Hi Nona: If I don't produce enough daily milk and my Traditional Surrogate doesn't pump (she may go back east after the birth), then Lenore mentioned that you set up a breastmilk exchange from hyperlactators? I'm interested. What's the basics on that? I would pasteurize it, right?
Yes I recommend pasturizing now. Lenore has come up with a wonderful way to do it. What I do is match you with a donor. You would then send the donor a cooler and a fedex number and either gerber zip lock bags 4 packs or the money to replace hers 25.00. She would then fill the cooler to the top and ship it back over night. The money would be deducted from your checking account from fedex in a few weeks. With the way I have them ship. No dry ice is needed. Cooler is packed full and insulates itself. It arrives nicely frozen the next day. Ya know.. even if your surrogate moves back east... she can still ship you the milk.
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
Nona, what is the process of pasturizing the milk? Do you just boil it for a certain amount of time?! I am now starting to use my deep freezer stash from my two donors since I just became the proud Mama of fraternal twins! They are 16mths old today.
HOME PASTEURIZING INSTRUCTIONS by Lenore Goldfarb, IBCLC
1) Prepare the Jars: I used the small 8 oz mason jars...the kind for jelly or jams by "Ball". I washed, and then heat sterilized the jars and caps in a large pot of boiling water for 10 minutes. I also sterilized a funnel. Meanwhile I thawed 9 six-ounce portions of frozen breastmilk in a different pot under hot but not boiling, running water.
2) Wash hands and wear gloves: Before attempting to process the milk, I washed my hands and put a brand new pair of rubber dishwashing gloves on my hands.
3) Fill Jars and place in pot filled part way with hot water: Once the jars and milk and funnel were ready, I poured the milk into the jars using the funnel, discarded the bags the milk came in and sealed the jars. Once all the jars were sealed I placed them in a pot with heated but not boiling water so that the water came to the ?shoulder? of the jar, a little below the lids. I turned up the heat and slowly brought the temperature of the milk up to 63.5 degrees Celsius (146 degrees Fahrenheit) and held it there as best I could for 30 minutes. Sometimes the temp climbed higher which is ok...as long as it doesn't go lower. This is called the Holder Method of Pasteurization.
4) Prepare jar with thermometer:To gauge the temperature I fashioned a temperature gauge in the following manner. I filled one of the mason jars with breastmilk, I covered it with stretchable plastic wrap, I made a tiny hole in the centre. I then took a 6-inch strip of aluminum foil and folded it in half so that it was now a square. I placed the square of double thickness aluminum foil over the plastic wrap and made a small hole in the centre. I lined up the hold in the plastic wrap with the hold in the aluminum foil and covered the jar so that the hole was in the centre. I carefully placed a candy thermometer through the hole. The reason for the plastic wrap is to create a vapour barrier and at the same time prevent the milk from coming in contact with the aluminum. I placed this jar in the pot with the others avoiding the center position because that is the hottest. You want to be sure that the temperature is AT LEAST 63.5 degrees Celcius (146 degrees Fahrenheit) in all the jars?.so place the jar with the thermometer in a position OTHER THAN the centre.
Note: It is important to make sure your thermometer is accurate. This is called ?calibration?. To be sure, boil water in a pot and set the thermometer into the boiling water so that it covers as least the first 2 inches of the thermometer from the bottom up.
Celcius:
If the temperature of the boiling water reads 100 degrees Celcius, your thermometer is accurate. If the temperature reads 95 degrees, you must add 5 degrees Celcius to the critical temperature of 63.5 Celcius for an accurate reading. If the temperature reads 105 degrees Celcius, you must subtract 5 degrees from 63.5 degrees, and so on. The temperature and timing is critical in order for the pasteurization process to be complete. It is very important that the temperature not fall below 63.5 degrees Celcius during the entire 30 minutes, otherwise you must start over, and process for another 30 minutes.
Fahrenheit:
If the temperature of the boiling water reads 212 degrees Fahrenheit, your thermometer is accurate. If the temperature reads 202 degrees Fahrenheit, you must add 10 degrees Fahrenheit to the critical temperature of 146 degrees Fahrenheit for an accurate reading. If the temperature reads 222 degrees Fahrenheit, you must subtract 10 degrees Fahrenheit from 146 degrees Fahrenheit and so on. The temperature and timing is critical in order for the pasteurization process to be complete. It is very important that the temperature not fall below 146 degrees Fahrenheit during the entire 30 minutes, otherwise you must start over, and process for another 30 minutes.
