Glamorous and Hardworking Women Speak up on Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding is one of the most natural and joyous acts of human love. And yet many Filipina mothers today, misled by a number of mistaken notions, continue to depend chiefly on formula milk to nourish their infants.

Beauty, Brains & Breastfeeding Inc. (BBB), a silence-breaking organization advocating breastfeeding, says only 34 per cent of mothers in the Philippines practice exclusive feeding in the first six months of their babies. Based on UNICEF statistics, BBB also reveals that nearly half of all mothers in the country depend on artificial milk in varying degrees.

The group would like to correct several misconceptions which discourage mothers with infants and young children to breastfeed -- main hurdles to having all Filipino newborns properly breastfed: 

• exclusive breastfeeding in the formative first six months of an infant is NOT a hindrance to a mother’s professional or personal goals;

• exclusive breastfeeding is a commitment to give one’s child with life-nourishing food and a good start in life; to think of breastfeeding as only for the poor should be dismissed entirely;

• continued breastfeeding DOES NOT cause  a woman’s breasts to deform, sag or make her look haggard and unattractive; and

• the act of breastfeeding in public places is not an act shame and therefore should be encouraged. 
No matter the prevailing conditions and norms in any society, nothing best embodies the miraculous ties between mother and child than the act of breastfeeding, BBB asserts.

To correct misconceptions, a trio of smart and beautiful women has decided to speak out and recount their empowering experiences with breastfeeding. Billboards featuring media personality Daphne Oseña-Paez, sportscaster Patricia Bermudez-Hizon and social entrepreneur Iza Abeja with their kids will be revealed today to help bring  their strong and timely messages to life.

A total of five billboards, all strategically placed along MIA Road in Pasay City, Philcoa, Quezon City and on the DILG Building in EDSA, will be rolled down, with a few more coming soon.

 

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Daphne Oseña-Paez

Media personality and UNICEF Special Advocate for Children Daphne Oseña-Paez is a proud advocate of exclusive breastfeeding in the Philippines. Through her work with UNICEF and BBB, Daphne shows mothers in the country that finding the time to breastfeed exclusively is simply a matter of proper time-management and freely asking others for help whenever one needs it.

With her demanding schedule as a celebrity, entrepreneur, and child advocate, one might think that Daphne relied on mixed-feeding or formula milk to nurse her three daughters. This, however, was hardly the case - she breastfed her kids exclusively for eight years. 

“I have three daughters,” she says, “Sophia is 8, Lily is 5, and Stella just turned 2 -- all were breastfed for at least 12 months. That seems a long time to be giving up my body for the sake of my children. But it did not feel that way for me at all. Those eight years have been the most beautiful and powerful time of my life.”

Why should a mother opt for exclusive breastfeeding until her infant is six-months old, when there are more convenient alternatives? 

“I don’t think I gave myself a choice… it was just natural,” Daphne says. “I never once considered giving my newborns milk formula.”

 

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As to breastfeeding in public, which others may find subversive, Daphne says: “I nursed my babies everywhere - in malls, restaurants, airports, cars, parks. I do not own a fancy cover-up bib. I simply use a shawl in places where I feel I require discretion. People are still not comfortable seeing mothers nurse in public, but it is comforting to get smiles and approving nods from other mothers (and fathers) who are going through the same thing.”

The success of Daphne’s commitment relied a lot on the support of her family, her entire household, her doctors, colleagues and friends. “Everyone knows I was a breastfeeding mama,” she says, “I made it known to my friends and colleagues, so they can help me.” 

Like most successful endeavors, exclusive breastfeeding required collaboration and teamwork. Daphne made sure her house staff knew how to properly store and thaw the milk she pumped for future feedings. She also made her colleagues aware, during hectic shoots that she needed to take periodic breaks to express milk.  

“They even sometimes stand as my human dressing room, holding up my shawl to help cover me up,” she says. “As much as I’d like to take credit for successfully breastfeeding all my three kids, I must admit I couldn’t have done it without the help of the people around me.”

