This guideline examines the evidence and makes recommendations and remarks on the implementation of some of the details of breastfeeding counselling, such as frequency, timing, mode and provider of breastfeeding counselling, to improve breastfeeding practices. The objective of this guideline is to p...rovide global, evidence-informed recommendations on breastfeeding counselling, as a public health intervention, to improve breastfeeding practices among pregnant women and mothers who intend to breastfeed, or are currently breastfeeding, and their infants and children
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Swahili language version of the film for Breastfeeding (0 to 6 months).Aimed at community health workers to help facilitate training on nutrition to communities and other health workers.
Translation courtesy of Yussuf Hamad
Bulletin of the World Health Organization; http://dx.doi.org/10.2471/BLT.16.176677
Meeting report
Geneva, 16-18 November 2016
Within the first few hours after birth, most healthy newborns will instinctively move to their mother’s breast and attach on their own. This video shows early breastfeeding initiation through the journeys of 3 newborns and ways to support the practice with mothers and staff.
The study sought to understand the factors that facilitate women to adhere to treatment and return to health facilities for routine care from their own perspective. The researchers focused on Malawi, Uganda and Zambia, early adopters of the global guidance to provide lifelong treatment for pregnant ...women living with HIV (Option B+) and spoke to women living with HIV, healthcare workers and programme managers to discover which factors and practices show promise in supporting women to initiate and remain in care.
This study found that women living with HIV who access these services to prevent vertical transmission have a strong sense and understanding of what factors support their retention and how health facilities, the wider community and their friends and relations can best support them. This report shares their words to describe how it feels to walk in their shoes on the path of life long treatment.
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To save the lives of mothers and their babies, mitigate complications, and limit the spread of disease, it is critical that recommendations are made on the prevention, treatment, and surveillance of women who are exposed to EVD, acquire EVD during pregnancy or breastfeeding, or survive EVD with ongo...ing pregnancies. These guidelines are the first to provide such recommendations.
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Technical Brief
July 2017
The advice is presented in a Q&A format, addressing the following questions:
Are pregnant women at higher risk from COVID-19?
I’m pregnant. How can I protect myself against COVID-19?
Should pregnant women be tested for COVID-19?
Can COVID-19 be passed from a woman to her unborn or newborn ba...by?
What care should be available during pregnancy and childbirth?
Do pregnant women with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 need to give birth by caesarean section?
Can women with COVID-19 breastfeed?
Can I touch and hold my newborn baby if I have COVID-19?
I have COVID-19 and am too unwell to breastfeed my baby directly. What can I do?
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Accessed: 01.05.2020
Breastmilk is the best source of nutrition for infants, including infants whose mothers have confirmed or suspected coronavirus infection. As long as an infected mother takes appropriate precautions—outlined below—she can breastfeed her baby. Breastmilk contains antibodie...s and other immunological benefits that can help protect against respiratory diseases. A growing body of evidence supports the importance of breastfeeding for a child’s growth, development, and health, as well as for helping them avoid obesity and noncommunicable diseases later in life.
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Although there are currently no data showing that COVID-19 affects pregnant people differently than others, we do know that pregnant people are at greater risk of getting sick from other respiratory viruses than people who are not pregnant. Sometimes, this causes adverse outcomes for the mother or c...hild. Therefore, if you are pregnant, be mindful about reducing your risk of getting sick.
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COVID-19 Vaccines: 1 Safety Surveillance 2 Manual
While there is no indication that pregnant women have an increased susceptibility to infection with SARS-CoV-2, there is evidence that pregnancy may increase the risk of severe illness and mortality from COVID-19 disease in comparison with non-pregn...ant women of reproductive age. As seen with non-pregnant women, a high proportion of pregnant women have asymptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe disease is associated with recognized medical (e.g., high body-mass index (BMI), diabetes, pre-existing pulmonary or cardiac conditions) and social (e.g., social deprivation, ethnicity) risk factors. Pregnant women with symptomatic COVID-19 appear to have an increased risk of intensive care unit admission, mechanical ventilation and death in comparison with non-pregnant women of reproductive age, although the absolute risks remain low. COVID-19 may increase the risk of preterm birth, compared with pregnant women without COVID-19, although the evidence is inconclusive.
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This is an e-learning module with the objective of providing education for health professionals and pregnant women using published results and studies based on COVID-19 surveillance data, which have indicated an increased risk among pregnant women of presenting with severe forms of COVID-19 and, the...refore, of being hospitalized and admitted to intensive care units.
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