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National Breastfeeding Committee

The main task of the National Breastfeeding Committee is the promotion of breastfeeding in the Federal Republic of Germany. The Committee advises the Federal Government, issues guidelines and recommendations and supports initiatives to dismantle obstacles to breastfeeding.

The Breastfeeding Committee was set up in 1994 at the Robert Koch Institute. In 1999 it was integrated into the former Federal Institute for Consumer Health Protection and Veterinary Medicine (BgVV) and since 2002 it has been attached to BfR.

With the setting up of the National Breastfeeding Committee the German Government endorsed the so-called Innocenti Declaration “on the protection, promotion and support of breastfeeding” and complied with a demand of the 45^th World Health Assembly of 1992.

The Committee was set up with the goal of supporting the development of a new breastfeeding culture in the Federal Republic of Germany and to contribute towards breastfeeding becoming a normal diet for infants.

The National Breastfeeding Committee includes members from professional medical associations and organisations which support the promotion of breastfeeding in Germany.

Advice for political decision makers, doctors, midwives and parents

The National Breastfeeding Committee advises the Federal Government on initiatives to dismantle obstacles to breastfeeding.

Furthermore, it issues practical recommendations on breastfeeding for doctors, midwives, hospital staff and mothers which are published on the website or in information leaflets for pregnant and breastfeeding women.

Breastfeeding recommendations for pregnant women (to insert into the maternity pass) and for the infancy period (to insert into the child examination logbook) are available in German, Turkish, Russian, English, French and Italian. They may be obtained with the corresponding number of copies free of charge from the secretariat of the National Breastfeeding Committee and can also be downloaded as pdf file from the internet.

The information material of the National Breastfeeding Committee cannot replace personal advice.

Where can breastfeeding women get practical support?

The National Breastfeeding Committee cannot provide individual consulting on breastfeeding problems or health issues during breastfeeding.

In these cases women should contact their midwife, a breastfeeding adviser or their family practitioner. Addresses of contacts around breastfeeding can be found on the internet portal on breastfeeding.

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