Fewer Working Mothers in Cambodia Breastfeed
2020-01-02
LRC
TXT
大字
小字
滚动
全页
1The story of Sim Ark helps explain a problem in Cambodia that has health experts concerned: fewer Cambodian women are breastfeeding their babies.
2Before giving birth to her second child, Sim Ark said she did not think much about what a workplace needed to support a new mother.
3After her first child was born, she stayed at home.
4But now the 29-year-old works at the You Li International factory in Bavet city, in Cambodia.
5"I want to have a daycare facility right in my workplace so that I can visit my baby while working," Sim Ark told VOA.
6She had been working at You Li before giving birth to her son Ham Ya Oudom.
7After her son was born, her supervisors began calling her.
8Within three months she returned to work because she did not want to risk losing her job.
9Since she was not at home during the day, Sim Ark was unable to breastfeed her newborn son.
10Instead the child received a breastmilk substitute, known as formula, from a bottle.
11At night, he changed back to breast milk unless Sim Ark worked overtime, which she said causes her milk to stop flowing.
12On average, a 10-week-old baby consumes seven containers of infant formula within a month. Each container costs about $12.
13Most workers in the clothing industry earn about $182 each month.
14Sim Ark and other workers would like to be able to breastfeed their children until they are at least 6 months old, as doctors recommend.
15But they do not know how to raise the issue with their employers.
16"I'm not sure how it (would) look like if we had [a daycare facility in a factory]. Maybe a family member could come and help [in the facility] to look after the baby," Sim Ark said, only to add, "Then nobody would be available to do the work at home."
17Her return to work helps explain why the rate of breastfeeding is decreasing in Cambodia, a change that worries child development experts.
18United Nations Children's Fund, or UNICEF, said government data shows that 74 percent of Cambodia's children younger than 6 months old were breastfed in 2010.
19By 2014, the most recent year for which information is available, that number had fallen sharply.
20The country went from having one of the highest rates of breastfeeding to a midlevel rate of 65 percent.
21Cristian Munduate is a UNICEF representative in Cambodia.
22She called this change a major decrease.
23She also described breastfeeding as "the best practice for a child during its first 6 months of life - the first natural vaccine that a child receives."
24UNICEF suggests that correct breastfeeding practices could prevent an estimated 823,000 child deaths every year worldwide.
25The medical publication The Lancet reports that breastfeeding improves mental development, success in school and future earning potential.
26Alive & Thrive is an international effort to support mother and infant health.
27It released a report on the costs of not breastfeeding in Cambodia.
28It said three major illnesses in children and mothers could sharply rise because of the fall in breastfeeding.
29Diarrhea and pneumonia in children and type II diabetes in mothers are believed to be kept under control by the practice.
30The Alive & Thrive report also suggests Cambodia could lose $83 million a year because of future mental development losses linked with a lack of breastfeeding.
31UNICEF warns that a lack of community and government support for breastfeeding is leading to the decrease.
32The UN agency also blames the difficulty of balancing infant care with a job, and the aggressive marketing of infant formula.
33Cristian Munduate says there are about 2.4 million women ages 15 to 34 in the country's labor force.
34Cambodia has a law guaranteeing many women the chance to breastfeed.
35But the law and reality are two different things, said Lim Buyheak.
36The 35-year-old is studying clinical psychology at Vietnam National University.
37She has breastfed her daughter since she was born five months ago.
38She bought an electronic breast milk collection device for $145 and tried to use it to gather and store her breast milk.
39It turned out to be so difficult, she gave up.
40She now works on her studies from home to be able to breastfeed her daughter.
41Lim Buyheak formed a group with other mothers on the social media service Facebook in November.
42It now has about 160 members who discuss breastfeeding and support each other.
43"At first, I felt a little bit shy," she said.
44"Now I feel very good to have support from my friends."
45The formula industry is international and growing.
46In 2014, reports suggest formula sales reached about $44.8 billion worldwide.
47The World Health Organization expects that sales will have increased to $70.6 billion by the end of the year.
48Activist groups say these sales are supported by marketing campaigns that are banned in some countries.
49In July, Helen Keller International and World Vision International published a report on information found on containers of formula in Cambodia.
50The two non-governmental organizations said that 92 percent of formula containers had information on them that supported formula use or did not support breastfeeding.
51This, the groups said, violates the Cambodian government's policy to support infant breastfeeding.
52"These products are often marketed with misleading claims," said Mary Champeny, a nutrition researcher from Helen Keller International.
53In 1981, the World Health Assembly agreed to an International Code of Marketing Breast-milk Substitutes.
54That agreement called on nations "to protect and promote breastfeeding."
55It also called for the supervision of marketing formula to mothers.
56I'm Anna Matteo.
57And I'm Pete Musto.
