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SALT LAKE CITY — The local Mothers' Milk Bank Depot is experiencing a critical shortage of donated milk and is asking local lactating women to consider becoming donors.
Human milk donated to the depot at University of Utah's Redwood Health Center helps nourish fragile infants in hospitals throughout Utah and other states. Donors' milk is sent to a processing facility in Denver, where it is pasteurized and distributed to hospital neonatal intensive care units throughout the country, including Utah.
The Utah depot normally sends out about 500 ounces of human milk per week, but it has experienced a significant drop in donations this summer, said Christy Porucznik, co-director of the depot and an assistant professor in the Department of Family and Preventative Medicine of the U.'s School of Medicine.
Providing human milk to infants in neonatal intensive care units often means shorter hospital stays compared to infants that receive artificial milk, Porucznik said.
"When we give them what their bodies expect, they do better," she said. One reason is, the composition of a mother's milk changes to match the developmental needs of the infant.
Some women, because of injury or severe illness, are unable to provide their own milk to their preterm or otherwise fragile infants.
Providing human milk to infants in neonatal intensive care units often means shorter hospital stays compared to infants that receive artificial milk.
"Donor milk is not meant to be a solution. It's meant to be a bridge until we can support mom to get her own milk available for her own baby," Porucznik said.
Mothers who are interested in donating should call 877-458-5503 to begin the screening process.
General requirements for donors include women who are nonsmokers; limit their use of caffeine or alcohol; are willing to donate at least 150 ounces during the time they are donors; receive medical releases from their health care provider; have no routine use of most medications and test negative for viruses in a blood test.
For more information, visit the Salt Lake Mothers’ Milk Donation Center at:healthcare.utah.edu/primarycare/redwood/breastmilk/index.php
Porucznik said the donation of breast milk is "something that mothers are in a unique position to do." Mothers can collect donations in their own home and on their own schedules, offering a service "that can really, honestly save lives."
- Nonsmokers
- Limited use of caffeine or alcohol
- Willing to donate at least 150 ounces
- Receive medical releases from their health care provider
- Have no routine use of most medications
- Test negative for viruses in a blood test
Because of the shortage, hospitals are rationing their supplies. Porucznik said the program generally relies on about 50 volunteers who rotate in and out of the program. Under normal circumstances, supplies are tight. This summer, they have become critically low, Porucznik said.
While she can only speculate why donations have dropped, Porucznik said nursing mothers who go on vacation likely do not pump breast milk because they do not have a means to freeze it. Some women get out of the habit during summer months. If someone else in the household is ill, a donor mother's milk cannot be collected for donation.
Most participating mothers drop off donations weekly. "It's a big commitment. We really appreciate the time and effort they put into it," Porucznik said.
