Thursday November 17 is World Prematurity Day, and while there might not be a lot of practical things we can do to prevent others from having premature babies,  we can help those who look after the preemies.

There's a purple sticker initiative, where you can buy one for R10, and support the Groote Schuur Neonatal Unit, which tends to more than 3 000 prem babies each year.

Even if you don’t buy a sticker, you can still wear purple to show your support. For info on where to buy your sticker, or how to donate or assist the Groote Schuur unit, go to Newborns Trust or call 021 404 6023 or email enquiries@newborns.org.za. If you don't want to buy a sticker, but would still like to make a donation, you can do so on the site.

Stickers are also available at Toys R Us Baywest, Bellville, Canal Walk, Cape Gate, Cavendish, Gateway, George, Hemmingways, Kuilsriver, Mitchell's Plain, N1 City, Pavilion, Saldanha, Somerset West, Tokai, Watercrest, William Moffet. and online at www.babygroup.co.za

To further show their support to parents and premature babies, Huggies will be donating Huggies Preemie nappies to some neonatal care units who look after preemies. The nappies are highly absorbent and made from soft, breathable materials and fit little bodies properly (oversized nappies can cause babies to lie with their legs in a "frog-like’" position, which hampers muscle tone development).

For more info on World Prematurity Day, head to the Facebook page 

Did you know?

In South Africa, one in seven babies are born preterm (15% of all births). Globally around 15 million babies (12% of all births) are born preterm and 1 million die due to complications and a lack of proper healthcare.  In low-income settings where proper neonatal intensive care is often not available, only around 50% of preterm babies survive

Preterm births are becoming more common as a result of late or inadequate antenatal care, hypertension, diabetes, pre-eclampsia and other pregnancy related illnesses. In the private sector, medical practitioners also associate this increase with more women choosing to be older first-time mothers and the use of assisted fertilisation which often results in multiple pregnancies which carries an increased risk of premature births.

Call the Newborns Trust office on 021 404 6023/5 or 0822542652 or email enquiries@newborns.org.za to place an order for the stickers or to find out where you can buy stickers yourself.