Latham was born in Tanzania in 1928.[3] Latham studied medicine at Trinity College Dublin in Ireland for both his undergraduate (1949) and graduate (1952) degrees.[3] Later, he graduated with a master's degree in tropical medicine from the University of London in 1958 and a master's degree in public health and nutrition from Harvard University in 1965.[3]
Between 1955 and 1964, Latham worked for the Ministry of Health in Tanzania and served as its director of nutrition.[3]
In 1963, Latham began advocating for the use of breastfeeding instead of infant milk formula, and after a decade of struggle, in 1981 he was able to regulate the marketing of infant formula.[3]
To promote breastfeeding, he co-founded the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action in 1991.[3]
