2 infographics on how to store, freeze, and thaw breast milk (Do and Don’t)

2 infographics on how to store, freeze, and thaw breast milk (Do and Don’t)

You should ask yourself a vital question before you read our Breastfeedo breast milk storage guide:

What are the goals from adhering to the breast milk storage guidelines?

Breastfeedo summarizes breast milk storage goals in the next two points:

1. Prevent harmful microorganisms from growing or colonization.
2. Keep your breast milk components -as much as you can- intact and alive.

For your knowledge

Freshly pumped human breast milk contained microbial non-pathogens (non-harmful non-infective) of mom’s skin flora.

Also, your breast milk has its natural preservatives. It resists the bacterial growth even up to 8 hours in the room temperature (natural preservative.)

Is there any procedure before starting to express/store my breast milk?

1. Wash your hands with soap and water.
2. Or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
3. No need to wash your breast or nipple.
4. Be sure the breast milk storage containers are pre-sterilized & to air-dry before use

Why should I date every group of packs or bottles?

• Breast milk has a certain shelf life. So, consume the oldest stored milk first.
• Include your baby’s name on the label if your child is in intensive care unit.
• Cool fresh milk in the refrigerator before adding it to previously frozen milk.

What is the proper amount to store per plastic bag?

• 2-3 oz per bag make it much thinner if compared with 4-5 oz and hence:

1. You offer more space especially if you are exclusive breast pumping.
2. More time-saving when defrosting “2 minutes thawing under hot water.”
3. Less milk waste, as you thaw little by little.

What to freeze my expressed breast milk in?

• Breast milk plastic bags “lightweight and less space in storing.”
• Glass bottles or jars “the safest.
• Hard plastic bottles.

1. Avoid plastic containing Bisphenol A (BPA) (number 3 or 7 in the recycling symbol).
2. A safe alternative is (PP) polypropylene (number 5 recycling symbol) or polycarbonate.

• One of the most fantastic ideas is to use an ice cube tray “Milk Tray.”
• Pour your breast milk into the clean tray and then freeze. By doing that, ice cubes are between 0.5 and 1 oz, and this is an excellent way to deal with small portions and you only thaw what you need.

What are the optimal conditions of breast milk storage?

• The Academy of Breastfeeding medicine protocol Committee recommends that for optimal storage:

1. Room temperature 3 to 4 hours.
2. Refrigerator 3 days.
3. Freezer (separate one) 6 months.

Also, it is preferred to refrigerate the breast milk rather than to freeze it in the case of storing for up to 8 days. Generally, the freezing process ruins some useful component of your breast milk.

Is breast milk storage guidelines differ from country to another?

Only at one point which is the room temperature.

• Cold countries may define its room temperature as 15 C ( 59 F).
• And in hot countries, it may reach 32 C ( 90 F).

Hence, buy a room thermometer to check the current temperature. Cover the container with a clean, cold towel may keep milk cooler at room temperature.

Generally, you can leave breast milk for 4-8 hours at room temperature as shown the next picture.

Do the harmful bacteria grow on the breast milk left at the room temperature?

Although some harmful species can grow at the room temperature within breast milk, the growth was minimal to cause any hurt for your baby.

More precisely, the concentration of those bacteria was limited and beyond the unacceptable one.

How to store breast milk on the go? How to keep it cold?

• Use an ice bag, and there are some designed mainly for breast milk.
• Keep ice packs in constant contact with milk containers. Limit opening the cooler bag to avoid low-temperature loss.

How long can you freeze breast milk?

There are three types of freezers:

1. Freezer with one door refrigerator “old style”: up to 2 weeks
2. Freezer with separate door refrigerator: up to 6 months
3. Separate deep freezer: up to 1 year

Could I store breast milk in an ordinary plastic bag?

No, because it is not designed for that job. The regular plastic bags may react with breast milk or leak it (not easily sealable.)

The suitable breast milk storing plastic bag is the pre-sterilized one meant for breast milk.

Also, it can withstand for a long duration (thicker material) at the very low temperature of the freezer.

My baby finished his pumped milk, and around 40 ml remained in the bottle. Could I store it?

Your baby’s saliva may react with the remaining milk leading to change in components and physical properties.

Besides that, your child’s mouth contains some bacteria which transfer into the milk while drinking.

