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Category Archives: breastfeeding

Breastmilk is still the best

14 Sunday Aug 2016

Posted by pedimedcenter in breastfeeding

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breastfeeding, milk bank, safety

breastfeeding

If you are about to have a baby or have recently had a baby, you have had to make the big decision whether or not to breastfeed your baby. This is an easy choice for many mothers, but others may find it a difficult process, whether it be from lack of production of milk, difficulty of baby latching, or considering pumping when returning to work. We, as pediatric providers highly encourage you to breastfeed, even if it is only for those first two months of life. We even have a certified lactation consultant in our office to help our mothers succeed, which is a rare thing to find in most pediatric offices. That is how important we think this is. The antibodies your baby receives are so beneficial to their development. Breastmilk is much easier for your baby to digest as compared to formulas.

We know breastfeeding isn’t a possibility for all mothers but there are some other options besides formula. There are some moms that produce enough milk to feed multiple babies, but end up tossing it at some point because they seldom needed to dig into their stored supply. Breastmilk is GOLD!!! Consider donating your milk if you have an oversupply or obtaining your milk from a milk bank. The milk is thoroughly screened for disease and kept properly until a baby is in need of it. A great organization to look in to for this is HMBANA. https://www.hmbana.org/.

The following article is great one to describe the process of donating milk and the rigorous testing the milk is put through.

http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/867213

Why Moms Can and Do Donate to Human Milk Banks

Diane L. Spatz, PhD, RN-BC

|August 12, 2016In October 2015, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) opened the 18th milk bank in the United States under the umbrella of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA). In 2016, to date the CHOP Mothers’ Milk Bank has pasteurized and dispensed more than 13,000 ounces of milk.

Pasteurized donor milk is available from both nonprofit and for-profit organizations in the United States. Nonprofit milk banks are part of the HMBANA network and have a shared set of standardized milk-banking practices. HMBANA has an interdisciplinary board, with representatives from HMBANA milk banks as well as external board members from a variety of professions.

Milk Bank Donors

Why do mothers with extra milk donate to a human milk bank? Optimistic and altruistic motives are the primary reasons for donation to an HMBANA milk bank.

Mothers may find themselves with too much milk that they would rather not discard, and by donating their milk they are giving a tangible gift that they know will benefit other infants. They have seen the benefits of providing their milk to their own children. Mothers who are familiar with the needs of HMBANA milk banks and the infants they serve are motivated to donate their extra milk and report positive emotions and a willingness to donate again if given the opportunity. Healthcare providers can influence a mother by recommending donation of her excess milk to a HMBANA milk bank.

Some bereaved mothers also choose to become donors to HMBANA milk banks. Some mothers know during pregnancy that their infants have a fatal diagnosis, and others have infants who die after a long hospitalization. Bereaved mothers report that by donating their milk, they give meaning to their child’s life. They report that donating their milk helps in the grieving and healing process and may help them achieve a sense of closure.

The HMBANA Milk Banking Process

Mothers who wish to donate milk must go through a rigorous screening process. The first step is a verbal health screening. The mother then completes a lifestyle questionnaire related to her health, her infant’s health, and her lifestyle and dietary practices, as well as an extensive health history. A healthcare provider must complete a screening form for the mother, reporting her health status and laboratory testing from pregnancy. In addition, the infant’s healthcare provider must complete a form stating that the infant is in good health, is growing well, and is breastfeeding well.

A milk bank coordinator then reviews all of these materials and verbally confirms the information with the potential donor, who gives written consent to be a donor. At this point, donors undergo serologic testing for HIV, HTLV1, HTLV2, hepatitis A, hepatitis B, and syphilis. The cost of the laboratory testing ($200-$300) is paid by the milk bank.

Once a mother has passed all screening and her blood work is negative, she is approved to be a donor. Mothers can make a one-time donation or be repeat donors. If a mother continues to be a regular donor, the milk bank staff will follow-up regularly to ensure the mother has had no changes in her lifestyle or health.

Milk is transported to HMBANA milk banks using a variety of methods (in person drop-off, courier service, milk depots in the community, and shipping). Raw milk is stored frozen until ready to be prepared for pasteurization. Raw milk is thawed, pooled, poured, and then pasteurized, and cultured after pasteurization to ensure that there is no bacteriologic growth. After pasteurization, the milk is stored frozen. Once the milk culture comes back negative, milk can be dispensed to donor recipients.

In the United States, most HMBANA milk is donated to hospitals with neonatal intensive care units. Pasteurized donor human milk is mostly used for preterm infants or other vulnerable infants. However, some data support the use of donor milk for term infants or late preterm infants, if supplementation is required during the hospital stay. In the community setting, a prescription from a health professional is required for the milk bank to dispense pasteurized donor milk to a home.

Pasteurized donor milk from HMBANA is provided on a cost-recovery basis, causing the milk banks to charge a processing fee of $3.00-$5.00 per ounce. Insurance reimbursement varies from state to state, resulting in a cost to the hospitals or consumers.

Medscape Pediatrics © 2016  WebMD, LLC

Any views expressed above are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the views of WebMD or Medscape.

Cite this article: Why Moms Can and Do Donate to Human Milk Banks. Medscape. Aug 12, 2016.

