Breast Feeding

Tiny Babies Benefit From Increase in Breast Milk Donations

Doctors have long advocated the benefits of breast milk and now there is a movement that is gaining momentum to give all babies a fighting chance.

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According to Pauline Sakamoto, the President of Human Milk Banking Association of North America, the amount of milk donated and distributed by their ten banks is increasing rapidly. This growth she feels is also due to the aggressive promotion of the benefits of breast milk by federal, state and local health authorities.

For babies born prematurely, doctors feel breast milk is like a life saver. It is the best food for hospitalized preemies who are struggling to gain weight and whose mothers are unable to produce sufficient milk because of the preterm labor.

The donated milk from nursing mothers, collected by nationwide milk banks is now helping these fragile babies gain strength. As Keely Shaw mother of two sons born prematurely says, “I think it must be similar to what people who receive donated blood must feel, this kind of gift is so personal and can be monumental for those who receive it.”

Mandy Belfort, a neonatologist at Children’s Hospital Boston says, “There’s also some evidence that preterm babies who receive breast milk have better developmental outcomes than babies that receive formula.”

Although many women have been donating milk in an informal way to help family or friends, milk banks are a more formalized system, which also ensures that the donated milk is tested, pasteurized and frozen until needed. Donor mothers are also required to be completely healthy before pumping breast milk.

According to experts, most women have the capability of producing enough milk to feed triplets or quadruplets. Therefore, donating this precious liquid to those babies who need to fight infections and develop well is the best way to celebrate motherhood and give a child a healthy life ahead. – Atula, Staff Writer

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About the author

Atula

Atula is a writer, traveler, and a nature-lover. She is also mom to a boy who seems to have inherited all her creative genes. When Atula is not busy making up stories with her son, she writes for numerous magazines, websites, and blogs. She is also working on her site on endangered species called indiasendangered.com.

1 Comment

  • The PETA dosen’t have everything right with there Ideas. The Cow thing is what we do and love the milk and meat. But they did stumble on to something that should work. I came a cross a few stories some real and some scify about Human breast milk. Well I came up with my own idea about this hole thing on Breast milk Farm. A biulding in several parts that can handle several 100 females at a time. In one part there is a health department that checks the women for any thing wrong and puts them on a healthy diet. They keep tabs on all to check there milk, health, and any thing elss that may be wrong. Then they goto another room to be pumped. They could read, watch TV, exersize, or any thing elss that they want as long as the pumps are sucure to there breast. If they have kids there are other rooms for them, a daycare for who ever comes. If they have a baby there is always a supply of milk.
    The combind milk before and after testing would go to the daycare and to the next room that would bottle it and sent it to all the local stors an other veders. The female that show up at this place would be taken care of in many ways and leave with some cash for there milk. Then once there milk starts flowing then they could do it any where with one of my portable breastpumps that you can whare any where. Then just bring the milk to the bilding to be tested and put into the system. They would get some milk money for each drop off and new bottels to fill when they wish or can. This Idea benifits all females who wish to use it in many ways, It would boost the econimy $$$, provide a new resors for all, and can boost alot of other things. Who ever reads this can reach me at rwdisland@yahoo.com

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