So, to avoid that waste, introduce him little by little to avoid losing the liquid gold.

Can I freeze breast milk after it has been refrigerated for several days?

Yes. Even more, you can do the following:

• Keep the freshly pumped breast milk at room temperature for up to 6-8 hours.
• Then, in a refrigerator for up to 8 days.
• After that, you can freeze it 3-12 months (depending on the type of freezer.)

Why is microwave not suitable to thaw (unfreeze) breast milk?

In general, the microwave is not appropriate for any liquid. Using the microwave to thaw breast milk could easily scald your baby or spoil breast milk.

Add-on, milk bottles may explode if left in the microwave too long. Finally, excess heat can destroy the nutrient quality of the expressed milk.

Where to store milk in the refrigerator or freezer?

Usually, at the back, where the temperature is almost constant.

And In case of storage for long duration -months- you should use separate deep freezer to avoid the temperature loss due to the frequent opening.

My expressed milk formed two layers, Is it a terrible sign?

No, it is a normal feature of the Human Milk, where It is not homogeneous all the time.

Those two layers are:

• The fatty (creamy) layer is up.
• The watery layer is down.

Gently, swirl the milk to get it homogenous again.

After defrosting my stored breast milk, it looks different “either in taste/smell or color.” Should I discard?

No, as that change happened due to a breast milk enzyme called Lipase. This enzyme breaks breast milk fats into fatty acids.

This process is not harmful but may lead to change in taste, smell “soapy” or color.

To avoid this – after expressing your milk and before storage – scald the milk to decrease the lipase enzyme activity.

So, when should I discard stored breast milk?

1. If the milk smells sour-rancid.
2. Excessive heated milk “boiling.”

Don’t worry about your baby. He won’t drink if the milk is not good enough where he becomes an expert regarding the quality.

Should I warm refrigerated breast milk before baby use?

Fortunately, breast milk does not need to be warmed. Some moms serve it cold or at the room temperature.

If you want to warm it, test the temperature before your baby by dropping on your hand ” should be warm, not hot.”

What is the optimum duration for thawed breast milk?

The optimum time -as recommended to make your baby consume the thawed breast milk- is within 2 hrs (up to 4 hrs is okay.)

Does freezing breast milk get rid of alcohol?

You should be careful about that. Calculate 2 to 3 hrs after starting to drink to eliminate alcohol from your blood and expressed breast milk.

Plan a breastfeeding schedule by storing milk before drinking and waiting for the complete elimination of alcohol.

Does freezing breast milk kill bacteria – yeast – viruses?

Freezing, in general, doesn’t kill all microorganisms “especially viruses.” At least, it delays their growth or activity.

This bacteriostatic property is due to the living cells and antibodies in human milk that limit the growth of bacteria. Thus, breast milk stays fresh much longer than cow’s milk or formula.

How to store breast milk when exclusively pumping?

That is a huge amount of milk (between 20 – 30 oz daily = nearly 1 liter). In other words, if using plastic bags, it may reach 10 bags/day (3 oz/bag)

You can get the help of that organizer shown in the below photos to get away from the mess.

Can you store breast milk in Ziploc bags?

• Only that designed for breast milk, as it must be pre-sterilized. And to be used once.
• There is another bigger type of Ziploc bags which are used to:

1. Manage several storing bags in one space.
2. Write the date “sticky note” on the whole Ziploc bag instead of doing it individually for each single pack.

Plus, you can use a large plastic box to put the milk bags either alone or in the large Ziploc bag.

Can you store breast milk in bottles with nipples?

• In freezer: Absolutely No
• In the refrigerator: only for a short time (one day). And make sure to cover the nipple hole to avoid the bacterial contamination or picking up odors or flavors from the refrigerator.

Note: some baby bottles are ready to switch from nipple to be covered for storing.

Does freezing breast milk ruin it?

• No, but after three months of freezing at -20 °C, a noticed decrease in fat and caloric content is observed.
• That decrease was major at the first 7 days of freezing.
• Many moms choose to store their milk in the fridge (rather than freezing it) if they’re going to be using it within days.
• After all – even if some components were lost during storage- breast milk remained the best choice for your baby and still very far from any artificial formula.

Related

(Infographic) Actionable steps to thaw breastmilk correctly (fast,safe tips)

Original article and pictures take www.breastfeedo.com site