme for Promoting and Supporting Infant and Young Child Feeding. → Development of the implementation decrees of law 47/2008 and their issuing in the Official Gazette. →Engagement of a wider range of stakeholders to build further commitment to the National Programme and implementation of law 47/2008 and keep them on the national health agenda. → Strengthening of collaborative efforts with the civil society for monitoring violations of law 47/2008. Inclusion of the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative Ten Steps for Successful Breastfeeding in national hospital accreditation standards, complemented by capacity building and continuous medical education of health professionals for its implementation. → Conducting a national breastfeeding awareness campaign to sensitize and empower women to increase their demand for appropriate breastfeeding practices and baby-friendly practices within health services and the community.