The soft cries and gurgling of babies filled the waiting area of Mater Dei Hospital's outpatients department as 82 mothers prepared to breastfeed their children simultaneously yesterday morning.

For one minute - between 10 and 10.01 a.m. - the hall was shrouded in silence, as the children nursed.

Ignoring the round of applause after the minute was over, most of the infants continued to suckle quietly.

Pushchairs and prams of all shapes and sizes added a tinge of colour to the new hospital. The youngest baby was a mere three weeks old, while the oldest was two years and four months. The Malta Synchronised Breastfeeding Record was part of the first worldwide attempt to set a record of simultaneous breastfeeding for the Guinness World Records. The event was proposed by Children for Breastfeeding Inc., which encourages mothers to breastfeed, and authorised by the Guinness World Records.

The aim of yesterday's event was to raise awareness about the benefits of breastfeeding, for both mother and baby, Lucienne Pace, from the Health Promotion Department said. The local event was organised by the Malta Breastfeeding Foundation together with Mater Dei Hospital and the department.

Although the Guinness World Records had set the minimum number of women breastfeeding at each location at 100, yesterday's was still a record-breaker for Malta.

Manager midwifery services Margaret Abela said the rate of breastfeeding had dropped when mothers started going to hospital to give birth. "We (medical professionals) should leave nature to take its course and only intervene when things are not going well," she said.

Sarah Cutajar, a member of the Malta Breastfeeding Foundation, is a firm believer in the benefits of breastfeeding and she breastfed all her four children. Her youngest daughter kept up the breastfeeding until she was three years and seven months old.

"It is the best and most natural nourishment for children. And it is also known that it is best for the mother, with mothers who breastfeed their babies having a lower incidence of breast and ovarian cancer and osteoporosis," she said, adding that it also helps avoid post-natal depression.

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