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Showing posts with label mothers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mothers. Show all posts

Thursday, July 26, 2018

Family planning: Lagos mothers choose options themselves - NaijaAgroNet

The Lagos mothers have disclosed that the choice of preferred family options were chosen by themselves without any coercion, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Most of the mothers who spoke recently to NaijaAgroNet during the 2018 World Population Day commemoration with the theme: Family Planning is a Human Right, and supported by Pathfinder International.

Some of those who spoke to NaijaAgroNet  included Mrs. Mojusola Oluwasegun, a staff nurse, Mrs. Akerele Deborah, and Mrs. Florence Famakinwa, alluded to the fact they willingly chose their plans of choice after careful counselling and affirmation that it’s a human rights to them.

The family planning methods available to Nigerians especially spouses include some 5 main types, namely the barrier methods, hormonal methods, Intra  Uterine Devices (IUDs) and natural methods.
As at the time of filing this report, NaijaAgroNet gathered that an estimated 6.428,000 women are using a modern method of contraception.

For Mrs. Mojusola Oluwasegun, 30: She likes family planning, so also her husband, just as she insisted on choosing it herself, obviously in fulfillment of her human rights.

“I like it and my husband also. I use implant. I choose it myself. I prefer implant,” she declared.
She also noted that the first time she used was allegedly told her system will change, but she started using it after her second child, even though she intended to use it after first child.

A staff Nurse, names withheld, who spoke to NaijaAgroNet at the Primary Healthcare Centre (PHC), Mascara in Alapere, Ikosi, Agoyi-Ketu, Lagos, affirmed that they encourage married women to choose a plan after due counselling.

“We allow mothers to choose a plan,” she declared, adding that however, when there are complaints are mainly on menses following too much and some weight loss, or adding of weight.

She described most of the complaints, especially on the weight as “psychologically issues”, while those who have excess bleeding issues are placed on medication.

Also speaking to NaijaAgroNet at PHC Ogudu, a teacher, Mrs. Akerele Deborah, started family planning in 2004 following a visit to a PHC after fourth child. As said by her, she informed her husband, noting that she had earlier did one family planning for 10 years and the last one was five years.

“There was no complain from my spouse. It’s a great benefit and I really thank the matron that introduced me to family planning,” Akerele said.

Pointing out that the first family planning ever, was condom, which somehow failed her, saying that despite using condom, to got pregnant.

“Luckily both of us were at home, otherwise it should have been a problem of infidelity,” she said.
Akerele emphasized that family planning has helped her family in spacing out, stressing that fiscal ability matters.

“If you want to give your children space of 2 to 3 years; it’s not easy,” she said, but advised women to adopt family planning because of themselves.

Equally, Mrs. Florence Famakinwa, 34, told NaijaAgroNet at same PHC, that she started family planning since 2012, but when she wanted to have a second baby, “I stopped and after second child. I decided to start IUD and my husband supported me very well.”

She noted that no side effect since she started this one, no issues, adding that the benefit of child spacing is very important and cannot be over-emphasized.


NaijaAgroNet recollects that the World Population Day was established on July 11 by the then-Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme since 1989.

Chuks Egbune/GEE

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Wednesday, August 2, 2017

Breastfeed suffers lack of investment, babies, mothers in danger

NaijaAgroNet:
No country in the world fully meets recommended standards for breastfeeding, according to a new report by NaijaAgroNet.

The United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) have disclosed that breast feeding in the recent past suffered lack of investment.

They also said that collaboration with the Global Breastfeeding Collective, a new initiative to increase global breastfeeding rates.

Just as they lauded the Global Breastfeeding Scorecard, which evaluated 194 nations, saying that it found that only 40 per cent of children younger than six months are breastfed exclusively (given nothing but breast milk) and only 23 countries have exclusive breastfeeding rates above 60 per cent.

Evidence shows that breastfeeding has cognitive and health benefits for both infants and their mothers. It is especially critical during the first six months of life, helping prevent diarrhoea and pneumonia, two major causes of death in infants. Mothers who breastfeed have a reduced risk of ovarian and breast cancer, two leading causes of death among women.

“Breastfeeding gives babies the best possible start in life,” said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, Director-General of WHO. “Breastmilk works like a baby’s first vaccine, protecting infants from potentially deadly diseases and giving them all the nourishment they need to survive and thrive.”

The scorecard was released at the start of World Breastfeeding Week alongside a new analysis demonstrating that an annual investment of only US$4.70 per newborn is required to increase the global rate of exclusive breastfeeding among children under six months to 50 per cent by 2025.

They posited that Investment Case for Breastfeeding, could save the lives of 520,000 children under the age of five and potentially generate US$300 billion in economic gains over 10 years, as a result of reduced illness and health care costs and increased productivity.

