Got Milk?

Efforts underway to establish a (breast) milk bank in greater Boston
By Heather Kempskie


New moms, who for any number of medical reasons, are unable to provide breast milk for their infants may soon have access to breast milk donations made by other nursing moms. That's if the efforts of Newton resident Naomi Bar-Yam to establish Mothers' Milk Bank New England (MMBNE) come to fruition. Bar-Yam, who has 4 grown children, started research on the project five years ago. She, along with more than a dozen other individuals, are currently raising funds to help cover start-up costs including finding a site for the bank. Although milk banks are thriving in other parts of the country like in Texas, California and North Carolina, the concept is new to New Englanders. "There has been an incredible response. It's impossible to start something like this with just one person," says Bar-Yam. "The medical community is not as aware of it because there hasn't been (a milk bank) in our area in a long time so our efforts right now are in education and fundraising." According to the MMBNE website, Boston Floating Children's Hospital operated a milk bank nearly 100 years ago but since its closure (and the closure of others milk banks started in New England), there have been none. "In many places around the globe as well as here in the US, breast milk is the standard of care for very low birth weight babies," says Ilene Fabisch, IBCLC/RLC and clinical director of MMBNE. "New England lags behind in this respect, perhaps because we lacked a local milk bank until now." She adds, "Breast milk is the biological norm for an infants diet. It is what the newborns body expects to receive and is designed to digest." The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends banked milk before formula.

How does this process work?

A willingness to share breast milk is not the only criteria needed to donate to the milk bank. Milk donations will only be accepted by healthy women who have healthy babies under the age of 1. Donors must: obtain written approval by their own doctor as well as their child's pediatrician to participate; undergo a health screening and blood test and follow specific donation instructions using a kit provided by MMBNE. Donors do not receive any compensation. "In the 40 years of modern milk banking there has never been (a documented case) of any harm to the baby," said Bar-Yam. She adds, milk is heat-treated and must show no bacterial growth and is shipped frozen overnight. Human Milk Bank Association of North America (HMBANA) guidelines require that banked milk be dispensed by physician prescription or by hospital purchase order only. The hospitals and families may have to cover the cost of pasteurizing and shipping the milk, but Bar-Yam said some insurance companies and hospitals cover the fees, which are expected to be about $3 to $4.50 per ounce.

Who could benefit?

Bar-Yam says premature infants are by far the largest beneficiaries of this project. Often times due to the baby's early arrival, the mother is unable to produce adequate milk supply. Other candidates for milk banks are moms who have had double mastectomy, given birth to multiples, have adopted an infant, had difficult birth and are unable to nurse or those moms who are on certain medications making their breast milk unsafe. "The banked milk is meant to supplement their mom's supply when possible," said Bar-Yam. Although she says it's hard to measure the demand, she expects the service to be well received and welcomed the community. "We don't need a lot of space, just about 1300 square feet," said Bar-Yam. "We hope to get started by this spring." For more information, visit www.milkbankne.org.