Pasteurized Donor Human Milk
Important information about pasteurized donor human milk:
Human milk is the best food for your baby. Your own milk is best, but if you are not able to produce enough milk or choose not to pump, pasteurized donor human milk (PDHM) is the next best thing. For mothers experiencing low milk supply or unable to provide milk to their infants for other reasons, PDHM is available as a supplement.
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND) all recommend exclusive human milk as the best form of nutrition for infants during the first 6 months of life and continued human milk as long as mother and baby prefer. Human milk is especially important for at-risk infants for maximum health and developmental outcomes.
Mother’s own human milk and PDHM can help infants with a variety of conditions:
Human milk is easier to digest, strengthens the baby’s immune system and helps your baby fight disease and infection. It also contains growth hormones that help your baby grow. According to some studies, human milk may also increase intelligence and reduce allergies and illness later in life. PDHM has been safely used in Europe for over a century, and in the United States for over sixty years.
Where does pasteurized donor human milk come from?
Mothers who are breastfeeding or pumping human milk donate extra milk to the CHOP Mothers’ Milk Bank (MMB). Human milk donors are screened to make sure they are healthy and meet the strict donor criteria of the Human Milk Banking Association of North America (HMBANA). The CHOP Mother’s Milk Bank is an HMBANA accredited milk bank. Donors receive no payment or compensation, only the satisfaction of knowing they have improved the health of another baby. All donors receive instructions on proper hand washing, pumping technique, and cleaning of equipment.
Quality of pasteurized donor human milk
All PDHM is heat-treated to eliminate bacteria and viruses. Although some nutrients are lost in pasteurization, pasteurized donor human milk is better for your baby than infant formula.
Preterm infants need special nutrition. For the first month of life, milk from mothers of preterm infants is higher in some nutrients than milk of mothers who deliver full term babies. Therefore, preterm pasteurized donor human milk will be ordered for preterm infants whenever it is available.
Safety of pasteurized donor human milk
In addition to completing a medical history and lifestyle questionnaire (see donor screening criteria), potential donors are required to obtain their doctors’ approval to donate milk. Donors are tested for HIV, hepatitis B and C, human T cell lymphotrophic viruses (HTLV), and syphilis. A mother is accepted as a donor once she passes all screening criteria.
Donor screening criteria
Donors are screened through a process that begins with a short telephone interview. Donors must be:
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In good health.
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Placing breast milk in the freezer within 96 hours of being pumped.
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Using minimal medications (except for prenatal vitamins, human insulin, thyroid replacement hormones, nasal sprays, asthma inhalers, topical treatments, eye drops, progestin-only or low dose estrogen birth control products). Please contact the milk bank to check if a medication is safe for milk donation.
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Willing to have their blood tested (conducted at CHOP’s main campus/ KOP hospital at the milk bank’s expense)
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Willing to donate at least 200 ounces of milk (except for bereaved mothers).
A person is not a suitable donor if they:
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Use illegal/recreational drugs, including cannabis.
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Smoke or uses tobacco products.
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Consume alcohol on a daily basis. If alcohol is consumed: for every 2 ounces of alcohol consumed, please wait 6 hours.
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Have received a blood transfusion or blood products (except Rhogam) in the last 4 months.
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Have received an organ or tissue transplant in the last 12 months.
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Have a positive blood test result for HIV, HTLV, hepatitis B or C, or syphilis or her sexual partner is at risk for HIV
If you know someone interested in donating human milk, please contact the Mothers’ Milk Bank (MMB) coordinator.
CHOP Mothers’ Milk Bank
267-425-1662
8:00am - 4:30pm, Monday-Friday
Email: [email protected]
Fax: 215-590-6895
Reviewed June 2024 by Rachelle Lessen MS, RDN, LDN, IBCLC and Meghan Devine RN, BSN, IBCLC