WHO recommends breastfeeding, says its benefits outweigh risks of COVID-19 transmission

Amidst the coronavirus pandemic, the World Health Organization has announced that it is safe for mothers to breastfeed their babies as it appears that the COVID-19 virus can not be transmitted through breastfeeding. According to reports, the WHO on June 12 claimed that breastfeeding infants outweighed any potential risks of transmission of COVID-19 virus, and thus, new mothers infected with COVID-19 can continue breastfeeding and should not be separated from their babies.

Benefits outweigh the risks

During a press conference, WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that children are at low risk from COVID-19 but are really susceptible to a host of diseases that breastfeeding prevents. The WHO claims to have done extensive research in trying to understand the risks of women transmitting COVID-19 to their babies during breastfeeding.

According to reports, a senior advisor in WHO’s Department of Reproductive Health and Research, Anshu Banerjee, has stated that through their research they have discovered that breastmilk only contains traces or fragments of the coronavirus and not the live virus itself and thus, the risk of transmission from mother to child has not been established.

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WHO leads global fight against COVID-19

The World Health Organisation (WHO) chief said that he would continue leading the global fight against COVID-19 after US President Donald Trump threatened to permanently freeze the funding. During his closing remarks at the World Health Assembly on May 19, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that the UN health agency is currently focussed on fighting the pandemic with every tool at its disposal.

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Dr Ghebreyesus emphasised on the commitment of the health agency saying the WHO will continue shipping diagnostics, personal protective equipment and other medical supplies all over the world and bringing together leading experts from around the world to develop technical advice, based on the best science.

“We will continue working with countries and all relevant partners to ensure equitable access to the tools to prevent, detect and treat COVID-19,” he added.

(Image Credit AP)