The first 1000 days of life, which starts from pregnancy until the child’s second birthday is regarded as the “golden window of opportunity” where the child’s health, optimum growth, brain development, and other vital progress are established. Fostering the child’s health, nutrition, and psychosocial development at this crucial period will have an impact for a lifetime. As parents, these responsibilities must not be limited to mothers alone. Fathers should be involved too!

A classic Filipino culture assigns most of the family-nurturing responsibilities to the mothers as the “ilaw ng tahanan”. As the “haligi ng tahanan”, fathers on the other hand take most of the duties that involve the family’s finances, overall planning, and decision-making. With this setup, mothers have to do the entire task at home including taking care of children while fathers leave home for work. As a result, fathers were not usually involved in child-rearing activities and responsibilities and most likely, the same happens during pregnancy and early stages of infancy.

Mothers play an overwhelming role during the first 1000 days starting from pregnancy, to giving birth, to breastfeeding, to the preparation of complementary foods, to taking care of the child, and the list of duties continues. On top of these are other non-baby-related responsibilities that they have to juggle every day such as work, finances, household chores, among others. The world evolved in so many aspects, including parental tasking. As more mothers are now engaged in financial and other “father-branded” duties, it is just right for fathers to cross the line and be actively involved in child-rearing and other supposed “for-mothers-only” responsibilities. 

So how can fathers be involved in this amazing journey? One is through the provision of practical and emotional support by boosting the mothers’ positive health-seeking behavior. As mothers undergo many physiological and hormonal changes, fathers must act as their number one supporter, encouraging them to undergo essential pre and post-natal services, consume healthy foods, do light exercise, avoid drug abuse, smoking, and alcohol consumption, among others. Participation of fathers helps improve child survival through increased birth weight and decreased incidence of preterm births.

Another function a father should do is to support mothers during their breastfeeding journey. Breastfeeding the child is the best nutritional decision a mother can choose. Yes, breastfeeding may not be easy but with the support of the father and other family members, mothers can make it through and continue breastfeeding up to two (2) years and even beyond.

Babies should be exclusively breastfed during the first six months and must be provided with proper complementary foods from six months onwards to meet their increased nutritional needs. During this period, fathers’ participation in the complementary food preparation and actual feeding will hugely help mothers, which at the same time benefit fathers by having increased bond and quality time with their child. 

Fathers must be involved in the child’s psychosocial development too! Fathers have to spend some time with their children playing, discovering, and learning new things. Caring for their children and providing the love and attention they deserved goes a long way. 

These are just a few of the numerous responsibilities that should involve fathers and not just mothers alone. As it takes two to tango, fathers too are encouraged to participate in household chores and other home concerns, lending help to mothers. Society stereotyped fathers as strong, and unconcerned. Otherwise, they will be judged as womanlike. This labeling should end and fathers’ involvement must be normalized. Fathers should appreciate the important roles they play by linking them to nutrition education activities, and other programs and projects concerning their child’s first 1000 days of life. Both private and public sectors should also encourage fathers’ involvement through the provision of paid fraternity leave, incentives, and formulation of necessary policies that will help them become a better father to their family.

Taking responsibility in nurturing the child’s first 1000 days of life does not make a father less of a man. Instead, it is one of the concrete ways to show his manliness as a responsible father to his child and a loving husband to his spouse. Papa, Tatay, Dad, or whatever ways they were called, they play big roles in ensuring proper nutrition in the child’s first 1000 days of life. (PNC Stephanie C. Barrio)

References:

Bakermans-kranenburg, Marian & Lotz, Anna & Dijk, Kim & IJzendoorn, Marinus. (2019). Birth of a Father: Fathering in the First 1,000 Days. Child Development Perspectives. 13. 10.1111/cdep.12347.

Makusha, T. and Richter, L. (2018 August 7). Fathers need to get involved in the first 1000 days of their kids’ lives. The Conversation. https://theconversation.com/fathers-need-to-get-involved-in-the-first-1000-days-of-their-kids-lives-100779

Sarah Cusick, S. and Georgieff, M. (2013 April 12). The first 1,000 days of life: The brain’s window of opportunity. UNICEF. https://www.unicef-irc.org/article/958-the-first-1000-days-of-life-the-brains-window-of-opportunity.html

UNICEF (2018 June 7). Fathers are one of the best, yet most underutilized child development resources. https://www.unicef.org/eca/press-releases/fathers-are-one-best-yet-most-underutilized-child-development-resources