ABSTRACT
We present the subject of infant and young child feeding, with emphasis on protection, promotion, and support of early, exclusive, and continued breastfeeding as well as safe and adequate complementary feeding. We introduce our topic in the context of the right to adequate food and nutrition and how this right is intrinsically connected with the fulfillment of all children’s and women’s rights. Two specific issues contextualize our topic: HIV/AIDS and emergency situations. These additional challenges to infant and young child feeding tend to be approached on a needs basis as a “service delivery” type of intervention, rather than through a holistic human rights approach defined in part by dialogue between rights holders and duty bearers. Finally, we introduce the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) initiative and query the extent to which it offers opportunities or challenges to addressing malnutrition, hunger, and human rights in the context of maternal, infant, and young child nutrition and health.
