A couple new breast milk banks have opened and one of them is in China! Contaminated baby formula has been an ongoing issue in China, that started back in 2008 with an outbreak of melamine, a chemical that is used to make resin. The substance was found in baby formula after several infants developed kidney stones, over 50,000 were hospitalized and some even died. Chinese baby formula makers used melamine to apparently increase the protein level in the formula. One would think that Chinese mothers would immediately turn to breastfeeding with such a scare, however it has always been difficult for new moms in China to get the breastfeeding support they need. Chinese employment laws push moms to use formula and many women have to return back to work shortly after giving birth. Many Chinese factories don't provide adequate space for pumping. Hospitals get perks from formula companies and samples are often given to new moms. The new milk bank in China is located in Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center and is scheduled to open in June. Over eighty women have pumped their breast milk and donated it to the bank since March of this year. While one milk bank will not be able to provide coverage across China and it's gazillion number of moms, this milk bank is a step in the right direction and hopefully other provinces will follow suit. The other new breast milk bank will open in Orlando, Florida and will be the states first milk depot.
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Breastfeeding in the News
No April fools joke here! Today is a big day for the state of Oklahoma as a breast milk bank opens. The Oklahoma Breast Milk Bank will start screening donors today and it will take place at the University of Oklahoma Medical. Before today, breastfeeding moms would have to donate their milk to a bank in Texas. The conception of Oklahoma's Breast Milk Bank took place two years ago as Anne Darnell-Gillingham, President of the not-for-profit milk bank, was with her pregnant friend about what a shame it was that their state didn't have a milk bank. Her daughter Nellie was in the NICU and she would pump day and night so that her daughter could get all the breast milk she needed. Of course Nellie was so tiny that she couldn't consume all the milk that Anne was pumping and she was told by a nurse to donate her breast milk. She ended up donating it to the milk bank in Fort Worth, TX and at the same time, the dream of opening a milk bank in Oklahoma was created. Anne and her friend spent two years planning and fundraising so they could purchase screening equipment and pasteurizing machines. The screenings will begin today and the breast milk donations will be collected in May of this year. A local blood bank is going to be a drop off location as well as local hospitals in the near future. Anne is more than pleased that her dream came true and that her milk bank can provide breast milk to babies in need in her own state. As reported on Fox23.com
The state of Maine is looking to increase awareness and breastfeeding support especially with low income mothers. Maine's WIC program has a vast majority of new moms who are enrolled yet they choose to formula feed their babies. Even though breastfeeding support classes are offered and the program endorses breast milk, the state still spends over $1.4 million per year to provide the low income mothers with formula. Although low income moms from Maine represent a high percentage of choosing formula, the state on a whole is about even with the national average. In 2012, there were 76 percent of babies in the state who were breastfed at least once. Maine also has several Baby-Friendly hospitals (where formula bags are banned), they are ranked #3 for the amount of board certified lactation consultants in the nation and ranked #4 for the amount of La Leche League leaders. Seems like mothers living in Maine should all be breastfeeding! Unfortunately not so...the Maine WIC program provides around $118,000 of formula cans per month to moms in need. Maine mothers (of all incomes) also receive unsolicited formula packages in the mail after they come home from the hospital. While some mothers use formula to supplement, others may see this package as an incentive to not breastfeed...especially if that mother is having difficulties with breastfeeding. The free package includes formula samples and coupons. Not all mothers are swayed to switch to formula because of the package, but it sure assists those moms who may already be on the fence with nursing their baby. A few Maine hospitals (in Augusta and Waterville) that aren't certified as Baby-Friendly have stopped accepting formula bags. As reported on onlinesentinel.com
A group of local women have gotten together and started the first breast milk bank in the state of Oklahoma. It is named Oklahoma Mother's Milk Bank and now joins as the 13th milk bank across the United States. The women who are behind the breast milk bank claimed that every state should have a milk bank as there are so many babies in the NICU across the country and they need breast milk to survive and become healthy. These women are taking the step in the right direction to help the hospitals and pre-maturely born babies in state of Oklahoma. Planning for the breast milk bank took about two years. The OU Medical Center's NICU unit can hold 90 babies and they will now be able to receive the donated breast milk. Before the Oklahoma bank opened, those babies needed to depend on frozen milk shipped from nearby Texas. Mother's cannot always make enough milk for pre-mature babies or sick babies. The donated milk keeps the babies heathly and keeps their little tummies full! As reported on Fox 25 KOKH-TV Oklahoma City.