5) Agitate the pot for 30 minutes: This simulates the shaking water bath used by the milk banks. During the 30 minutes I agitated the pot so that the milk would heat evenly. I also turned each jar over and then right side up again every 5 minutes to distribute the heat evenly. It's important not to shake the jars...just quickly turn over and then right side up again and then back in the pot. Make sure the lids are on correctly before you turn over the jar.
6) Once the pasteurization process was complete I quickly removed the pot from the heat, and put it in an ice bath in the sink to rapidly bring down the temperature within the jars to 40 degrees Celcius. Do not put hot jars into the ice bath directly because they may burst. Once the temperature was down I could then carefully open the jars and pour the milk into the Gerber breastmilk storage bags. I did not use a funnel. It's too difficult so I just poured from the jar directly into the bag.
7) I labelled each bag with the name of the donor and today's date. I turned each bag upside down to verify that it was properly sealed. Then I put the bags in the fridge to chill. About 2 hours later, I laid the bags flat inside a large ziplock, labled it with the donor's name, today's date and the word "PASTEURIZED". I lay the bag flat in the freezer.
I repeated the process so that I pasteurized 18 bags of breastmilk, which is enough supplement for my baby for about 4 days. If you use two pots, you can double your efforts and process 32 bags which is enough for my baby for about a week. Another option is to use larger jars.
Note: Once the pasteurization process is complete, the breastmilk may be used immediately or frozen for future use.
I will be pasturizing a shipment I get the end of the week. But I am using the 16 ounce ball canning Jars. <img src="http://www.asklenore.com/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" />
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
If you have anyone you could pair me with right now, I would be very grateful. I posted last week that I was in need and have had some help from Jenn Connel, but still do not have enough milk for Henry ... who is taking in between 40 - 50 ounces per day at 23 days old! When he is constipated, he takes in about 40 ounces, but if his bowels were moving like they were when I had the two week supply of my friend Rebcecca's milk, he'd eat closer to 50 ounces.
I live on the Central Coast of California ... Santa Maria ... if you have anyone in this neck of the woods, but I'm not picky. I already have a FedEx account number, too.
By the way, I am up to 1.5 ounces per day of my own milk now ... small improvements.
Jenn also recommended the home pasteurizer machine to me .. she says the "Safeguard Home Pasteurizer" by www.Schleuterco.com for about $300 is well worth the money because the temperature can be easily controlled. Plus she says, it takes a lot less time and energy.
Mahalo (Thank you), Christina
Christina ~ Wife of Henry, Jr. and mother of Henry III, born with the help of our Angel/GS
OH MY! Now I don't know if I want to use my donor milk because I just don't have the time to even begin this process with two new babies and two preschoolers at home! I didn't realize that pasturizing the donor milk was important and was under the assumption that it was just fine raw as most bio mothers do not go through this process when they give frozen MM to their babies. Sadly to admit, opening a can of formula is beginning to sound more appealing every day as I have had no luck with bringing much milk in myself after months of preperation and now to add the work of pasturizing to an already crazy days with the babies! Then to add the fact that the babies are already 16mths and are not going to take to the breast very easily. I'm seriously feeling discouraged with the whole abf and wondering why I began the whole journey to begin with.
Sorry to sound so down and negative but I am feeling really disappointed with the entire outcome and loosing hope that it's possible and now I don't know that I'll even have the time to give my baby donor MM. I don't want to spend all my time in the kitchen or pumping etc rather than cuddling, holding and playing with my babies. Does this make sense? I probably will regret posting this in the morning when I come to my senses but I needed to get my true thoughts out.
Personally, I won't do it if I use donor milk in the future again. I know it's being super precautionary, and protecting our babes is important, but I also believe that raw milk has more nutrients and goodness than processed milk.
If you're getting milk from someone you know and/or trust, or from someone who's had bloodtesting, it's optional. We've all been using donor milk for years without doing this added step, so don't feel it's more work than formula. It's about the same amount of work, but it's so much better for your little one!
