Exclusive Breastfeeding: How Mothers Brave the Odds to Give Newborns Their First Line of Defence

Every mother wants the best start for her child, but for many Nigerian women, exclusive breastfeeding comes with sleepless nights, financial pressure and physical exhaustion. Yet, despite these challenges, they continue to breastfeed and quietly proving that breastmilk is newborn’s first line of defence. Ayodeji Ake writes 

For Mrs. Bimbo, the sound of a hungry baby crying in the middle of the night is no longer unfamiliar. At three months, her baby still wakes frequently to breastfeed. There are nights when sleep becomes a luxury, days when exhaustion takes over and moments when she wonders how her body continues to produce enough milk. Yet, each time her baby cries, she reaches for her breast. No water, no infant formula, no food. Just breastmilk.

“I am still doing it presently because I still have a baby of three months and we are still on it. No water, no food, no nothing, only breast milk,” Bimbo said.

Her story is one of thousands being lived quietly in homes across Nigeria, where mothers are making difficult choices to practise exclusive breastfeeding despite economic hardship, exhaustion, conflicting advice and the demands of caring for a newborn.

For Bimbo, exclusive breastfeeding is not merely a health recommendation she read somewhere. It is a personal commitment.

“I know the benefits of breast milk and I prefer it to baby food,” she said.

But beneath that determination lies another reality: breastfeeding can be physically and emotionally draining.

And that is precisely why health experts and UNICEF are calling for society to stop treating breastfeeding as a responsibility that belongs to mothers alone.

The Baby’s First Vaccine

As the world marked World Breastfeeding Week from August 1 to 7, themed ‘Breastfeeding for a Sustainable Start in Life’, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) renewed its call for stronger support for breastfeeding mothers. The message was simple but powerful: breastmilk is more than food. It is protection.

UNICEF Chief of Field Office in Lagos, covering the South-West region, Ms Celine Lafoucriere, described breastmilk as every baby’s “first vaccine.”

According to her, breastmilk protects children against illnesses, supports brain development and provides the foundation for healthy growth.

Yet Nigeria continues to face a major breastfeeding gap.

UNICEF warned that only about three in 10 Nigerian babies are exclusively breastfed during their first six months of life.

Even more troubling, only one in three babies is put to the breast within the first hour after birth.

For Lafoucriere, these numbers represent millions of babies who may be missing an important layer of protection during one of the most vulnerable periods of their lives.

She said the South-West, despite its large population, health facilities and growing commercial centres, still has significant work to do to ensure that every newborn benefits from recommended breastfeeding practices.

But the responsibility, she stressed, cannot rest on mothers alone.

Working mothers need supportive workplaces. Health workers need to provide accurate information. Husbands and other family members need to encourage rather than discourage breastfeeding.

And employers need to create environments where women can continue breastfeeding after returning to work.

The Mother Behind the Statistics

Behind every percentage is a woman like Bimbo. She knows the statistics may sound simple, six months of exclusive breastfeeding. But living those six months is an entirely different experience.

“At any little thing, the baby wants to suck, It drains the parent,” she said.

Her words capture a reality that is often missing from public health campaigns. Breastfeeding may be natural, but it is not always easy. The baby wakes at night, the mother wakes, the baby feeds, the mother struggles to return to sleep, then the baby cries again.

For mothers practising exclusive breastfeeding, there is often no handing over the feeding responsibility to another person.

“The exclusive mothers, even breastfeeding mothers, not even only exclusive, we hardly sleep,” Bimbo said.

The exhaustion becomes particularly intense during the first weeks, when babies may struggle with colic and other tummy discomforts.

Bimbo said she has developed her own way of dealing with such moments.

“When they are crying, they are having tummy problems and all that, I still give them breast,” she said.

She explained that rather than routinely purchasing medicines for her children during periods of colic, she has relied on breastfeeding and comfort.

“Anytime they are crying, they are tummy problem and all that is still breast. And they will become calm for that period of time.”

Her experience, however, is personal and should not be interpreted as medical advice for every baby. Health professionals advise parents to seek appropriate medical care whenever a newborn is unwell or shows concerning symptoms.

