Informal Breast Milk Sharing or Donation
June 3, 2008 by Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor
Filed under breast milk, breastfeeding, breastfeeding stories, donation of breast milk, pumping
Some women end up with a bountiful stash of frozen breast milk — be it from oversupply, a baby in the NICU, or an infant who turns out to be allergic to something in the milk pumped so far. Some of those women are moved to donate the excess milk to a non-profit milk bank. In the past few days, I have heard two women express (no pun intended) frustration at the restrictions posted on women who wish to qualify as breast milk donors. One, whose oversupply and dairy-free diet could certainly have benefited a milk bank, was turned away because she had lived in Great Britain in the ’80s.
Another wrote to tell me her story, and to explain why she supports informal breast milk sharing or donation. Her daughter was born premature at 30 weeks gestation. Fortunately the baby is doing well now and she should be released from the NICU in another two weeks. Here is what the mother had to say about what she hopes to do with her stash of expressed breast milk:
Since our baby has been in the NICU for the last 7 weeks, I have about 2,000 oz of breast milk frozen. We have filled our space allotment in the hospital’s milk bank, filled our freezer at home, and have almost filled my mom’s freezer. There’s no possible way [my daughter] will ever catch up with what I have stored, and anyway, I prefer to breastfeed [when she is ready to transition to the breast]. (We didn’t use bottles much at all with our first.)
I first looked at donating to a milk bank, but can’t because one of the requirements is that you haven’t received a blood transfusion within the past 12 months, so that ruled out that option. (I had practically all of the blood in my body replaced during/after an emergency C-section . . .) Another mother in the NICU was literally pouring her milk down the drain, because she had also filled her space in the hospital’s freezer and her home freezer. I just couldn’t bring myself to do that, because I knew there were people that would really appreciate it. I just didn’t know where to find them.
When I was craving ice cream a few nights ago (which I couldn’t buy because we don’t have room in the freezer for it), I decided I had to take some actions to find a home for it. In my search, I saw that there are quite a few people passionately against milk sharing. Not sure why when obviously there are many healthy people with abundant supplies and many people who can’t afford to purchase milk from a milk bank. Most people do home pasteurization in some form anyway. Obviously people should be aware of the risks of taking a stranger’s milk . . .
Anyway, I think I’ve found someone who wants me to ship all my milk to her, but that milkshare Yahoo group is really active, and I’m pretty sure if this lady I’ve been in communication with changes her mind, that I wouldn’t have any trouble finding a home for it. I do think that milk sharing deserves more attention though, because a lot of women who give birth are also given a blood transfusion, and current milk banking practices eliminate all of those women from donating. (My sister researched the reason for this, and it’s because there was one case of West Nile virus being transmitted through donated milk. If a woman waits through the incubation period to donate her milk, then she can rule out that threat.) And the state of medical insurance what it is, most families can’t afford to buy milk from a bank.
Well, I’ve been long winded here. I just know I’m not the only NICU parent with an excess of milk, so there are others who don’t know what to do with their milk.
I am pleased and grateful that this woman wrote to share her opinion on informal breast milk donation. What’s your opinion? Would you donate your milk informally? Would you take advantage of casual milk sharing if you and your baby had the need? How do you feel about any potential risk of disease transmission or other problems with milk not screened by a milk bank? Are independent testing and pasteurization methods adequate? Leave a comment!
I shared breast milk with my sister’s best friend this past winter. She was supplementing, he was in daycare, and getting sick a lot. So I offered to share. At first, she was a little unsure of the idea, but because we knew each other through my sister, she knew me well enough to know my milk was safe.
I think I would accept milk shared from someone I knew directly or indirectly. But thankfullly, I have had plenty of milk for our daughter (and continue to have plenty of milk!).
It’s so awesome that you wrote about this today because I was just denied as a milk donor yesterday and am completely bummed out. I have around 300 oz in my freezer and my baby is only 11 weeks old. With pumping one breast each time during the day i’m able to get 6 oz (about what my baby takes at each feeding) in under 10 minutes. Double pumping gives me 12 oz in that same period. talk about an over abundance but now I have no where to send it. The reason: 4 years ago, I had thyroid cancer and was treated with iodine. An isotope with a half life of 6 days. Unfortunately milk banks just have a blanket rule that any cancer disqualifies you. I’m actually hoping to find someone to share with. I would provide bloodwork and any other necessary info. There should be a network to allow sharing if mother’s so choose.
Aubrey, you can read about the site MilkShare for private milk donation here:
http://www.breastfeeding123.com/milkshare-site-for-informal-breast-milk-donation/
I am glad to hear you are doing well after the thyroid cancer treatment. It’s important to have good thyroid replacement levels for an adequate milk supply, and you sound like you’re thriving!