 

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Patricia Bermudez-Hizon

 Sportscaster Patricia Hizon, the first woman to anchor the Philippine Basketball League (PBA), shares a tip to successfully breastfeeding newborns: a mother must have the full support of her husband, especially during the first six months of the nursing process.

Having had the privilege to cover all the Summer Olympic Games since 2000 - an accomplishment she is most proud of - Patricia, or Shaan, clearly is a believer of the human body’s potentials, and thus  the ability of a woman’s body to do awe-inspiring acts is her reason for joining BBB’s advocacy.

Breastfeeding exclusively is similar to a doubles tennis match, in that one must have the full support of her partner to earn every point. Luckily, Shaan is married to another sports enthusiast, former PBA player Vince Hizon, who understands how her wife’s dedication to breastfeeding requires the same kind of coordination and balance found in sports.

"Vince was a very active partner in breastfeeding. He knew how to store milk, lock the bottle, put it in the bag, and in the freezer in the right order -- first in, first out. He was as committed as I was,” she said.

 

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Shaan also revealed that Vince was a soothing balm to her breastfeeding aches, especially when he would pamper her. He would always make sure she stayed hydrated and ate healthy food as as recommended to nursing mothers. He also stayed up late even if there was basketball practice the next morning to take care of their baby and to give Patricia time to sleep.

Vince’s support, which he manifested in simple ways like placing pillows around her whenever the process made her feel tired, or lifting and carrying the baby to her to relieve her carpal tunnel syndrome, massaging her and offering continuous encouragement and coaching, is priceless to a breastfeeding woman like her.

Patricia admits she wouldn't have been able to nurse their children successfully without Vince’s support.  Vicente who's now 6 years old, and Paul Andrei, 4 years old, are two intelligent, healthy and happy boys. 

“Being a supportive breastfeeding partner is the second sweetest thing Vince has ever done,” Patricia added. "The sweetest was when he proposed to me in front of thousands at the center court of the Araneta Coliseum, witnessed by millions on live TV.”

 

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Iza Abeja

 BBB’s executive director Iza Abeja, a 33-year old mother of two (Joaquin, 7 and Amina Isabelle, 4) admits that breastfeeding may be difficult and challenging at first, especially when nursing firstborns. “Sometimes the milk won’t come out because the latching of the baby is wrong” she says, “this is one of the reasons women need support and encouragement.”

As founder and head of BBB, Iza is doing just that, traveling around the country to support and encourage mothers in breastfeeding at their workplace. Her advocacy is important in many ways, but perhaps no reason is more important than the health benefits breastfeeding provides both infant and mother. 

According to UNICEF, mixed-feeding or feeding infants other liquids or foods before they reach six-months old is “nutritionally deficient, [and] can lead to health problems in young babies.” These problems may include allergies, respiratory infections, diarrhea, and dehydration. Also, infants who are not fed mother’s milk do not receive important antibodies that protect them from a host of diseases. 

In addition, Iza reveals a natural weight-loss secret after giving birth. “I easily went back to my original figure before I got pregnant through exclusive breastfeeding alone. I did not get into a diet or sweat through slimming exercises to get back to my old shape.”

 

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Exclusive breastfeeding is one of the best ways to lose the weight a woman gains from pregnancy, she says. Women burn calories to produce milk, and they use up the extra fatty tissue layers their bodies naturally create while pregnant, in order to support the breastfeeding process. With a proper balanced diet and exclusive breastfeeding, many women can lose their post-pregnancy weight in as early as six weeks.

In addition, Iza is currently stepping up her advocacy by campaigning for extended breastfeeding, even until a child turns three to four years old. Because of this, Iza is focusing her efforts on maternity protection in the workplace as well. “Undernutrition is as much a problem of the labor sector as it is of the health sector,” Iza says. “Together with labor groups such as the Department of Labor and Employment and the Employers Confederation of the Philippines, BBB will campaign to turn breastfeeding into a labor and workplace issue.”