Unfriendly Economy

The conversation around breastfeeding is also inseparable from Nigeria’s economic reality. Food prices have risen sharply, putting pressure on household budgets. For breastfeeding mothers, however, the nutritional needs of the mother herself become part of the equation. Bimbo knows this firsthand.

“The only thing is that the mother should eat very well,” she said. But eating well is easier said than done. “The economy is not friendly,” she acknowledged.

While exclusive breastfeeding does not require parents to purchase infant formula, the mother still needs adequate food and fluids to support her own health and breastfeeding.

Bimbo said she makes a conscious effort to drink enough water and eat adequately, even though maintaining three square meals every day is not always easy.

“Most times, it’s not all the time, I also take three square meals, but I normally make sure I’m taking enough water,” she said.

Her argument becomes particularly practical when she compares the cost of breastfeeding with infant formula.

She recalled visiting a friend who had delivered through Caesarean section and was using infant formula. According to Bimbo, the tin of formula cost about ₦11,000. “Now please multiply ₦11,000 every week,” she said.

For a mother struggling to manage household expenses, the calculation can quickly become frightening. Bimbo’s conclusion is straightforward.

“Let’s say we have four months, ₦11,000 times four. We are talking of ₦44,000. In my own calculation, I would rather use that ₦44,000 to stock my kitchen, eat very well and give my baby the diet that he needs,” she argued.

Her point reflects one of the economic advantages of breastfeeding: when breastfeeding is possible and appropriate, breastmilk does not require families to repeatedly purchase formula.

But experts caution that mothers should not be shamed when breastfeeding is difficult or impossible. Some women face medical, employment or other circumstances that affect infant-feeding choices. The goal, therefore, should be support not condemnation.

A Body Under Pressure

There is another side of exclusive breastfeeding that rarely appears in statistics: what it does to the mother’s body.

Bimbo laughs when describing her own experience. “It drains me,” she said as she also joked about losing weight.

“Me, if you see me now, I’m lean, but I am happy because it’s giving me the result I want.”

For her, the physical sacrifice is worthwhile because she believes she can see the benefits in her child.

She recalled taking her son for a check-up, where the doctor reportedly asked what she was giving him because of his appearance and development. “I said, it’s just milk,” she recalled.

The doctor, she said, jokingly asked whether she had “fertiliser” in her breastmilk. Bimbo laughed at the memory. “It’s ordinary milk, ordinary breastfeeding, ordinary breast milk.”

Her story illustrates why breastfeeding support must include the mother.

A mother who is constantly exhausted, hungry, emotionally overwhelmed or unsupported may struggle to sustain breastfeeding, regardless of how strongly she believes in its benefits.

When Dad Sleeps, Mum Breastfeeds

For Bimbo, one of the simplest solutions is also one of the most overlooked: fathers must participate.

Breastfeeding itself may require the mother’s body, but motherhood does not mean she should carry every other responsibility alone.

“At night, you will be up taking care of that child, but the father is sleeping,” she said.

Her appeal to fathers is simple. “Let them help with the house chores – washing clothes, preparing meals, cleaning the house, taking care of older children, buying food, and providing emotional reassurance,” she pleaded with men.

These may appear to be small things, but for a mother waking several times during the night to breastfeed, they can make a significant difference.

Bimbo also believes financial support is crucial. “Financially, they should support you,” she said.

Sometimes, she explained, a mother simply wants to eat something different from homemade food.

“There are some times even food, homemade food, you’d be tired of homemade food. You want to get something outside.”

For her, being able to afford such small comforts can improve a mother’s emotional wellbeing.

The message is clear: supporting breastfeeding means supporting the woman who is doing the breastfeeding.

The Workplace Problem

The challenge becomes even more complicated when mothers return to work. UNICEF’s Lafoucriere stressed that working mothers need adequate time and private spaces to breastfeed.

This is particularly important in urban areas such as Lagos, where long commuting hours and demanding work schedules can make breastfeeding difficult.

A mother may leave home before sunrise, spend hours in traffic, work throughout the day and return home exhausted.

Without workplace support, maintaining breastfeeding becomes an uphill battle.

