The storage of breast milk can be confusing. These practical tips will help you choose containers, freeze breast milk, and thaw breast milk.
Using a breast pump may be an option for you if you’re planning to go back to work or need greater flexibility. In addition, once you’ve started pumping, you should know how to store expressed milk safely. Be sure to follow these tips.
Is it a good idea to store expressed breast milk?
Hands should be washed with soap and water before expressing or handling breast milk. After that, keep the expressed milk in a clean, covered food-grade glass bottle or rigid plastic container that is not made with bisphenol A (BPA). Unique plastic bags for collecting and storing milk can also be used. Keep breast milk out of disposable bottles and plastic bags intended for general household use.
When storing expressed breast milk, how should it be done?
Mark each container with a waterproof label and ink with the expression date. Add your baby’s name to the title if you store expressed milk at your child care facility.
Refrigerate or freeze the containers in the back, where the lowest temperature is. You can temporarily store milk in an insulated cooler with ice packs if you do not access a refrigerator or freezer.
Provide your baby with enough milk for one feeding by filling individual containers. Try starting with 2 to 4 ounces (60 to 120 milliliters) and adjusting as needed. If there are unexpected delays in feedings, you might also want to store smaller portions of food – 1 to 2 ounces (30 to 60 milliliters) – in the refrigerator. It would be best to fill the container to the brim with breast milk because it expands when it freezes.
Breast milk that has been expressed how long will it keep?
Your storage method will determine how long expressed breast milk can be stored safely. Here are some guidelines for healthy babies:
- The temperature in the room. Up to six hours can be kept at room temperature after freshly expressed breast milk. If the room is warm, it’s ideal to use or properly store the breast milk within four hours, though.
- Cooler with insulation. Breast milk that has just been expressed can be stored for up to a day in an insulated cooler with ice packs.
- Refrigeration. It is possible to store freshly expressed breast milk in clean conditions for four days in the refrigerator. Ideally, the milk should be used or frozen within three days.
- The deep freezer. It is ideal to use frozen breast milk within six months after it has been frozen, but freshly expressed milk can be stored in the back of a deep freezer for up to 12 months.
Breast milk loses more vitamin C if stored for extended periods, whether in the refrigerator or the freezer.
It’s also important to understand that your breast milk changes according to your baby’s needs. A newborn baby’s breast milk won’t meet the same baby’s needs as an older baby’s breast milk. In addition, preterm, sick, or hospitalized infants might require different storage guidelines.
When is frozen breast milk best to be thawed?
Please start with the oldest milk, and thaw it first. The night before you plan to use the frozen container, you should place it in the refrigerator. You can also gently heat the milk in a bowl of warm water or under warm running water.
Heat a frozen bottle slowly on the stove or in the microwave. Be careful not to overheat the milk. There is also evidence that rapid heating can affect the antibodies in milk.
It is not completely clear whether previously frozen milk that has been thawed can be re-frozen and used again, but experts recommend discarding thawed milk that has not been consumed within 24 hours.