Storing breast milk
You can store breast milk in a sterilised container or in special breast milk storage bags:
- in the fridge for up to 8 days at 4C or lower (you can buy fridge thermometers online) – if you're not sure of the temperature of your fridge, or it is higher than 4C, use it within 3 days
- for 2 weeks in the ice compartment of a fridge
- for up to 6 months in a freezer, if it's -18C or lower
Breast milk that's been cooled in the fridge can be carried in a cool bag with ice packs for up to 24 hours.
Storing breast milk in small quantities will help avoid waste. If you're freezing it, make sure you label and date it first.
Defrosting frozen breast milk
It's best to defrost frozen breast milk slowly in the fridge before giving it to your baby. If you need to use it straight away, you can defrost it by putting it in a jug of warm water or holding it under running warm water.
Once it's defrosted, give it a gentle shake if it has separated. Use it straight away. Do not re-freeze milk that's been defrosted.
Once your baby has drunk from a bottle of breast milk it should be used within 1 hour and anything left over should be thrown away.
Warming breast milk
You can feed expressed milk straight from the fridge if your baby is happy to drink it cold. Or you can warm the milk to body temperature by putting the bottle in a jug of warm water or holding it under running warm water.
Do not use a microwave to heat up or defrost breast milk. This can cause hot spots, which can burn your baby's mouth.