Lafoucriere therefore called for breastfeeding-friendly workplaces that provide mothers with the time and privacy needed to express breastmilk or feed their babies.

She also urged employers to recognise that supporting breastfeeding is not simply a favour to female employees.

It is an investment in healthier families and, ultimately, healthier communities.

Breastmilk Is a Complete Meal

During a Special visitation program organised by the Health Writers’ Association of Nigeria (HJEWAN), at Majidun Primary Health Centre, Chief Nursing Officer, Nurse Janet Otah, reinforced the message during activities marking World Breastfeeding Week.

Using songs and interactive sessions, she engaged mothers and children while explaining why exclusive breastfeeding remains so important.

She described breastmilk as a complete meal for babies during the first six months.

According to her, healthy babies who are exclusively breastfed do not need additional water, herbal preparations, infant formula or other foods during this period.

“Breast milk is a complete meal,” she explained, noting that it contains the nutrients and water a baby needs during the first six months.

She also encouraged mothers to initiate breastfeeding as early as possible after delivery, stressing the importance of colostrum, the first milk produced after birth.

The early milk is particularly valuable because it contains protective components that help the newborn’s developing immune system.

Nurse Otah further explained that breastfeeding benefits mothers as well as babies.

It helps the uterus contract after childbirth and can reduce postpartum bleeding. It is also associated with lower risks of certain cancers, including breast and ovarian cancers.

For babies, she highlighted protection against infections, healthy growth, brain development and emotional bonding between mother and child.

Delivering her keynote address, President of HEWAN, Vivian Ihechu, said the 2026 World Breastfeeding Week theme, “Breastfeeding for a Sustainable Start in Life: Strengthens What Already Works,” underscores breastfeeding as a natural, environmentally friendly and scientifically proven foundation for healthy child development.

According to her, breastfeeding provides complete nutrition without the need for industrial manufacturing or packaging, making it both sustainable and beneficial for the environment.

She explained that strengthening what already works means reinforcing community health systems, supporting nursing mothers and protecting natural infant feeding practices from harmful myths, commercial pressures and unnecessary breast milk substitutes.

Ihechu urged mothers to initiate breastfeeding within the first hour after delivery to enable newborns receive colostrum, the antibody-rich first milk that protects babies from infections while also helping mothers reduce the risk of excessive post-delivery bleeding.

She further encouraged exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life, stressing that breast milk alone provides sufficient water and nutrients required for healthy growth and development.

Breastfeeding does not end at six months

There is also an important distinction between exclusive breastfeeding for six months and continuing breastfeeding beyond six months.

Nurse Otah explained that after six months, breastmilk alone is no longer sufficient to meet all the nutritional needs of a growing baby.

Complementary foods should then be introduced while breastfeeding continues.

She encouraged mothers to continue breastfeeding up to two years and beyond, alongside appropriate nutritious complementary foods.

The transition does not mean abandoning breastmilk.

Instead, breastfeeding becomes part of a broader diet.

She mentioned nutritious homemade options such as enriched pap and other appropriate complementary foods.

Her message was particularly relevant to mothers who may believe that once a baby begins eating solid foods, breastfeeding should immediately stop.

It does not.

The Vaccine in the Breast

The language used by UNICEF, calling breastmilk a baby’s first vaccine is striking because it captures what science has long established about the protective qualities of breastmilk.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), breastmilk is safe, clean and contains antibodies that help protect infants from common childhood illnesses.

It provides the energy and nutrients babies need during the first months of life and continues to contribute substantially to nutrition after six months.

WHO also notes that breastfeeding is associated with improved outcomes in childhood, including better performance on intelligence tests and lower risks of overweight and obesity.

For mothers, breastfeeding is associated with reduced risks of breast and ovarian cancers.

Yet the global rate of exclusive breastfeeding remains below recommended levels.

And inappropriate marketing of breastmilk substitutes continues to undermine breastfeeding efforts.

That makes accurate information especially important.

Mothers need to know the difference between marketing claims and evidence-based medical guidance.

They also need healthcare workers who will listen to their concerns rather than simply tell them what to do.