1The story of Sim Ark helps explain a problem in Cambodia that has health experts concerned: fewer Cambodian women are breastfeeding their babies. 2Before giving birth to her second child, Sim Ark said she did not think much about what a workplace needed to support a new mother. 3After her first child was born, she stayed at home. But now the 29-year-old works at the You Li International factory in Bavet city, in Cambodia. 4"I want to have a daycare facility right in my workplace so that I can visit my baby while working," Sim Ark told VOA. 5She had been working at You Li before giving birth to her son Ham Ya Oudom. After her son was born, her supervisors began calling her. Within three months she returned to work because she did not want to risk losing her job. 6Since she was not at home during the day, Sim Ark was unable to breastfeed her newborn son. Instead the child received a breastmilk substitute, known as formula, from a bottle. At night, he changed back to breast milk unless Sim Ark worked overtime, which she said causes her milk to stop flowing. 7On average, a 10-week-old baby consumes seven containers of infant formula within a month. Each container costs about $12. Most workers in the clothing industry earn about $182 each month. Sim Ark and other workers would like to be able to breastfeed their children until they are at least 6 months old, as doctors recommend. But they do not know how to raise the issue with their employers. 8"I'm not sure how it (would) look like if we had [a daycare facility in a factory]. Maybe a family member could come and help [in the facility] to look after the baby," Sim Ark said, only to add, "Then nobody would be available to do the work at home." 9Her return to work helps explain why the rate of breastfeeding is decreasing in Cambodia, a change that worries child development experts. 10United Nations Children's Fund, or UNICEF, said government data shows that 74 percent of Cambodia's children younger than 6 months old were breastfed in 2010. By 2014, the most recent year for which information is available, that number had fallen sharply. The country went from having one of the highest rates of breastfeeding to a midlevel rate of 65 percent. 11Cristian Munduate is a UNICEF representative in Cambodia. She called this change a major decrease. She also described breastfeeding as "the best practice for a child during its first 6 months of life - the first natural vaccine that a child receives." 12UNICEF suggests that correct breastfeeding practices could prevent an estimated 823,000 child deaths every year worldwide. The medical publication The Lancet reports that breastfeeding improves mental development, success in school and future earning potential. 13Alive & Thrive is an international effort to support mother and infant health. It released a report on the costs of not breastfeeding in Cambodia. It said three major illnesses in children and mothers could sharply rise because of the fall in breastfeeding. Diarrhea and pneumonia in children and type II diabetes in mothers are believed to be kept under control by the practice. 14The Alive & Thrive report also suggests Cambodia could lose $83 million a year because of future mental development losses linked with a lack of breastfeeding. 15Several reasons for fall in breastfeeding 16UNICEF warns that a lack of community and government support for breastfeeding is leading to the decrease. The UN agency also blames the difficulty of balancing infant care with a job, and the aggressive marketing of infant formula. 17Cristian Munduate says there are about 2.4 million women ages 15 to 34 in the country's labor force. Cambodia has a law guaranteeing many women the chance to breastfeed. 18But the law and reality are two different things, said Lim Buyheak. The 35-year-old is studying clinical psychology at Vietnam National University. 19She has breastfed her daughter since she was born five months ago. She bought an electronic breast milk collection device for $145 and tried to use it to gather and store her breast milk. It turned out to be so difficult, she gave up. She now works on her studies from home to be able to breastfeed her daughter. 20Lim Buyheak formed a group with other mothers on the social media service Facebook in November. It now has about 160 members who discuss breastfeeding and support each other. 21"At first, I felt a little bit shy," she said. "Now I feel very good to have support from my friends." 22The formula industry is international and growing. In 2014, reports suggest formula sales reached about $44.8 billion worldwide. The World Health Organization expects that sales will have increased to $70.6 billion by the end of the year. 23Activist groups say these sales are supported by marketing campaigns that are banned in some countries. 24In July, Helen Keller International and World Vision International published a report on information found on containers of formula in Cambodia. The two non-governmental organizations said that 92 percent of formula containers had information on them that supported formula use or did not support breastfeeding. This, the groups said, violates the Cambodian government's policy to support infant breastfeeding. 25"These products are often marketed with misleading claims," said Mary Champeny, a nutrition researcher from Helen Keller International. 26In 1981, the World Health Assembly agreed to an International Code of Marketing Breast-milk Substitutes. That agreement called on nations "to protect and promote breastfeeding." It also called for the supervision of marketing formula to mothers. 27I'm Anna Matteo. 28And I'm Pete Musto. 29Khan Sukummono reported this story for VOA News. Pete Musto adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. 30_________________________________________________________________ 31Words in This Story 32facility - n. something such as a building or large piece of equipment that is built for a specific purpose 33consume(s) - v. to eat or drink something 34infant - n. a very young child 35practice - n. the action of doing or using something 36potential - n. an ability that someone has that can be developed to help that person become successful 37shy - adj. feeling nervous and uncomfortable about meeting and talking to people 38promote - v. to help something happen, develop, or increase