Kevin Humphreys (Labour) | Oireachtas source

Last week, we saw a report on breastfeeding and the challenges Ireland faces in this regard. We see from the data that were published that Ireland is 31st out of 41 countries, just slightly above Britain, for breastfeeding rates. This is an important public health issue because there are health benefits of breastfeeding not only for the mother, but also for the child. I believe our poor rates are due to the lack of support for mothers and families in our maternity hospitals and often from our GP services in the run-up to the birth of a child, which is a very happy event. We can look at all the different reports that have been published over the past number of years that keep on telling us the huge benefits of breastfeeding, yet we have very poor outcomes in Ireland in this regard. I ask the Leader to arrange for a debate in the Seanad on the rates of breastfeeding in Ireland. It has often been discussed in this House in the context of obesity and the effects obesity has on our children, our young people. It has been shown that breastfeeding could greatly reduce the incidence of obesity in Ireland if it were properly supported by the HSE. Breastfeeding also has economic benefits. A Lancetreport recently stated that the Irish State is losing an estimated €800 million due to our poor performance on breastfeeding, so this would be a win-win for the HSE if it properly supported mothers in this regard. The mother's health hugely benefits from breastfeeding, as does the child's, so I would appreciate it if at the earliest possible date we could have a full debate on this, taking into consideration the benefits for the mother and the child, but also the financial savings regarding the cost to the HSE.