Kerri
Mama to Cole, Naomi, Adam, and baby Noah
All wide-open adoptions through LDS Familiy Services
La Leche League Leader and Doula
Christina, I was born and raised in Santa Maria! My Dad and some of my siblings still live there. <img src="http://www.asklenore.com/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" /> It is a beautiful place. Wish I kew someone there who could help you out.
Laurie~Craig's wife~Mom to 4 blessings nurtured at the breast CJ(24)Travis(21)Beka~adopted(9)Rab(6)
Lalle - You'll have to give me a call when you visit home ... my number is (805) 937-4568. Thanks for the thought! <img src="http://www.asklenore.com/ubbthreads/images/icons/wink.gif" alt="" /> C
Sarah! Don't feel bad. You most certainly don't have to pasteurize. I have just had a lot of health officials that have asked me to recommend pasteurizing when doing the donation program. And with Lenores method it works. Satisfies the professionals .
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
Christina, I am sorry I don't have any donors right now. I only have the one cooler coming for my baby. And the mother would only send it to me personally as long as I agreed to pasteurize it. People have spooked her about donating it . She had planned to trash it. So I am just lucky to get it. She is healthy but all the things people say to you about liabilities..Had her backing out on sending it at all! But I will put the word out and see what I can find
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
Thank you Kerri and Nona for the reassurance! I feel much better and I do trust both of my donors very much and one has gone through extensive testing for milk bank donation. My little Phoebe gobbles the MM right up and I hated the thought of not using the rest! I'm so grateful to both of my donor mommies!!!
Also Nona, could you tell me your thoughts about pumps. As you know, I'm still having low production. Both lactation consultants I've seen locally insist the Ameda is best for me so i just went with what they said ... but what do I know? What I do know is that I'm only getting 1 - 2 ounces per day and that is not enough, and I'm not giving up, darn it! Lenore tells me about the great results the 1,000+ women have had using the PIS and the protocol. Can you tell me what you've found about pumps ... Lenore tells me you are the expert! What about the Whittlestone?
Thanks very much. Christina
Christina ~ Wife of Henry, Jr. and mother of Henry III, born with the help of our Angel/GS
Thank you for putting the word out, Nona! In the meantime, I'll keep pumping, putting Henry to breast, and using the Lact-Aid as much as possible. Aloha, C PS Attached is a photo of my little miracle!
Christina ~ Wife of Henry, Jr. and mother of Henry III, born with the help of our Angel/GS
Christina, The Ameda is NOT a real good pump. I even bought one of those things for 800.00 ughhh. The pump in style is so much better. The slowest speed on the PIS is faster than the fastest on the Ameda. The PIS you can go fast for a letdown or more stimulation. I also had a whittlestone horrible horrible pump.. No suction what so ever. I could pump with it for 45 minutes and get small amount of milk. Then get my PIS and get ounces right after. Please do not waste your time on that pump. You will be sorely disappointed. I have one lady that contacted me. .she has 120 ounces. If you want that you can contact me. Its a start.
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
Nona, what is the criteria for being a donor? My son is 15 months and only nurses 2-3 times a day now. Sometimes more sometimes less. I would like to start pumping and storing the milk to donate while I am still producing. I always said if I ever got pregnant again and produced milk I would use it to help the women who are nursing their adopted or surrogate infants. Do you have a handout or something explaining how to be a donor and dietary restrictions etc... Thanks
Laurie~Craig's wife~Mom to 4 blessings nurtured at the breast CJ(24)Travis(21)Beka~adopted(9)Rab(6)
Lalle, There really are no dietary restrictions. .Just try to avoid real spicey foods. Just as long as your not a drinker or smoker and in good health and not on alot of meds.. Then your great canidate for donations!
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
I don't smoke or drink. I do have a glass of wine occasionally. How long after having a drink must you wait before pumping for donating? I am in very good health and I don't take any medications, just vitamins.
Last edited by Lalle; 04/04/0402:57 AM.
