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Promote breastfeeding, foundation of life
Breast milk was the primary source of nourishment for infants and young children.
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Breast milk was the primary source of nourishment for infants and young children. (Shutterstock/File)
T
he Indonesian public was recently shocked by a statement of the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) that condensed milk is not equal to other milk, because it contains more sugar than milk.
In another part of the world, the United States delegation to the United Nations-affiliated World Health Assembly (WHA) reportedly tried to oppose a resolution to encourage breastfeeding.
The two matters seem to be unrelated at first. One is about condensed milk, while the other is about breastfeeding, but women who cannot breastfeed their babies and cannot afford baby formula might turn to condensed milk, because it is cheaper. According to the Central Statistics Agency (BPS), the most-consumed type of milk in Indonesia is condensed milk. We have yet to identify how many people use condensed milk as an ingredient for other dishes or beverage and how many use it as a substitute for baby formula, which in turn is a substitute for breast milk.
This is disheartening news just a couple of weeks before we celebrate World Breastfeeding Week in Aug. 1-7.
