Source: Malawi News Agency (Lilongwe)
Lilongwe — The Director for Department of Human Immune Virus (HIV) in the Ministry of Health, Dr. Frank Chimbwandira said HIV positive mothers could exclusively breastfed their children up to two years.

Speaking in an interview, Tuesday the HIV director told Malawi news Agency (Mana) that there are no problems for HIV mothers to breastfeed their children for more years provided they keep taking Anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs).

"There is a high chance of amount of virus to be low for HIV mothers when they take ARVs", said Chimbwandira.

He said that they increased the number of months for breastfeeding children because there is little chance for a mother to transmit the virus to her child because the ARVs help protect them both.

He added that mothers on ARVs also have chances to bear healthy children just like mothers who are not as long as they continue taking ARVs before and after the child is born.

"New born babies have to be fed breast milk for a period of six months before they are given any hard food such as porridge, so the ARVs help mothers' breastfed their children during this period and when they are introduced to extra food stuff." He said.

Chimbwandira explained that Botswana, Rwanda and Uganda are among African countries which are on the same program.

He urged HIV women to continue taking ARVs so that their health and children is not deteriorated.

Ministry of health increased number of breastfeeding months to one year in 2011 and it has since increased it again to two years.

• Malawi