Laurie~Craig's wife~Mom to 4 blessings nurtured at the breast CJ(24)Travis(21)Beka~adopted(9)Rab(6)
After my son Ethan was born I attempted to breastfeed him exclusively following the induced lactation protocol that I had developed together with Dr. Jack Newman. I quickly realized that Ethan was not an ?average? baby. In fact he was measuring in the close to the 90th percentile for height and weight. It was obvious that I needed help and fast. In the beginning, our wonderful surrogate mom pumped and shipped her breastmilk to us. She was also helping another mother and so 2/3 of Ethan?s feedings were coming from me, and 1/3 from her. At the end of 3 months and after repeated bouts of mastitis our wonderful surrogate mother decided to wean from the pump. At that point I put the word out that I needed more help and 3 wonderful women stepped up and offered breastmilk.
I decided that if the milk did not come from me or my surrogate, that I would not take any chances, even with a clean bill of health from the donors, I would do as the milk banks do?I would pasteurize the breast milk.
The pasteurizing information that Nona posted is for those of you who don't know your donor all that well and who can't obtain written documentation that the donor has been medically cleared. In my case, our wonderful surrogate mom pumped for 3 months and so pasteurization was not necessary. But as I said, I decided that if anyone donated milk that I didn't know well or didn't have written medical clearance, that I would pasteurize. And so after reading everything I could get my hands on about home pasteurization, I followed the method posted above.
Of course a home pasteurizer would make my life a whole lot easier but I was thinking of the women out there who can't afford to purchase one. Most are $300+
The one most often mentioned in the literature I found was the Safeguard Home Pasteurizer that Christina mentioned. This uses the "vat pasteurization method" and is quoted as an alternative to the "Holder Pasteurization Method".
The actual pasteurization time of 30 minutes was the least time comsuming part of the process. Emptying the bags the milk comes in was the most time consuming. The Gerber Bags are much more convenient than any of the others so far, because they have a "ziplock" type seal which is easy to work with. The other types of bags that you have to close with an elastic, take much longer to open.
As far as the donor requirements are concerned. Of course there are the obvious things....donor must be in good general health, and have a surplus of milk while breastfeeding a child under 1 year of age.....she must be free of HIV, Hepatitis A,B,C, and CMV, and non smoking, non-drinking. The occasional glass of wine does not pose a problem....it's the heavy drinkers that the milk banks want to weed out. For a more complete donor profile, you can visit this web page: http://www.mmbaustin.org/How%20to%20become%20a%20donor.doc
Hope this helps.
Fondly,
Lenore Goldfarb, Ph.D.,CCC,IBCLC Wife to Rob, Mom to Adam aged 13, and Ethan aged 9, both born via GS and breastfed via Regular Newman-Goldfarb Protocol.
Nona, Thanks for your thoughts on pumps. I'm sorry you bought an Ameda for 800.00 ... I don't feel so bad for the rental cost of $3.35 US per day, though I do wish I wouldn't have wasted all this time and having to give Henry formula!
I will email you about the milk donor ... thank you so much!
Aloha & Hugs, Christina [color:"brown"] [/color]
Christina ~ Wife of Henry, Jr. and mother of Henry III, born with the help of our Angel/GS
This is Jenn Connel and I'm the woman that has been helping Christina getting some of her milk! It sounds like Henry is QUITE the little BM addict! <img src="http://www.asklenore.com/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" />
The Safeguard Pasteurizer was pretty expensive, but I asked only for money when I found out that I was pregnant - and no gifts. I ended up raising over $900 from just my friends & family and then over $2000 from my website: www.feedmybaby.com. If I was to give any of you advice it would be - BE CREATIVE in how you think about getting / pasteurizing milk! I have encouraged Christina to go to her local media and explain her situation! I believe in the goodness of people - and through my work I've found so MANY people willing to help me feed my son breastmilk! It's really not as hard as you'd think! You just need to make some phone calls and SOMEONE will feature you in their paper! I ended up having my story run in FIVE papers and I was even in the news!!! I'm also a member of my local Mom's group and several of them have offered to pump for me and one even sent her 'early' milk to Christina!
One thing I have said from the beginning of this journey was that "I didn't want to create any problems by feeding my baby breastmilk that ended up being tainted" so that is why I chose to pasteurize. I have gotten to be friends with one of my donors - and have since then decided to stop pasteurizing her milk - but I do still pasteurize the milk of my other donor. I'd just rather be safe than sorry when it comes to my baby!
