How to freeze breast milkPhoto: Getty

Is it possible to freeze breast milk?

In the life of a nursing mother, situations may arisewhen for some reason it is not possible to breastfeed your baby. For example, you need to leave for a while, undergo a course of treatment with drugs incompatible with breastfeeding. What to do? There is a way out: feed your baby with expressed breast milk. There are several options for storing it: • without a refrigerator at a temperature of 16 - 18 degrees (about 4 hours); • in the general section of the refrigerator (up to 8 days); • in the freezer (up to 4 months). The choice of option depends on how long you will not be able to breastfeed your baby. When expressed milk is in the freezer, all the nutrients are preserved, provided that a number of rules are followed during the freezing and defrosting process.

How to properly freeze and thaw breast milk

Compliance with hygiene rules when expressing milkplays an important role in maintaining the quality of breast milk. Before expressing, it is necessary to sterilize the container where the milk will be poured (you can use glass or plastic containers). It is also necessary to wash your hands, breasts and breast pump under running water. You can express milk not all at once, but over 2-4 hours. In between expressing, the container with the product must be placed in the refrigerator.

How to freeze breast milk

Before putting milk in the freezer,need to cool in the general section of the refrigerator. The container with food must be marked: sign the date and time of freezing. If there are several containers in the freezer, then for feeding you will need to use milk with an earlier collection date first. Do not fill the container where the milk will be frozen to the brim. It is necessary to leave 1 - 2 cm to the top. The fact is that milk expands in volume when frozen.

How to Defrost Breast Milk

This is important:Breast milk should not be defrosted in a microwave oven! This will kill beneficial microorganisms. Milk cannot be frozen again. When defrosting breast milk, you must follow these rules: • Remove containers with frozen milk from the freezer 12 hours before the expected feeding. • Then place the food in the general compartment of the refrigerator until the product becomes liquid. • Before feeding, the milk must be warmed to 36 - 37 degrees. This can be done using a special device for warming up baby food. Another option is in a "water bath": pour the required amount of milk into a bottle and place it in a saucepan with hot water for a few minutes. If you freeze and defrost milk correctly, it will not lose its valuable properties. Frozen breast milk can be a solution to temporary problems. You should not immediately switch to artificial feeding if you cannot breastfeed your baby. There is no worthy alternative to breast milk. Read more:

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