Expressed breastmilk - feeding out and about questions

[mashpot]

Hello,

I've read the guidelines on how long expressed breast mlk will last but still have some questions if anyone can help.

If I put milk in the fridge as soon as I have expressed, when I take it out can it still last upto 6 hours out of the fridge? Or does it just last 6 hours if fresh and not refrigerated?

I sometimes want to take a bottle of expressed milk out with me, what should I be doing to keep the milk fresh? I bought a tommee tippee insulated bottle holder thing, will that do?

Finally, I'm heading off on a sunny holiday next week so do I need to make an extra effort to keep a bottle cool if I take one out with me?

Thanks very much.

Hello mashpot. I had to exclusively express for four months whilst DD2 was in nicu and the advice there was as follows:

Expressed milk will stay fresh for up to 24 hours in the fridge and then be fine out of the fridge for four hours within that 24 hour period. My understanding is that it's four hours even if it never went into a fridge in the first place.

I would imagine that whilst the weather is as it is at the moment, your milk will be fine when you're out and about.

I'm honestly not sure about your holiday question! But common sense suggests to me that preventing the milk from overheating would keep it fresher for longer.

Hope this helps :)

Thanks Whitehorses

I have been using the guidlelines on KellyMom here www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkstorage.html which suggests milk lasts much longer than you were advised - I have certainly been keeping milk in the fridge for longer than 24 hours but I don't want to run the risk of feeding DS bad milk by feeding it to him after it has been out of the fridge too long.

I think maybe I need a little cool bag with an icepack for holiday, has anyone else done this?

Hi
Not sure on the holiday question, but I used an icepack/coolbag combo for ebm nightfeeds. I put the bottles in the coolbag at about 10pm and they still felt fridge- cold at 5am, the room is about 18-19 degrees. So would think that it would be ok for at least 4 hours in a hotter climate.

I also thought you could store ebm in refridgerator for about 4 days (I usually freeze any not used by end of next day anyway). And 4-6 hrs at room temperature. This was the advice at Kingston Scbu and also kellymom.

Hello,

I exclusively express for my 5 month old & follow these guidelines:

• Fresh milk can stand at room temp for approx 6 hours
• Fresh milk can stay in fridge for 5 days

If you take milk out of your fridge, it can stay at room temp for up to 6 hours.

When I go out, I put my bottle in an insulated bottle carrier with a freezer pack inside. This will keep it cold & last for longer. You can then warm it up when needed.

As pp said, refer to the Kellymom website. It lists all storage requirements for breast milk.

Have a lovely holiday! x

Thanks so much cee and Nicola - very reassuring and I will purchase a insulated coolbag to see us through.