Philips Avent Announces Breastfeeding Awareness Campaign in Support of World Breastfeeding Week, 1-7 August 2016  

Sydney, Australia – Philips Avent is supporting this year’s World Breastfeeding Week theme of “A Key To Sustainable Development,” with the launch of the #feedingourfuture awareness campaign, aimed at supporting those closest to new mothers - the healthcare community. Studies show women who ask for advice or have direct access to healthcare professionals are more likely to continue to breastfeed for longer¹. The Philips Avent #feedingourfuture campaign will see the creation of a suite of materials to raise awareness and facilitate discussions around the main reasons why women stop breastfeeding early.

Philips Avent knows that the first 1,000 days of a baby’s life are the most influential in their development and breastfeeding is a significant part of this. It has over 30 years’ experience developing products to help support mothers on their breastfeeding journey. By bringing much needed attention to some of the key barriers to mothers continuing to breastfeed, Philips Avent wishes to help healthcare professionals and women find solutions to achieving their breastfeeding goals into the future.

In the first months of life, breastmilk provides babies with all the energy and nutrients needed for a healthy development, but it’s not always easy. In Australia, Philips Avent has teamed with midwife Jane Barry to create an educational series of videos to help with breastfeeding advice.

During this year’s World Breastfeeding Week, support mothers who choose to give their babies the best start in life.

#feedingourfuture

Did You Know? Breastfeeding Facts:
 

• Up to 60% of women who breastfeed stop earlier than they want to¹. There are numerous reasons why: some experience problems with infant sucking or latching on, which can cause pain or discomfort during breastfeeding; others believe that they do not produce enough milk; some encounter medical problems, or choose to return to work early¹².

• Milk Volume and Flow
  Milk volume and flow are closely linked to mother’s psychological well-being and stress levels³⁴⁵. In a study carried out by Philips Avent, mothers expressed significantly more milk after 10–15 minutes of doing a breathing exercise or listening to music⁶. It has also been shown that feeding an infant or expressing milk in a calm, relaxing, purpose-built environment with a home-like atmosphere enhances the breastfeeding experience⁷.

• Returning to Work
  Studies show that, should they choose to continue to breastfeed, mothers who return to work after giving birth have to cope with a number of barriers; from the attitudes of their colleagues and the length of maternity leave to the challenges of shift work and hourly pay⁸. So, it is not surprising that almost one in five mothers in the United States² and one in ten mothers in Europe¹ stop breastfeeding on returning to work.

• Privacy and Comfort
  A recent study found that one in ten women stop breastfeeding because they feel too uncomfortable doing it outside the privacy of their home². Another survey among working mothers showed that more than 30% of them would value access to a dedicated room where they could express milk⁹.

A study among women staying on maternity wards found that feeding an infant or expressing milk in a calm, purpose-built environment with a home-like atmosphere facilitated breastfeeding because mothers felt more relaxed⁷.

“Breastfeeding has tremendous short and long term health benefits for both mother and baby, setting the stage for healthier futures,” explains Aliette van der Wal, Business Leader Mother and Childcare, BG Health and Wellness. “At Philips our mission is to help improve the lives of three billion people a year by 2025, and within Mother and Childcare we are delighted to be part of the United Nations Every Woman Every Child global movement which focuses on improving the health of women and children. We hope the #feedingourfuture campaign will provide additional, much needed support to frontline healthcare professionals and in doing so help more mothers to achieve their breastfeeding goals”.
 

#feedingourfuture can be found on Philips Avent Facebook.
 

Philips Avent is a premium partner of the European Foundation for the Care of Newborn Infants (EFCNI). EFCNI also supports World Breastfeeding Week. The foundation is the first pan-European organization to represent the interests of preterm and newborn infants and their families. For more information: www.efcni.org. For more information on Philips Avent, please visit www.philips.com/c-cs/philips-avent.html. Further information about the United Nations Every Woman, Every Child global movement can be found at www.everywomaneverychild.org.