By Chioma Obinna  & Ebele Onuorah

Nigerian men need to show more commitment towards ensuring that their babies are breastfed successfully for the first six months of life.

Experts who gathered at the 2011 World Breast feeding Week lecture organised by the Nigerian Association of Women Journalists (NAWOJ), Lagos State Chapter submitted that unless the man of the house, that is the father, plays a supportive role, the woman (mother) may not have the psychological and nutritional balance to breastfeed exclusively for at least six months.

In a lecture entitled; “The Role of Fathers in Breastfeeding”, Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Broadcasting Corporation, Mr. Lekan Ogunbanwo who observed that although, men are assigned little or no role in the nursing process, encouraged fathers to get involved in planning active roles for themselves with a view to ensuring that their babies do not miss the many benefits of breastmilk in the first six months of life as well as 14 months of continuous feeding.

“The father should realise the economic, health and psychological benefits breastfeeding gives the family and how. on the long run, the total wellbeing of the family is affected rather than compete with the baby for the breast.

In the message delivered by the Director News, Ayo Agbesanwa, it was stressed that the husband should not only help to provide meals and other needs of his wife, but also take attend to the baby after a deserving breast feeding session.

Corroborating his views, Mrs. Adetoro Oladapo who represented the Lagos State Commissioner for Information & Strategy, Mr. Aderemi Ibirogba, said experience has shown that a woman can only breastfeed when she has complete psychological balance.

• Breast feeding is a family affair. Many men mistakenly believe that breastfeeding is strictly confined to women and babies. Men often see their role as that of a passive or neutral observer who have little influence on the process. Many fathers of breastfed babies tend to feel excluded from the intimacy of the nursing dad. But fathers actually have tremendous potential to facilitate or undermine the success of breastfeeding. Understanding the importance of their role is the first step in equipping fathers to help their breastfeeding partners.

In her lecture entitled; “Breastfeeding: 3D Experience, with the slogan, Talk to me”, UNICEF, Lagos Nutrition Specialist, Dr. Ada Ezeogu, described the theme as very appropriate to the present campaign which sees the issues of breastfeeding as more than communicating to mothers on importance of breastfeeding.

Ezeogu explained that in the universal present campaign initiative, everyone is involved in the timing, place and strategies for passing the right information in the best ways that would be appreciated by the mother, family and society at large.

The Chief Medical Director of Lagos University Teaching Hospital, LUTH, Professor Akin Osibogun who chaired the occasion noted that breastfeeding protects the child from adult diseases and infections adding that it is the most cost effective source of reducing infant mortality and promoting a healthy nation.

Earlier in her address, NAWOJ Chairperson, Mrs. Dupe Olaoye-Osinkolu called on mothers and would- be mothers not to underscore the importance of breast milk for their babies as records show that under- nutrition is an underlying cause in one third of all under five deaths.

Olaoye- Osinkolu lamented that only 13 percent Nigerian women exclusively breastfeed for six months. She called on corporate organisations to introduce breastfeeding policy in the workplace as well as provide crèches for their nursing mothers with a view to improve the statistics as well as reduce infant mortality in the country.