“Breastfeeding is one of the most effective – and cost effective – investments nations can make in the health of their youngest members and the future health of their economies and societies,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake. “By failing to invest in breastfeeding, we are failing mothers and their babies – and paying a double price: in lost lives and in lost opportunity.”

The investment case shows that in five of the world’s largest emerging economies—China, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Nigeria—the lack of investment in breastfeeding results in an estimated 236,000 child deaths per year and US$119 billion in economic losses.


Globally, investment in breastfeeding is far too low. Each year, governments in lower- and middle-income countries spend approximately US$250 million on breastfeeding programs; and donors provide only an additional US$85 million.

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Friday, September 16, 2016

NEPAD says support for under-5 children, mothers dynamics to achieving 2025 zero hunger

The Senior Advisor on Programme Development to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Mr. Martin Bwalya, has said that support for under-5 children and mothers as one of the dynamics of achieving zero hunger on the continent by 2025, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Bwalya said this at the formal launch of the Zero Hunger Report 2025 by NEPAD in conjunction with Pardee Center for International Futures in Pretoria, South Africa, outlining some conditions that must be met in order for Africa to realise this goal.

As said by him, the demand side on agriculture produce is increasing access, including incomes, consumer subsidies, prices, school feeding programmes, support to under-5 children and mothers, as well as pregnant women.

This, he said will not happen without the supply side which is productivity and production by way of expansion of cropland, yield increase, livestock heads and reduction of post-harvest losses.

Bwalya pointed out that overall, the food availability needs to be increased by 437 million metric tonnes by 2025 or 47 per cent of current demand.

“To do this requires cropland to increase by 1.5 per cent; crop yields need to increase by 3.2 per cent, and livestock head size needs to increase by 5.8 per cent year,” he said.

Insisting that in order for Africa to attain its goal by 2025, a wide range of actions by different actors to bring about the necessary substantial change in the dynamics of demand and supply is requisite, just as any efforts to eliminate hunger will have to factor in robust risk assessments, including climate change.

Corroborating Bwalya, the Regional Director for World Food Programme in Johannesburg, Chris Nikoi, emphasized that “If we continue on the current trajectory, we will not be able to achieve the Malabo Declaration target of ending hunger by 2025 and eliminating child stunting. Conditions for success include political will, as well as addressing the challenges of the impact of climate change and weather shocks.”


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Pix: Senior Advisor on Programme Development to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), Mr. Martin Bwalya

Tuesday, August 30, 2016

No link to lower IQs in children of mothers who took epilepsy drugs

Two newer epilepsy drugs may not harm the thinking skills or intelligence quotients (IQs) of school-aged children whose mothers took them while pregnant, but an older drug is linked to cognitive problems in children, especially if their mothers took high doses – according to new research from The University of Manchester, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Valproate, one of the most commonly prescribed antiepileptic medications, has been associated in the past with birth defects and developmental problems.

NaijaAgroNet, however, reports that two newer drugs, namely levetiracetam and topirimate have had little or no investigations into their developmental impact until this latest research, published in the August 31, 2016, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Lead researcher and author of the paper Dr Rebecca Bromley of The University of Manchester’s School of Biological Sciences, said expectant mothers had to know the possible impacts their drug regimes may have on unborn children.

“Over the past few years, doctors have been moving away from prescribing valproate to pregnant women, shifting them to the two newer anti-epileptic drugs. But, until now, there hasn’t been any definitive research to understand what implications for IQ and development these two drugs may have.

“Working with funding from Epilepsy Research UK, our team was able to undertake a rigorous set of tests on the children of 171 women who had taken one of the three drugs while pregnant. From the results, we have concluded that – at the moment – levetiracetam and topiramate have no discernable impact on childhood intellectual development.

“However promising a start our findings are, we do acknowledge larger studies need to be carried out regularly to ensure these drugs do not change the thinking abilities of children in the future.”

The 171 mothers were identified using the UK Epilepsy and Pregnancy Register; each had a child between five and nine years old. Of these 171 women, 42 had taken levetiracetam, 27 had taken topirimate and 47 had taken valproate while pregnant – an additional control group of women with similarly-aged children who had not taken any antiepileptic drug while pregnant was also included in the study.

Dr Bromley and her team performed tests on their children to measure IQ, verbal and non-verbal comprehension, and the speed at which they could process visual information.

Regardless of the level of dose of medication, the topirimate and levetiracetam-prescribed group showed no discernible difference in IQ or thinking skills compared to the control group.

However, the valproate group had an average IQ 11 points lower than the control, levetiracetam and topirimate cohort.

“Expectant mothers with epilepsy may need to continue their drug regime during pregnancy; this research may give them some reassurance that – provided they are prescribed topirimate and levetiracetam – they will a statistically good chance of normal, healthy development in their children,” concluded Dr Bromley.


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