Mothers have been advised not to be a stumbling block in the way of their daughters performing exclusive breastfeeding on their children for the required period.
The Wife of Anambra State Governor, Mrs Nonye Soludo made the plea during the first-ever Women’s Health Conference in Anambra State.
The event, sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO), was designed to train the women so that in return they can take the messages of the day down to their respective communities ahead of the August meeting.
It attracted women from the women wings of the Anambra Town Union Association, Markets, churches, civil society groups among others.
It featured talks by professionals in various areas of women reproductive health including healthy living, exclusive breastfeeding, breast examination, cancer in women and other aspects
Addressing the August gathering, the governor’s wife noted that mothers are usually the ones who pressurize their daughters to flout exclusive breatsfeeding directives on the pretext that the child cannot survive without water.
Recalling her experiences as a young mother, Mrs Soludo urged mothers to be ambassadors of exclusive breastfeeding rather, as it has numerous health benefits.
As the women prepare for this year’s August Meeting, Mrs Soludo urged them to use the fora to discuss fundamental issues affecting family and society, adding that August Meetings should provide important platforms for women to point out peculiar problems that need urgent attention beginning from the ones happening around them.
“Some of these issues should include the rising moral deficits in child raising, depreciation of family values, drug abuse among school children, parental neglects and quest for illicit wealth among others.
“I also encourage you to intensify awareness on proper family planning among couples, since the challenge of unplanned births is at the root of all these vices in the society today. If a mother has time to attend to her children the way she should, there is no way such child will not be responsible,” she posited.
On her healthy living project, Mrs Soludo said she is determined to make right health consciousness a household philosophy in Anambra State, and asked the women to embrace organic and healthy lifestyles, especially with what they consume.
She reassured the women that her husband’s administration remains committed to making vital policies will benefit them, noting that the journey to a better state is a collective one.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Anambra State, Dr Afam Obidike said that the event would help to raise awareness on common diseases that affect women, and how the women in attendance can carry the lessons down to the community levels during the August meetings for the benefit of other women.
The guest speaker, a professor of obstetrics and gynecology, Brian Adinma while discussing common issues in reproductive health, explained that 70% of reproductive health problems could be attributed to three factors which could originate from male or female reproductive systems.
He urged pregnant women to always priortize good antenatal care, use approved maternity homes and skilled birth attendants, and make adequate birth plan beginning from the first day of pregnancy.
Professor Adinma also commended the state government for investing in primary health care delivery, disclosing that Anambra State has one of the least records of maternal mortality in Nigeria.
Another speaker, Dr Chioma Mbachu who talked about breastfeeding, noted that human milk composition has 90% water, while the remaining ten percent contain vitamins, proteins and antibodies that boost a child’s overall health.
Dr Mbachu also urged pregnant mothers to practice exclusive breastfeeding for at least six months and then complementary feeds for at least two years, explaining that breast milk contains everything in the right quantity and that children who have been exclusively breastfed builds higher IQs and have less sicknesses.
The chairman of Medical Women Association of Nigeria, Anambra State chapter, Dr Amaka Onubogu while teaching about breast self-examination, said that it is important for women beginning from the age of twenty to check their breast at least once in a month, regretting that deaths due to breast related ailments have continued to rise largely because of neglect.
She stated that breast cancer is treatable if detected early, and said that women in their reproductive age should self-check their breasts five to seven days after menstruation, while women in their menopause can choose a particular day to check theirs.
On his part, the Executive Secretary of Anambra State Health Insurance Agency (ASHIA), Dr Simeon Onyemaechi, said that access to health insurance has made health services easier in Anambra State, with the agency’s coverage for treatment now expanded across over 300 health facilities in the state.
Others who made presentations at the event include the representative of WHO, Nigeria Medical Association (NMA), Anambra State, the Executive Secretary of Anambra State Primary Healthcare Development Agency (ASPHCDA), Pharmacist Chisom Uchem.
