WUNRN
PHILIPPINES - STATE-SUPPORTED BREAST
MILK BANKS
Photo: Jason Gutierrez/IRIN
A mother breastfeeds one of her twin babies at
Hundreds of women come to have their babies at the
Esmeraldo Ilem, head of the hospital's family planning unit, said the milk is
also sold at up to US$10 for four litres to other hospitals and individuals,
with mothers as a first priority. “Even hospitals in far-flung areas or
provinces come here to buy milk from us," Ilem told IRIN. "[For
instance,] when a mother dies in a hospital [where there is no milk bank, the
family] comes here to source the milk."
Nurses ask for donations to the hospital's breast milk bank, where it is
pasteurized and refrigerated. Ilem said milk from the
A recent study by the government's Food and Nutrition Research Institute showed
that exclusive
breastfeeding - giving babies only breast milk for the first six
months of life, which boosts their immunity to childhood diseases - has risen
from 36 percent in 2008 to 47 percent in 2011 in the
However, there are "disparities in exclusive breastfeeding rates" in
different parts of the country and further effort is needed to increase
breastfeeding so as to reduce infant mortality. "Human milk or breast milk
is the best way to make babies healthy in the early stages of life,” said Ilem.
"Sadly... there are many mothers who need to go back to work or do not
lactate very well, so this is where our milk comes in."
Milk codes
A 2009 law on
breastfeeding protects a woman’s right to breastfeed publicly, and
requires private as well as public companies to allot time for breastfeeding.
All public institutions have to provide lactation stations separate from
bathrooms.
Since 1986, Executive Order 51, known locally as the "Milk Code",
has prohibited the advertising of infant formula for infants under two years
old.
But these gains are at risk, according to the Trade Union Congress of the
Philippines (TUCP), one of the country's largest labour associations, which has
warned that the infant formula lobby may have persuaded lawmakers to promote
legislation seeking to reverse the breastfeeding law.
"If this happens then we may end up with more unhealthy babies,"
warned TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay, who said his group is prepared to fight
the proposed legislation. "This is where the importance of milk banks also
comes in - they provide alternatives for sourcing human milk for all our
babies."