Nigerian women who are breastfeeding have received a message from certain health professionals.
In order to avoid frequent trips to the hospital, the specialists advised Nigerian mothers to adequately breastfeed their infants.
Women of reproductive age were encouraged by the experts to always seek out preventative measures for illnesses and other health issues rather than seeking out treatments.
The experts, who are also members of the University of Ibadan College of Medicine’s Health Promotion and Education Alumni Association, emphasized that one of the most important ways to guarantee a healthy population is to start early by properly breastfeeding babies in order to ensure that they are immune to diseases.
Dr. Akin Jimoh warned that the use of mosquito nets is another approach to stop the spread of malaria in a community at a recent association meeting, stating that exclusive breastfeeding will assist to avoid infections and promote good health in children.
He stated, “When we say health promotion, it is to safeguard our health and the health of the community. The disease that affects the community is within the community.
“You don’t need to go to the hospital before you prevent some diseases. Before the disease comes, you can prevent them. For people that are complaining of malaria, we need to ask them if they are using mosquito nets. Mosquito nets help to prevent malaria.
“Let us look at breastfeeding, a child that is properly breastfed has chances to be healthier than those that are not properly breastfed. The chances of breastfed babies going to the hospital are reduced compared to those that are not properly breastfed. By properly breastfeeding our children, we are preventing the spread of diseases”.
Cancer survivor and wife of the governor of Ondo State, Mrs Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu, stated that raising money and awareness about diseases like cancer was essential.
“When I got to Ondo State, there wasn’t anything about cancer under the ministry’s budget. We followed the advocacy up seriously and we got the ministry to create a budget line because if they don’t have a budget line, where are they going to get money?
“That was one of the things we were able to achieve in Ondo State. We made sure that the state Assembly approved the budget for cancer and that has even snowballed into something much greater and bigger because before my husband’s tenure ends, we are bent on presenting a cancer treatment centre for Ondo State people.”
Professor Emmanuel Otolorin, president of the Ibadan College of Medicine Alumni Association, urged alumni groups to remember and support their alma mater in his speech.
He stated, “Worldwide, some of the best universities like Yale, Harvard, Oxford, and Cambridge are partially supported by their alumni. That is why at this time when the government is unable to appropriately fund medical education in the country, we are talking to ourselves to step in to meet some critical needs.”
Dr. Bright Orji, president of HPEAAICM, bemoaned the lack of qualified practitioners and experts at the local, state, and federal levels, who were unable to meet the needs of the populace.
“We are involved in policy-making, working with the government to ensure that appropriate measures are being taken and put in place to help drive this process. For example, when the bill on the regulation of health promotion was introduced, we worked with so many other associations to make sure it was all-inclusive.”
The Post ‘Breastfeed Your Children To Reduce Frequent Hospital Visits – Experts advise Women’ initially appeared on Tori
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