Breast is best — but not in Oldham

Borough’s new mums shun natural feeding

FEWER mums in Oldham are breastfeeding their babies than in other parts of the country.

According to the Department of Health, only 66.9 per cent of new mums in Oldham initiated breastfeeding in the days after giving birth — compared with a national average rate of 78 per cent.

This compared poorly to other European countries, where take-up reached 99 per cent.

The Department of Health recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of an infant’s life, as breast milk provides “all the nutrients a baby needs at this time”.

Breast milk is also said to protect babies from infection and diseases such as gastro-intestinal infections, ear infections, urine infections, eczema and obesity in later childhood.

But of the 78 per cent of mothers in England who started breastfeeding, only 22 per cent were still doing it at six months, the 2007/8 figures showed.

The DoH announced it would be investing an extra £2 million to help improve the UK’s breastfeeding rate, and in particular help mums in deprived areas.

The detailed allocation of the funding has yet to be finalised, but is likely to include cash for health trusts to set up breastfeeding support groups and provide more specialist nurses.

Progress will be monitored by measuring the amount of breastfeeding at six to eight weeks in all Primary Care Trust areas.

Public Health Minister Dawn Primarolo said: “By international standards not enough women breastfeed in England. This money will help more mums — particularly those in more deprived areas — to breastfeed and to do so for longer.

“We want to ensure women know the importance of breastfeeding and the benefits to themselves and their baby.”

The Department of Health noted that breastfeeding rates in Europe were as high as 99 per cent, in Norway, 98 per cent in Denmark, 97.7 per cent in Sweden, 94 per cent in Switzerland, 93 per cent in Austria, 91 per cent in Italy and 84.2 per cent in Spain.

Only Germany (77.8 per cent), France (69 per cent) and Ireland (53 per cent) have lower rates than England.