The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) issues new guidance on diet and nutrition to help give babies and toddles the best start in life
March 28, 2008
The NICE guidance advises those who work with pregnant women and mothers on how to help them make decisions about their diet and lifestyle that will keep them healthy and give their babies the best start in life. NICE calls for national consistency in the quality and quantity of support available to help address disparities in the nutrition of mothers and young children from low-income and other disadvantaged groups compared with the general population.
The public health guidance is based on evidence showing how all those who work with families can support mothers in changing their own and their child’s eating habits, thus increasing their chances of a healthy life. It makes recommendations relevant from conception to five years of age. Advice to health professionals includes; making people aware of the Healthy Start Scheme; providing practical and tailored advice on healthy eating through pregnancy and in the early years; advising on vitamin supplements and; setting up easily accessible breastfeeding peer support programmes
Entry Filed under: Babyfeeding, Early parenthood, England, Parliamentary update, Pregnancy and birth, Wales. Tags: Healthy Start, NCT, NICE, nutrition, public health.
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Rosie Dodds, NCT | March 28, 2008 at 12:02 pm
NCT supports the priority given to increasing support for breastfeeding as one of the most effective ways to reduce inequalities in health. Full implementation of the UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative across hospital and community services, improved training for health professionals and peer support schemes for breastfeeding women should enable more families to access accurate information and sensitive support when they need it. English health services have fallen behind Scotland and Northern Ireland in the meeting the Baby Friendly standards in spite of the NICE Postnatal Care recommendation 20 months ago that it should be rolled out across acute and community services. As NICE point out;
‘Interventions that successfully increase breastfeeding initiation and duration among those least inclined to breastfeed are likely to be highly cost effective.’
We endorse the Guideline Development group’s view that the value of the Healthy Start vouchers should be increased and more community based food initiatives should be able to use the vouchers. These vouchers are targeted at the poorest mothers and children who are not always able to afford a healthy diet.
We are also glad to see the instruction to NHS trusts, health centres, GP surgeries, children’s centres, and pharmacists to avoid promoting or advertising infant formula or follow-on formula through leaflets, posters, charts, educational materials or any other materials and equipment produced by infant formula, bottle and teat manufacturers. There has been a great deal of naivety in allowing some services, information material and training to be sponsored by those with conflicts of interest.
We now urgently need mechanisms to ensure there is rapid action to implement these recommendations, not only throughout the health service, but also in local authorities, schools, community and social services departments.
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