It improves child mental development

Seriously low rates of breast-feeding are stunting the mental development of children.

The Health Ministry is embarking on a big effort to change new mothers' child-feeding habits.

It's establishing breast-feeding clinics across the country where experts will educate young mothers about the advantages of breast milk. The national symbol of this effort is Miss Breast Milk.

Mothers will learn that breast-feeding infants for just six months significantly improves their mental and intellectual development.

The ministry says current breast-feeding data is shocking and that as a result children's development is being arrested.

According to Unicef's largest ever survey of women and children in Thailand in 2007, the 43,000-household probe discovered that the percentage of infants being exclusively breast-fed during the first six months of life was just 5.4.

Better IQ

The ministry adds that children's intelligence quotients are below average. Children in the country are producing scores of between 88 and 99. The international "centre value" is 100.

"Babies should be breast-fed until they are at least six months old," says Minister Chaiya Sasomsap.

Breast milk contains more than 200 nutrients, including fatty acids for brain-cell growth and proteins to generate the body's immune system, essential in helping infants ward off disease.

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the benefits

>> Health Department says just six months' breast-feeding

increase IQs by 2-11 points

>> Brest-fed children are generally healthier.