Inquirer
Legarda reaffirms support for breastfeeding, breast milk banking bill
Senator Loren Legarda strongly advocates for breastfeeding initiatives in the Philippines, aiming to counter declining rates.
She cited WHO and UNICEF recommendations for exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months and continued breastfeeding up to two years or beyond.
The 2023 National Nutrition Survey showed only 61.2% of infants were breastfed within the first hour, with exclusive breastfeeding at 50.4% for those under six months.
The survey also found that 17.7% of infants received pre-lacteal feeds, such as formula, shortly after birth, which can impede successful breastfeeding.
Legarda highlighted systemic issues, including insufficient workplace support for nursing mothers and limited milk banks.
She also vowed support for the Breastmilk Banking Act and urged the DepEd, CHED, and TESDA to integrate breastfeeding promotion into their curricula.
Topics in this story
Explore more stories about these topics.
🤖
This story was generated by AI to help you understand the key points. For more detailed coverage, please see the news articles from trusted media outlets below.
News Sources
See how different news organizations are covering this story. Below are the original articles from various Philippine news sources that contributed to this summary.
