Nutritional interventions are important in the development of young children. However, they are not enough on their own. They must be accompanied by responsive care in the context of early learning opportunities.
A paradigmatic example of adequate nutrition and responsive care is the feeding of human milk on demand to newborns and infants.
Health workers should support women that breastfeed to do so on demand, accompany the process of breastfeeding, encourage secure bonding, and stimulate sensitivity and responsiveness with care that is rapid, consistent, contingent and appropriate to the child's cues, clues, behaviors and needs. In the postnatal period, it is possible to optimize nutrition by providing guidance on how to make eye contact, smile, talk, sing, and gently massage the baby during and outside of feeding periods.
It is very important to support sensitive care in conjunction with optimal nutrition for newborns, infants and young children.