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Breastfeeding support group

19 Tuesday May 2015

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breastfeeding

breastfeed

The Breast feeding support group has been moved to 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month from 12p-2p at CJ Kelly park behind Lowe’s. All breastfeeding moms are welcome even if you are not a part of PediMedCenter practice! Our certified lactation consultant, Linda, is leading this.  If weather is not permitting, new meeting place will be posted.

breastfeeding tips

05 Thursday Mar 2015

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ibclc-mom-small

 Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms
Lactation Consultant
Pedi Med Center would like to acknowledge all International Board Certified Lactation Consultants today, on National IBCLC Day, for all they do in supporting moms in giving their babies the best nutrition available.
As nursing moms know, lactation consultants are an invaluable asset both medically and emotionally. They help manage and prevent common breastfeeding problems and they also provide valuable reassurance when breastfeeding is going well. Sometimes they are there just to listen and provide overall support and encouragement during what can be a very emotional time for a mom.

We know it can be hard, especially in the early days so we want to share 6 Favorite Breastfeeding Tips for New Moms from Linda Hill, our experienced and trusted IBCLC.

1. One-Day Rule

You don’t need to wash each of your breast pump pieces after each pump. Washing once a day is okay. Between uses put pieces in an unsealed container – like a large plastic bag – in the refrigerator to keep bacteria from growing.

2. Fill Up

For breastfeeding moms, it is important to stay hydrated and eat enough calories so you can keep your energy level and breast milk supply up.

3. Final Feeding

Give the last feeding of the day from a bottle. This way you can see exactly how much breast milk baby had so you can ensure baby has eaten enough to keep her satisfied and hopefully sleeping for several hours. This also gives someone else the chance to bond with baby, while mom gets a much needed reprieve and a little extra sleep.

4. Lessen The Let-Down

The Let-Down reflex is a tingling in the breasts signaling the body’s response to a baby’s upcoming feedings. Sometimes a let-down can happen at times when it is not wanted, like when you are in the check out line of the grocery store. When this occurs and you’re not ready to breastfeed baby, press your breasts firmly into your body for 10-20 seconds. This will give you a little more time to get home to baby or to a place where you can pump or express for some relief.

5. Don’t Dump It

Breast milk is alive and actively fights the growth of bacteria; so unlike formula where any remaining milk in the bottle should be discarded, you can place the leftover breast milk in the fridge and use for the next feeding.

6. Your Nose Knows

You are going to read many different storage guidelines for keeping your breast milk at room temperature, in the fridge and freezer. Don’t let the differences confuse you and don’t toss it out just because the breast milk is older than the guidelines! Smell the milk. If it is bad, it will smell bad!

Are breastfed babies safe from measles?

16 Monday Feb 2015

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breastfeeding, measles

With the latest outbreak of measles in the United States, many breastfeeding moms are wondering whether or not their infants will obtain enough protection from their milk.  We know that breastfed babies have reduced risks of diarrhea, otitis media, SIDS, Crohns disease, ulcerative colitis, asthma, juvenile diabetes, severe upper respiratory infections, childhood cancers, , obesity and more … but will the simple act of breastfeeding be enough to protect the baby who can’t receive the MMR vaccine until 12-15 months of age?  The short answer is “no”, tho read on for further explanation.
Fact:  Babies of vaccinated moms do obtain immunity thru the placenta (transplacentally) that can last for several months after delivery but it does ware off sometime before a year of age.  In Ruth Lawrence’s book:  Breastfeeding:  A guide for the medical professional it says:  “postnatal exposure leading to measles after 14 days of life is generally mild, probably because of passively acquired antibodies from the mother.  Severe measles in children younger than 1 year of age may occur because of declining passively acquired antibodies.”
There was a study performed back in 1995, which by today’s standards is “out of date”, but when you consider that measles was basically eradicated in the US in 2000, there was no need to do another study.    Afr J Med Med Sci  (1995)  Dec;24(4):385-8
In the study, they sampled 216 moms breastmilk and took finger prick blood samples from their babies.  41 milk samples had antibodies to measles present, but none of the breastfed babies showed antibodies in their blood – thus the conclusion was made that “very little level of measles antibodies are passed through breast milk”.
In summation, while there are measles antibodies in the breastmilk of either vaccinated or naturally acquired moms, these don’t appear to get out of the babies gut and into the bloodstream, thus is not enough to prevent the baby from getting the measles.

breastfeeding help website/consult with certified lactation nurse

11 Wednesday Feb 2015

Posted by pedimedcenter in breastfeeding, services

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breastfeed

Our certified lactation consultant Linda Hill is available online from anywhere for consultation, so let all of your pregnant mommy friends know. The following link is a website with great breastfeeding resources, but will also link you to Linda.

http://www.upspringbaby.com

For Linda, click on “lactation help” and click on Linda Hill’s name.

Or call office (432) 699-2636 and ask to speak with Linda.

Breastfeeding moms

04 Wednesday Feb 2015

Posted by pedimedcenter in breastfeeding

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breastfeeding

We are a Breastfeeding Support Group the 1st and 3rd Tuesday of every month from 7-8:30pm at Pedi Med Center!! This is run by our lactation consultant, Linda Hill RN IBCLC.

snacks and drinks provided.

Toddlers welcome but otherwise only moms so everyone feels comfortable nursing.

Meet other area moms and learn from each other-you do not have to be part of our practice to attend so feel free to bring a friend!

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