Breast Milk safety?

[nannynz]

For those of you her have or use Breast Milk for the children you look after how do you test the temperature after warming? I've only recently thought about communicable diseases that could be passed by testing BM on my skin as BM is a bodily fluid with another person. Does anyone know of any guidelines or what nurses would use to check temp in a NICU? Thanks in advance.

Communicable diseases! Through breastmilk! You're having a laugh arn't you. Surely if you are caring for a baby who is drinking said breastmilk you are then dealing with the resulting sick, poo and wee which is far more "dangerous".

Before you start fretting over the theoretical risk from EBM you might want to take the precaution of covering yourself from head to toe in clingfilm soaked in bleach every time you leave the house!

If you don't fancy the idea of having someone else's bodily fluid on your skin you could just feel the bottle? I agree that poo and vomit are about a million times more likely to give you a disease.

I wouldn't worry too much unless you have an open wound

You could buy a food probe (remember to record it if you use it, plus test it weekly)

Not very helpful although I see where you're coming from. It is a genuine question and I thought I'd get some serious answers and not have the P£$S taken out of me!

I've worked for many years now with new borns and children and obviously don't mind changing nappies, vomiting and other contaigious diseases, injuries with blood and also breast milk. I'm definetly not going to be wrapping up myself in cotten wool!

breastmilk is possibly the safest bodily fluid you are likely to come into contact with.

in fact it has healing properties for many communicable diseases.

i took ebm to my dd's nursery for a year never a q from the staff re safety.

Sorry, I didn't mean to sound horrible. I was just making light of it, not laughing at you

I'm sorry you felt I was taking the piddle. It's just that it seemed so ridiculous that you would be caring for a baby in every other way but be wary of breastmilk.

Seriously the liklihood of you catching anything from breastmilk is so minimal its not worth thinking about.

I've had two mums express breastmilk for their babies for me to use. I've just treated it as "normal" milk i.e. formula as the temperature is basically the same when tested. Breastmilk is thinner though so this can maybe affect the temperature.

Never even thought about anything to be caught from it!

Cows milk is also a bodily fluid. It's bodily fluid from a cow. Cows are far less bothered about personal hygiene than humans. I know which milk I'd rather handle.

Breastfeeding Network leaflet on expressing & storing says to consider using straight from the fridge.

0870 900 8787 for further advice

I do realise it is a very, very minimal risk to catch a disease from BM.

I'm wary of all bodily fluids from working with children and use good hygiene procedures, in fact, it was only yesterday that I'd ever considered BM as a bodily fluid. I'm between postitions at the moment hence my brain going into over drive thinking about odd things ;-)

Yes BM does have antibacterial properties but in a BM bank the milk would be sterilised (just like cows milk) so obviously there is a risk, although I do realise to test a drop on your wrist the risk would be fairly non existent.

So I'll keep doing what I normally do, I usually try to use BM that is room temp, but if not then BM is warmed in a cup of hot water, then swirl it well and test the outside of the bottle for temp.

Lucky my next position has just being bought forward from the 22nd of May until the 11th my brain could do with some work. Thanks for the replies.

Yes it would be sterilised but that is because it would be being stored for longer and fed to probably premature babies, not just come into contact with their skin.

I would say that good hygeine procedure would be to wash your hands afterwards, I know I would do that with someone else's milk.

just to add, don't swirl too much or shake it. it kills the live cells in it.