76.3 M people worldwide suffer from alcohol-related disorders

Sober up to this fact: Some 76.3 million people all over the world are suffering from diseases caused by alcohol abuse.

The warning was aired by the World Health Organization (WHO), which noted that "harmful use of alcohol" is associated with more than 60 types of illnesses and other health conditions, including mental disorders, suicide, cirrhosis, and intentional and unintentional injuries.

"In addition to the impact on public health, there are substantial social and economic costs associated with the harmful use of alcohol," said the WHO.

Last month, the WHO regional office for Western Pacific met with the representatives of the alcohol industry, agricultural and trade sectors to reduce the public health problem brought by alcohol abuse.

It is estimated that alcohol-related harm accounts for 5.5 perscent of the burden of disease in the region, the WHO said.

"While consumption of alcohol is leveling off in some countries and areas in the Western Pacific Region, the reverse is happening in many others," the WHO added.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)) hailed as a major triumph for Filipino children the signing of the much-awaited revised implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of the National Milk Code.

In a letter sent to The STAR, UNICEF country representative Dr. Nicholas Alipui said strict implementations of the IRR "can only mean better health, proper nutrition and optimal brain development for all children in the Philippines."

"It is a major triumph in the desperate fight to reduce child deaths and malnutrition in the Philippines," said Alipui, who likewise commended Health Secretary Francisco Duque III for signing the IRR.

The revised IRR is stricter on the promotion, advertisement and marketing of infant formula or cow’s milk.

The UNICEF and the World Health Organization recommend exclusive breastfeeding of infants for the first six months of their life.

Both promote appropriate complementary foods and continued breastfeeding for children two years and above.

Earlier, Alipui expressed alarm on the fast waning culture of breastfeeding in the country, saying this could affect the health of Filipino children.

"Such optimal breastfeeding should be energetically supported and promoted at all costs. Any contraindications to breastfeeding are so exceptionally rare as to be insignificant in the Philippine context," Alipui said.

He assured that all mothers can breastfeed and produce enough milk for their babies because breastmilk production is primed through a baby’s sucking.

Alipui laments how some health professionals peddle the notion that mothers do not have enough milk.

"Unfortunately, the fallacy that mothers do not have enough milk is all too often perpetrated by health professional themselves," Alipui said.

He also debunked the misconception that breastmilk proteins could cause allergies.

On the contrary, Alipui said it is the undigested cow’s milk protein that can cause allergies because it can pass through the gut of a formula-fed infant.

"The incidence of cow’s milk allergies is up to seven times greater in babies who are fed artificial milk instead of human milk. Allergy in a breastfed infant may be caused not by breastmilk but by the food that the mother eats," Alipui said.

He said nothing could compare to the benefits of breastmilk, saying children who were breastfed as infants have as much as 10 IQ points higher than those who were fed with infant formula.

"Furthermore, the strong emotional bond of a child with the mother, which is attained through breastfeeding, instills confidence and enhanced psychosocial development in a young child," Alipui said.