How and when should breast milk be stored?

Breast milk is the main source of nutrition for babies. Many mothers who have just given birth will take various supplements during the confinement period in order to increase their milk supply so that their children can have breast milk. Once the breast milk increases, problems will follow. For example, when there is too much breast milk, mothers will feel breast engorgement. So once this happens, many mothers will squeeze out the breast milk, but where should the squeezed breast milk be stored? What is the time and method of storage? These problems will make mothers who are in confinement feel very distressed. Here we will introduce to you the time and method of storing breast milk.

The science of breast milk storage

1. Prepare in advance.

(1) Adjust breastfeeding time and accumulate breast milk.

(2) Adjust the time: 1-2 weeks before the mother goes to work, start giving the baby a psychological "vaccination". Adjust and arrange the baby's breastfeeding time according to the mother's work and rest schedule after work to give the baby an adaptation process. If your workplace is close to home, you can feed your baby before going to work, go home to breastfeed once during lunch break, and breastfeed again after get off work. Together with a few feedings at night, you can basically meet your baby's needs. If you are far from home, you can express and store breast milk in advance, ask your family to feed your baby 1-2 times, and then breastfeed when you get home at night.

(3) To save breast milk, you can express some breast milk 1-2 weeks in advance and store it for later use. Put the expressed breast milk into a container and freeze or refrigerate it.

2. Practical operation.

Utensils, milk storage, thawing

(1) Prepare utensils

Prepare a breast pump and milk storage utensils - it is best to use plastic products that are suitable for freezing and have good sealing, such as breast milk storage bags, followed by glass products. It is best not to use metal products, as the active factors in breast milk will adhere to glass or metal and reduce the nutrients in the breast milk.

(2) Breastfeeding

You can express and store breast milk the day before or before going to work, and label the date and time of expression on the outside of the container. This way you will know the shelf life of the breast milk to avoid uncleanness and expiration that may lead to bacterial growth and digestive tract diseases. No matter how busy a mother is, she must ensure that she expresses milk every 3 hours. This can effectively prevent breast engorgement and a decrease in milk secretion, allowing breastfeeding to continue better. The expressed milk can also be stored so that the baby does not have to worry about not having breast milk. If the workplace does not have refrigeration equipment, the mother can prepare a mini refrigerator to store the food temporarily. When returning home, the baby should eat the food as soon as possible or put it in the refrigerator for refrigeration.

(3) Storage

Leave some space in the container containing breast milk. Do not fill it too full or close the lid too tightly to prevent the container from freezing and bursting. It is best to divide breast milk into small portions (60-120ml) and freeze or refrigerate them to make it easier for family members or nannies to feed the baby according to the baby's appetite and avoid waste. The portions should be labeled and the date should be recorded.

(4) Thawing

When thawing frozen breast milk, you should first rinse the sealed bag with cold water, then gradually add hot water until the breast milk is completely thawed and reaches a suitable temperature for feeding, or place it in the refrigerator to slowly thaw and defrost. Do not heat breast milk directly over a stove or microwave as this will destroy the nutrients in the breast milk. After thawing, pour it directly into the bottle and feed your baby. Thawed breast milk must be consumed within 24 hours and cannot be re-frozen. It is best not to feed your baby leftover milk. How long it can be stored depends on the specific situation. In summer, it will basically go bad in 2 hours at room temperature. It is best not to put the milk in the refrigerator, as this will destroy the components of the milk during the subsequent heating process.

Breast milk storage and refrigeration storage time

Breast milk is usually stored in a refrigerator. The storage period is generally as follows: it can be stored for 8 days at 0-4℃; if it is a small freezer box in the refrigerator's refrigerator compartment, the storage period is two weeks; if it is a freezer compartment separate from the refrigerator, but the door is opened and closed frequently to take items out, the storage period is 3-4 months; if it is a deep freezer compartment, the temperature is kept below 0℃ and the door is not opened frequently, the storage period is more than 6 months. It's normal for stored breast milk to break down and look a little bluish, yellowish, or brown.