There are many colleges across America that don't provide lactation rooms for breastfeeding mothers that must return back to work. MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) is above the bar as they now have 15 lactation rooms for nursing mothers. They just added another pumping room, which was reported on the college's website yesteday. Having a lactation room is an added bonus for a breastfeeding mother that has to return to work. Knowing that she has a comfortable, clean space to pump will put her at ease as she returns to work and will hopefully encourage her to pump for many more weeks to come. According to MIT staff, the college has a huge commitment to keeping their community healthy and as we all know, breastfeeding is best for both mom and baby with short-term and long-term healthiness. Massachusetts state law requires employers to provide breastfeeding mothers with pumping breaks and a clean space to do so. MIT is often recognized by the Massachuesetts Breastfeeding Coalition because they do such an excellent job of providing nursing mothers with ample space to pump. Some of the lactation rooms come equipped with a breast pump, but mothers must bring their own tubing, breast shields and bottles. The rooms also have comfy sofas, sinks and refrigerators. MIT is located in Cambridge, MA and is known for supporting breastfeeding to the fullest. The city's health alliance participates in World Breastfeeding Week each year and hosts a special event that's open to the public that offers breastfeeding support and has a breastfeeding photo contest. According to the Massachusetts Breastfeeding Coalition, the Cambridge Birth Center has an A+ as 100% of moms discharged from the center are breastfeeding, this was reported back in 2007 and we couldn't find any new data available. Massachusetts has always had high breastfeeding rates when compared to other states in the country. You can find out more about MIT's lactation rooms on their website: hrweb.mit.edu/worklife/child-care-parenting/breastfeeding-support/lactation-rooms/campus
Most of us were shocked when we found out that Jersey Shore star Snooki was pregnant. After several interviews with gossip magazines and the news, we never thought she would breastfeed after hearing some of her comments regarding it. Well, Snooki has smartened up and has decided to give her baby boy the best food possible: breast milk. She didn't want to breastfeed because a friend of hers did and said it was painful. She did try it and learned to love it. Now, however, she chooses to pump and give her little baby Lorenzo, a bottle. She has recently posted pictures to her Twitter of her breastpump and has titled it "from fistpump to breastpump" and "milkin it for my baby". Snooki is also very happy about the fact that breastfeeding burns calories.
The Mothers’ Milk Bank of New England is celebrating their first anniversary this month. Located in Newtonville, MA it is the only milk bank in the region and one of 12 in North America. Many moms in New England are donating their extra milk to the bank so that mothers who cannot produce breast milk can still give their babies the best nutrition. Milk banks are also helpful for neonatal units in hospitals so that preemies can be nurtured. The Mothers’ Milk Bank of New England recently expanded and opened a drop off center in Hanover, MA which is located on the South Shore. The drop off center has a freezer unit to store the milk and many area moms are very happy with the expansion as preemies born at the South Shore Hospital are enjoying the donated milk as they are weaning off of IV nutrition. Many area hospitals are glad that mothers in New England can get fresh breast milk from local moms. No longer do they have to rely on the internet or milk banks that are hundreds of miles away. Mothers donate their breast milk for free, but the bank sells it for $4.50 per ounce. The profits help to keep the bank’s costs down, as all donated milk has to be screened for disease and it has to be pasteurized to kill bacteria or pathogens that may exists in the milk. If you live in New England and would like to donate, please call 617-527-6263 or email donate@milkbankne.org
Rhode Island may be the smallest state, however they appear to be the biggest supporters of breastfeeding within their seven hospitals. Rhode Island was the first state, back in 2011, to officially ban formula bags from all of their hospitals' maternity wards. Massachusetts is now the second state in the country to officially ban the bags. Massachusetts, also a geographically small state, has 49 maternity hospitals and they are all bag free as of this month. No longer will new moms receive formula bags during their stay. Formula bags often contained anti-breastfeeding "gifts" such as formula coupons and samples. Banning formula bags has been a lengthy and often controversial cause. Formula companies push hospitals to give samples to new moms. Breastfeeding advocates disagree - hospitals should be promoting breastfeeding so that moms and babies remain healthier. Some say that the formula bags should be optional and the mom can make her own choice. Breastfeeding advocates disagree and claim it's like putting candy in a child's hand. Once a woman accepts the bag, she is then more aware of the formula and may be more quick to quit nursing if she has coupons for formula. The Ban the Bags campaign started in 2006. Spearheaded by Melissa Bartick (Harvard Medical School instructor and head of MA breastfeeding coaltion) and breastfeeding advocates started the campaign by setting up a website and soliciting donations. More than 600 hospitals across the country have signed on since the campaign began. Each year, the percentage rate of maternity hospitals banning the bags is increasing. However, only a quarter of the nation's maternity hospitals are formula free. If you are a firm believer in banning the bags at your local hospital, visit banthebags.org and get involved!
