The Donate Jars of Life campaign is in full swing. The campaign consists of raising awareness among breastfeeding mothers who have excess milk to donate it to the milk bank in their area of residence. But what is the process of donating breast milk? What is the process from the milk bank until it reaches the baby who so desperately needs breast milk?

Currently, more than 280,000 babies are born prematurely, ahead of time, and greatly need breast milk to gain weight, avoid infections, and attain stronger immunity. The benefits of breast milk are countless! So how can you become a breast milk donor? How does breast milk get to the milk bank closest to your home, and how is it processed until it reaches the babies who need it?

Learn more about breast milk donation with Dr. Rosangela Gomes in the video I made at the milk bank of the Regional South Hospital in Santo Amaro SP

Attracting Donors for the Milk Bank

Everything starts with this step; many women don’t realize just how important the breast milk they produce is. Everything starts with awareness, which can be done in the maternity ward where she gave birth. Usually, maternity hospitals coordinate milk banks, and in most cases, the milk they collect is used for that unit. Sometimes, the milk collected at the milk bank can also be supplied to other places in the region; it all depends on stock and the babies’ needs.

Pipettes where the milk undergoes bacterial analysis

Ideally, there would be breast milk for all babies, but due to the limited stock, unfortunately, only some babies can receive milk from the maternity milk bank when, ideally, breast milk would be available for everyone. The milk can be collected from mothers whose babies are hospitalized, and of course, it can also be donated by other kindhearted mothers. To become a donor, just locate the milk bank or collection point nearest to your home. Use LOBALE (Locator of Human Milk Banks) to find the most accessible station in your area anywhere in the country. At these locations, they will likely fill out a form, and the candidate mother-donor will undergo tests to check her health.

Tests such as Chagas disease, hepatitis, HIV, and other diseases are performed in order to exclude those who may carry diseases that can potentially be transmitted via breast milk. If approved in the tests, the donor signs a commitment form authorizing the donation, and that’s it! Now she can donate the most precious liquid there is.

How is the Milk Processed at the Milk Bank?

The milk donated by women to the milk bank is processed, pasteurized, and stored until delivered to a baby in need. From the collection of the milk, there are important precautions to follow. The donor’s milk must be expressed with very clean hands and washed breasts. Caps and masks are also used to prevent saliva from dripping and hair from contaminating the milk being expressed for the milk bank. Sterilized glass jars with plastic lids are used to store the collected milk to be donated. The material collected should be kept in a freezer until collection or until it is taken to the collection point or milk bank. Most collection points that receive breast milk donations provide this home collection service, but there are still places that do not have this convenience. Home collection is done by a nurse accompanied by firefighters.

Next, the milk is taken to facilities where it is pasteurized and stored. The milk bank is very meticulous when it comes to storage and pasteurization. The milk always goes through several stages before reaching the newborns. To begin with, the minimum amount of milk collected for donation must be 300ml, because various tests are performed on the milk before pasteurization. The first is a visual test, where specialists check for any residues such as hairs and threads that may have gotten into the jar during expression. The milk bank that pasteurizes the milk has a fully sterile area to perform the procedure. The hot zone of the pasteurization room prevents bacteria from having any chance to proliferate.

<a href="https://www.famivita.com/wp-content/uploads/pasteurização-de-leite-humano-2.jpg"Water bath where the jars of milk are submerged

This step is important because if the pasteurization is not done properly, the milk will have to be pasteurized again. A test is performed in small test tubes to check for bacterial growth, and if there is no growth of bacterial colonies, the milk will be stored and sent for the babies to consume. Each milk has a different fat content. The fat in the milk is beneficial, as it helps the baby gain weight—no milk is weak! Each jar has its fat content recorded and is directed to those who most need a higher fat concentration. Yellower milk tends to have more fat.

Before going into the freezer, which is also monitored, the milk is labeled with the day and time of pasteurization, so it is known exactly from which day, and until when, the milk can be used. Pasteurized breast milk lasts for up to about three months in the freezer, while whole milk without the pasteurization process lasts only 15 days in perfect condition. The milk bank’s pasteurization work is done with a lot of love and care. I know this because I saw firsthand the work of these incredible people who dedicate their lives to giving more life to premature newborns who so need their beautiful work. A special thank you to the team at the Regional South Hospital milk bank in Santo Amaro, São Paulo — they welcomed us with open arms! Dr. Rosangela Gomes, my heartfelt thanks for providing all the explanations, and my congratulations on the beautiful work you and your entire team do.

See also: Storing Breast Milk – A Solution for Moms

Photos: Personal archive TF