HIV and Infant Feeding
HIV through mother-to-child transmission breastfeeding The Facts Without preventive interventions, approximately one-third of infants born to HIV-positive mothers contract HIV through mother-to-child transmission, becoming infected during their mothers' pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. In 2001, 800,000 children under the age of 15 contracted HIV, over 90 per cent of them through mother-to-child transmission of HIV (MTCT). Between 15 and 25% of children born to HIV-infected mothers get infected with HIV during pregnancy or delivery, while about 15% of the children get infected through breastfeeding. Factors that may decrease the risk of HIV transmission through breastfeeding include: Shorter duration of breastfeeding. The longer a child is breastfed by an HIV-positive mother the higher the risk of HIV infection. Brea...