Thanks. I had worried about supply before hand with not having a thyroid but I’ve been blessed with an overabundance. For any woman with thyroid issues and considering having children/ breastfeeding, one of the most important pieces of the puzzle is a proactive endocrinologist. My doctor monitored my levels monthly and continues to do so post partum.
I would participate in informal breast milk sharing with someone I knew and would gladly donate if I were to have an oversupply. Unfortunately I tend to have just enough for what my kids need!
What do you think of the situation where a 31-year-old mother from California was forced to throw into the garbage the breast milk she had saved up for her absent child because it was deemed a security threat by airline officials?
Outrageous!
I donated breastmilk for about 6 months to another mom in my community because I had massive oversupply. I was all set to donate through a center but got a call from my OB’s office asking if I might consider donating to this mom (they had remembered signing the consent form for me to donate). The mom did everything she could to try to breastfeed directly (pumped, nursed with the SNS, brewed/drank fenugreek tea constantly) but in the end she had to use donor milk from at least 3 different moms to meet her son’s needs. Still, she never had to use formula and her baby thrived! I would definitely do it again.
This is a great post! I myself had an absolute overabundance of breastmilk. I mostly nursed, and pumped just once a day before I went to bed. I would get about 12 oz! My son usually only had one 4 oz bottle a day, and the rest of the time he nursed. My supply added up quickly, and I just couldn’t use it all! I contacted our local milk bank, but they wouldn’t take my milk because I am on Zoloft. Which I could completely understand. But I still felt sad that all that milk was going to waste. Then one of my girlfriends found herself “drying up” a bit. She really didn’t want to supplement with formula. Turns out, she was on Zoloft too! And she’s pretty laid back, so she took my milk, and her son loved it! I know that I am healthy, and certainly would not have risked sharing if I had any kind of health issues. I was so glad to share, and my friend was so glad to receive. But honestly, I don’t think I would use someone else’s breastmilk. I tend to be a little high anxiety (hence the Zoloft!) when it comes to stuff like that. I would be worried the entire time that there was some sort of problem with the milk that the donating mother just didn’t know about.
I have shared my milk, and I would accept milk from someone I knew directly or through someone if I needed it. Fortunately, I produce on demand quite well.
All milk is supposed to be pasteurized. Does that apply to mother’s milk?l
Neil, a mother’s milk does not have to be pasteurized before it is fed to her baby (in fact, breast milk has many antimicrobial properties!) However, as a precaution with respect to expressed breast milk received from donors, milk banks pasteurize the milk to kill any bacteria or viruses.
My baby was born at 24 weeks and soon to be discharged from the NICU, he loves nursing and I will be home for 4 months with him so my HUGE reserve of pumped milk might go to waste if I can anybody that needs/wants it (also we need the freezer space!!!). Can anybody tell if there is anywhere I can donate breast milk in Ventura county? Thanks
This is a great information site for mothers!! I had donated my excess milk to a milk bank with my first baby a few years ago. I have a WEALTH of info about donating to a bank! With my second time I ran into a problem. They do a blood screening and I came up with a FALSE positive for the hiv part of the test. The milk bank assured me that this happens once out of about 75 to 100 screenings. Although they retested the blood twice, and I had an independent test by my doctor, and know that I was NOT hiv positive, by policy they couldn’t take the milk. I felt so bad for a baby that could be using this milk!! I ended up locating a mother who was in need of it for her baby born prematurely. She knows of my situation, and I am giving her access to my health records through my doctors office. I don’t believe that casual sharing should be done between unknown individuals, as there is an enormous health risk. There are many reasons a bank might not take your milk. These reasons are for medications that the mother may be taking(some are really not so good for a baby in the NICU), as well as risk factors for certain diseases. These include being in Britain or Europe during a certain period of time when MadCow disease was found; parts of Africa and Haiti (for hiv) It also includes the donor or her partner being incarcerated for a length of time (puts you at risk for hiv). Most banks have you fill out a lengthy interview(mine was about 13 pages!) to find out what your health risks might be, as not to jeopardize the health of the infant in NICU. Additionally, the average person cannot come to a non-profit milk bank to get milk for their baby. It generally has to be prescribed by a doctor. Infants at risk take priority, while those who have a healthy baby who is adopted, or mother is not able to make enough milk would not take as much priority. Generally speaking, the cost of milk from a bank is no where near as much as those selling on the internet. The milk bank has only to cover its costs, while someone on the internet makes pure profit. Insurance will pick up the tab if the milk is prescribed by a doctor. For all the above stated reasons, I would not recommend the casual sharing of milk. If persons unknown to each other should share milk, then health records for HIV 1 & 2, Tuberculosis, HTLV (herpes types), Syphillis, and Hepatitis B &C should be checked and made available to the person receiving the milk. You never know what someone’s intentions may be!!
I would like to share my breast milk with my sister in law…I was wondering though, she is vegetarian and I’m a meat eater…would that affect the baby at all?