The pasteurization is SO easy with the Safeguard - but it does take some time. But - I reason that it really takes less time than all of the trips to the Dr. my son would be taking if he was on formula!
I purchased the pasteurizer directly from the company for $265. I also purchased glass 8 oz. bottles from ebottles.com (looking back I wish I'd purchased 6 oz. bottles as the milk would probably thaw faster - but oh well!!!). Those were the only 2 expenses I've had (other than shipping charges - which are minimal compared to the cost of formula!). We use the styrofoam "Omaha Meats" coolers and just ship them back and forth between donors!!! It does take a little juggling at times - but once again... TOTALLY worth it! My son is THRIVING and has only been sick once in his 16 weeks of life!
I do screen all donors with a health questionnaire & I have her send her medical records to my Doctor for final approval.
If anyone needs any help with your pasteurization just drop me an e-mail! jenn@feedmybaby.com
Jenn, am glad getting milk for your baby was pretty easy. But I had a mommy in california who put an add in the paper and got in legal trouble for it. The health department sent her a letter threatening to file charges against her if she did not cease advertising for breastmilk. They said it was a health hazard. So I don't know how well that would work. Some states are very strict about that. I also have a pasteurizer. I got it from ebay. Its an old model Farm master. Its very easy to pasteurize milk. Fill the pail and turn it on. Thats it. A buzzer goes off when its done. Then the cooling down of course. But it is very simple procedure.
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
Jenn has sure been Henry's Angel ... thanks to her he had a huge poopey diaper tonight with a lot less strain than before. Meanwhile, my production has increased a teeny bit ... I'm up to two and sometimes three ounces per day.
Nona has also been Henry's angel on the lookout for donations. The donor we thought we had did not come through, and I always believe things happen for reasons. I feel blessed to have both Jenn and Nona's help, as well as the support of Lenore and her website.
Lenore's pasteurizing process has worked well too, and it gets easier each time I do it.
Aloha, Christina
Christina ~ Wife of Henry, Jr. and mother of Henry III, born with the help of our Angel/GS
Christina, thanks on the heads up about the aluminum pot. I sold my pasteurizer back on ebay lol! I got a stainless steal pot for it. But the stainless would not hold the heat. Atleat not in the older ones. So I will be pasteurizing on the stove tomorrow. I am just thankful to have this cooler of milk. My baby is coming soon ughhh. This is the mom who was going to toss the whole thing. But I talked her into sending to me and I would pasteurize it. Its the only way she would send. .remember people spooked her..I will let you know how the pasteurizing goes. .I am using quart jars..
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
How many ounce are you getting per day Nona? By the way, today I finally got the PIS ... I'll keep you posted on my progress. The containers I'm using for pasteurizing so far are the four ounce bottles I got from the milk bank. I like them because they are short and take less water in the pot to heat, so the process is slightly faster. The downside is I have to pasteurize more often. However, I don't mind this because I prefer not to refreeze the milk unless I know I won't have time to pasteurize. Also, these containers are easier to pour from and fit nicely on the top shelf of my frig. If we all lived close to one another, we could have pasteurizing parties!
Aloha, Christina
Christina ~ Wife of Henry, Jr. and mother of Henry III, born with the help of our Angel/GS
I was getting 10... Had stressful adoption fall through and hospitalizations on december. Dropped to about 2 1/2 ounces. Now I am up to 5 ounces... Working hard to get it going again.
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
After you've pasteurized the milk it's like starting from Day 1 so you can freeze without worry.
Fondly,
Lenore Goldfarb, Ph.D.,CCC,IBCLC Wife to Rob, Mom to Adam aged 13, and Ethan aged 9, both born via GS and breastfed via Regular Newman-Goldfarb Protocol.
Well I just got through pasteurizing 500 ounces of milk. It was really easy. I used the quart jars. Had 2 pots going with 4 jars in each. It took 4 hours from frozen to refreezing. Not bad if you think about having to thaw it all first. <img src="http://www.asklenore.com/ubbthreads/images/icons/smile.gif" alt="" /> The quart jars made it really easy
Adoptive mommy to 4 , Last 2 adopted nursed. Youngest nursed till she was 5! Raising 2 grandbabies, as infants they were raised on donor breast milk
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