Abstract

Significance. World Health Organization correlates breastfeeding with at least eight out of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals. However, in the Russian Federation breastfeeding issues are not reflected in any of the Federal programs of the national projects “Demography” and “Health Care”. Purpose of the study: to scientifically substantiate the need for including measures to encourage and maintain breastfeeding in the Russian national programs related to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, based on the analysis of modern literature. Material and methods. The study included sources available from the English-language database PubMed. A total of 57 sources were selected out of 317 findings by keywords “human milk composition and bioactivity”, “breastfeeding and Sustainable Development Goals”, “breastfeeding short-term and long-term benefits” and “breastfeeding and potential lives saved”. Results. The study revealed unique biologically active components of the human milk and mechanisms of their impact on prevention of infectious and non-communicable diseases as well as programming of health in adult life. Breastfeeding has a positive impact on mothers’ and children’ health. The increased rate of breastfeeding could globally prevent 823,000 or 13.8% of deaths among children under 2 yearly and 22216 deaths from breast cancer among women. Lack of breastfeeding is associated with lower intelligence and higher economic costs adding up to about $ 302 billion annually, or 0.49% of the world's gross national income. There are unfavorable trends in prevalence and duration of breastfeeding worldwide. The healthcare has a leading role to play in implementing measures to encourage and maintain breastfeeding. Conclusion. It is necessary to incorporate measures to encourage and maintain breastfeeding in the Russian national programs related to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Implementation and further development of the WHO/UNICEF “Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative” in the Russian Federation can become the cornerstone in increasing the level of breastfeeding with the participation of the health sector. Scope of application. Executive and health authorities at all levels, mother and child health facilities, national programs

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