Wow! See photo below. Military moms nursing in uniform is all over the news today. The controversy all began when the Washington Air National Guard frowned upon two military moms posing (while nursing) for a breastfeeding photo shoot. One of the moms, Terran Echegoyen-McCabe, is proudly tandem nursing her twins. The other mom is nursing her daughter. The photos were being taken for a World Breastfeeding Week event that takes place in August and they were being used to promote breastfeeding among all moms, not just military moms. The moms featured are from an air force base near Spokane, WA. There is no policy that bans women from nursing in uniform, however the action still sparked a ton of controversy. A guard spokesman said the photos were a violation against a rule that uniforms cannot help promote a civilian cause, however there are nursing moms in active duty so therefore they are not civilians! Any women should be allowed to breastfeed without the backlash - whether they are on active duty, guard or civilian. The women are not facing any charges. We posted the picture on our Facebook page and got a ton of feedback. We actually have several customers and fans who are military moms and they are actively breastfeeding. Most fans commented that they have even more respect for active duty moms who nurse, they commented how "amazing" and "beautiful" the photo is, and a few were saying is could be viewed as slightly disrespectful. All in all, the comments were generally very positive and supportive
Photo take by Brynja Photography.
There are only two breast milk banks on the East Coast, one being WakeMed Milk Bank located in Raleigh, NC and the other one Mothers' Milk Bank of New England based in Newtonville, MA. The WakeMed milk bank is in serious need of donated breast milk. There is such a high demand for the milk right now, the staff at WakeMed has actually had to turn mothers away. It is a good sign that the demand is so high, moms in the area are feeding their babies with the breast milk to keep them healthy and nourished. However, some babies may not be able to get breast milk if the shortage continues. If you are a healthy, non-smoking new mom and you are looking to donate your excess milk, please contact Sue Evans at 919-350-8599. Some moms cannot breastfeed, yet still want their babies to receive the best food possible. Milk banks, such as WakeMed, sell donated breast milk to moms who cannot nurse or moms who have adopted. Premature babies in NICU are also given donated milk, and many hospitals keep frozen milk on site. Moms need a prescription from their doctor in order to get the milk. Donors are screened and must take a blood test before donating. To prevent infection or disease, the milk is tested for bacteria and if it passes, it is put in a freezer at the milk bank. Many moms have now started to donate milk online. This is convenient, however not tested like that of breast milk at a bank. We put a post on our Facebook wall about donated milk online and many moms said they would trust moms they found online, and that they would still go ahead and buy milk without doing any screening. For moms who don't live near a milk bank, it can be shipped. Other states that house milk banks are: California (San Jose), Colorado (Denver), Indiana (Indianapolis), Iowa (Iowa City), Michigan (Kalamazoo), Ohio (Columbus), and Texas (Fort Worth). We at Nursing Bra Express, encourage all moms who cannot nurse to consider donated breast milk. After all, breast is best!