AAP breastfeeding policy statement important step forward

It’s about time!

Support for breastfeeding by the pediatric profession, is long overdue. It has been almost 17 years since the passage of the International Code of Marketing of Breastmilk Substitutes and seven years since the WHO and UNICEF Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative was launched. Both these initiatives were designed to stem declining breastfeeding rates. Hence the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) statement, released in December is an important step in achieving these goals.

Those of us working to promote and protect breastfeeding in Canada, the US and around the world, commend the AAP for taking this leadership position and for setting this important example for pediatric associations around the world.

The AAP Statement must be seen as a strong message to the Canadian Pediatric Society (CPS) to promote and support breastfeeding as the optimal choice for mothers and their children. Importantly it should be seen as an opportunity for the CPS to sever its financial relationship with the industry, get rid of the endorsed free sampling, the sponsorships, the research and educational money that buys endorsement of artificial feeding.

Will the AAP statement improve infant and young child health? Will women have improved support for breastfeeding? Only if this excellent statement is translated into tangible actions. Now we must hold them to it. Full Text published in December, 1997 issue of Pediatrics or available at the AAP home page http://www.aap.org/.