Storing breast milk is becoming increasingly common nowadays because we understand the benefits of breastfeeding our babies for longer time periods. This means that some Mums want to have their baby’s feed their breast milk while they are in daycare, rather than start them on a formula. So the battle then is on expressing and storing breast milk in ways which are suitable for working Mums and childcare centres.
Expressed milk can be stored in the fridge for 48hrs in a sterilised bottle or container.
If you don’t plan to use the milk straight away, a good tip is to pour the milk into a sterilised ice cube tray and when frozen tip cubes into a zip lock bag.
Frozen milk will keep for 3mths in the fridge freezer or 6mths in the deep freeze.
When ready to use your expressed milk, thaw at room temperature and pour into a sterilised bottle and stand in a container of boiled water to heat.
Microwaving can denature the proteins in breast milk.
If you do microwave, shake the bottle well to prevent any ‘hot spots’ and leave to stand for a minute or two before giving.
