Friday 26 / April / 2024
The World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF indicate that mother’s milk is the optimal choice to feed infants and babies since breastfeeding protects children from getting sick and also helps protect them throughout their infancy and childhood, as it strengthens the immune system by directly transferring antibodies from the mother to her baby.
In case the mother is suspected of having COVID-19, she should head to the nearest health institution to undergo the examination and sampling and be advised by the specialized health workers. If the result is positive, the mother should continue breastfeeding her baby or express breast milk and give it to the child with the necessity of taking the precautionary measures.
If the mother is severely ill with COVID-19, unwell to breastfeed her infant and has been admitted to the hospital, the health workers will practically help the mother to express breast milk and give it to the person who is caring for the child.
If the breastfeeding mother thinks she is infected with COVID-19 or having the symptoms and she was breastfeeding her baby naturally or practicing skin-to-skin contact, she should take the following required precautions:
Wear a medical mask during breastfeeding the baby or staying near the baby.
Wash hands thoroughly with water and soap or sanitiser before and after contact with your baby.
Wash hands before touching the milk pump or the milk bottle when expressing breast milk whether by a manual breast pump or electronic pump.
The mother should adhere to the recommendations of cleaning and sterilising the pump after each use.
Routinely, disinfect and sterilise thoroughly the surfaces and things that are being frequently used.
With increasing the number of COVID-19 cases, there are a number of breastfeeding mothers that are infected or suspected of having the disease, so they undergo health isolation and adhere to the social distancing norms.
Therefore, the Ministry of Health, represented by the Nutrition Department and in cooperation with Al Jisr Foundation is providing breast milk pumps for all infected women in the Governorates to be able to express breast milk and give it to the baby in case the mother cannot feed her baby.
