Out of the world's 27 highest-income countries, Ireland has – by far – the lowest percentage of mothers who breastfeed their babies, currently standing at only 57%.
Luckily, great measures are being put in place for this trend to change, and as part of this year's National Breastfeeding Week, events are being organized across the country aiming to support, inform and educate mothers (and everyone else) about breastfeeding.
Yesterday, Sabina Higgins kicked National Breastfeeding Week by organizing Latching On – a breastfeeding morning for 200 mums and babies in Áras an Uachtaráin. The purpose of the event was to raise awareness of Ireland's low breastfeeding rates and to try to increase them by offering more supports to mothers.
The President's wife was joined by La Leche League of Ireland, Cuidiú, the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI), Friends of Breastfeeding and the Association for Improvement in the Maternity Services Ireland (AIMS).
Higgins herself spoke of the importance of breastfeeding and the impact it has on the health of future generations, and Essene Cassidy, president of the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, explains that while that rates of breastfeeding in Ireland
have gone up from 53% in 2009, to 56% in 2013, we still have one of the lowest rates in the EU.
Also speaking at the event, Krysia Lynch of Association for Improvement in the Maternity Services Ireland (AIMS) called on Irish society to remove stigma associated with breastfeeding.
"It takes a community to improve breastfeeding in Ireland, and one thing to bear in mind is that support may come in many different forms," she said.
"Maybe it comes in the form of acknowledging the fact that women may need support when they latch," she added.
"Maybe it comes in the form of being supportive when seeing somebody breastfeeding (in public)," she continued.
National Breastfeeding Week, which takes place from 1 to 7 October, is designed to offer support to new mothers.
A new website breastfeeding.ie as well as a HSE Breastfeeding Facebook page were designed to help mothers by featuring instructional videos and tips on how to feed your child.
(All images via President.ie)
