State raises concern as more mothers avoid breastfeeding
The worrying trend is primarily driven by working-class mothers who lack time to breastfeed.
Three out of ten mothers in Kenya are not breastfeeding their babies at all, instead relying entirely on bottle-feeding, according to the latest data from the Ministry of Health.
The State Department for Public Health and Professional Standards reports that bottle-feeding has increased by 12 percentage points, rising from 22 per cent in 2022 to 34 per cent in 2025.
This worrying trend, according to Public Health Principal Secretary Mary Muthoni, is primarily driven by working-class mothers who lack time to breastfeed due to tight work schedules and demanding supervisors who pressure them to prioritise productivity over maternal needs.
Employers have also failed to create conducive breastfeeding environments, including dedicated lactation rooms or breastfeeding stations that nursing mothers can use during work hours, PS Muthoni adds.
"Breastfeeding should be one of the joys of motherhood. It should be a time when a mother is not only bonding with her child, but the nutritional aspect of breast milk is also important in preventing diseases and infections that may potentially harm the young one by helping the baby develop immunity," she told Nation in an interview on Monday.
The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) aligns with the health ministry's position, advocating for breastfeeding as the optimal feeding method for infants while guiding safe and responsive bottle-feeding when breastfeeding is not possible or chosen.
Unicef emphasises the importance of responding to a baby's feeding cues, maintaining close bonding during feeding, and introducing complementary foods appropriately when needed.
"From birth to six months of age, feeding infants nothing but breast milk guarantees them a food source that is uniquely adapted to their nutrient needs, while also being safe, clean, healthy and accessible, no matter where they live," Unicef's 2025 global breastfeeding report states.
The report highlights that putting newborns to the breast within the first hour of life—known as early initiation of breastfeeding, is critical to newborn survival and establishing long-term breastfeeding success.
"When breastfeeding is delayed after birth, the consequences can be life-threatening, and the longer newborns are left waiting, the greater their risk of death," the report warns.
Kenya is currently grappling with a triple burden of malnutrition, under-nutrition, and micro-nutrient deficiencies, according to Ms Muthoni.
Since 2022, 18 percent of children under five are stunted, five percent are wasted, and three percent are overweight, while 43 per cent of adolescent boys are undernourished.
When it comes to micro-nutrient deficiencies, according to data findings, anaemia affects 42 per cent of pregnant women, 22 per cent of non-pregnant women and 26 per cent of pre-school children, while Zinc deficiency affects over 80 per cent of both children and women, and 75 per cent of men,” she said.
As a result, the Ministry of Health says, constant bottle-feeding is having a negative effect on babies which includes a potential lack of natural antibodies present in breast milk, which may increase the baby's susceptibility to infections and the possibility of digestive issues or allergies associated with formula feeding.
This is why the ministry is urging employers to implement supportive workplace policies and set up breastfeeding stations in workplaces. Under the Health Act, 2017, Section 71, all employers are required to establish lactation stations, equipped with a clean and private space for breastfeeding or expressing milk, along with storage facilities.
“The Act also requires that flexible nursing breaks be provided for lactating employees, without loss of remuneration or benefits. It also provides for three months of paid maternity leave for female employees, and two weeks of paid paternity leave for male employees,” Ms Muthoni told Nation. She further explained that these legal provisions are critical to ensuring that mothers can successfully breastfeed while they return to work at the end of their maternity leaves.
