Liquid Gold: To share or not to share?

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Ever heard of the term “Liquid Gold”, these words normally come from the mouth of a breast feeding Mom.

Warning, this is a post that has everything to do with breast, milk and my preferences. I do not judge anyone by the decisions they make (whether it be for personal or medical reasons), I only share what my opinion is towards my situation.

In the Western Cape area, there’s a high prevalence of premature babies born monthly (big picture) and the presence of HIV, thus the need for donated breast milk is considerably high. Rich in antibodies, breast milk plays a crucial role in lowering infant mortality rates and have helped MANY babies all over South Africa.

In 2008 the Human Milk Banking Association of South Africa was formed in order to co-ordinate and provide guidance for human milk banking centres throughout South Africa. You may ask what is a milk bank. Well, within South Africa, breast milk banking existed informally in hospitals around the country prior to 1980. Mothers who had extra breast milk, expressed and donated it to pre-term babies whose mothers did not have sufficient milk. However, there was no screening of mothers and the milk was used without being pasteurised. With the advent of HIV/AIDS and the fact that the virus was also transmitted through breast milk, these breast milk banks stopped operating. The discovery of the Holder method of pasteurisation ensured that breast milk banks could operate safely again. The Holder method was found to destroy HIV/AIDS and other potentially harmful viruses and bacteria, while retaining nutrients and most of the immune properties.

In 2000 Prof. Anna Coutsoudis, from the Department of Paediatrics at the University of Kwazulu-Natal, started the iThemba Lethu Breast Milk Bank in Durban. The need for the breast milk bank stemmed from the tragedy of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. This pandemic has resulted in thousands of infants either being abandoned when their mothers discovered they are HIV infected or being orphaned when their mothers die of HIV/AIDS. UNICEF provided the funding to establish this community-based breast milk bank, which was the first of its kind in the world. Prof. Coutsoudis then assisted with the establishment of milk banking in the Western Cape (Milk Matters) in 2001/2 and then breast milk banking in Gauteng (South African Breast Milk Reserve).

The reality is the need for breast milk is not only for the children in Orphanages or children born to an HIV positive Mother. There are babies born prematurely to healthy parents, healthy Mothers who due to circumstance cannot breastfeed, be it due to medical reasons or they are not producing enough but would prefer breast milk as opposed to topping up with formula. A shortage of breast milk is not a 3^rd world problem but something we experience in every country.

Now in saying that, would the need and call for breast milk donations not be treated as important as blood donations, organ donations or even egg donations? All are vitally important.

That’s why I decided to try and do my little bit and assist where I can by registering  to become a milk donor. Like they say, every little counts.

What are your thoughts? Please feel free to comment and let me know.

Want more info on registering to become a donor and the process (see links below):

iThembalethu Registration

Milk Matters Registration

SABR: South African Breastmilk Reserve Registration

Does your beliefs, religion, personal preference say YAY or NAY to becoming a milk donor?

Information all courtesy of Human Milk Banking Association, iThembalethu Breast Milk Bank, Milk Matters and lastly South African Breastmilk Reserve

Should you wish to find out more information regarding becoming a breast milk donor click on the links below.