How long can the milk sucked out by the breast pump be kept? How to store the milk sucked out by the breast pump?

Nowadays, many mothers insist on breastfeeding, because babies fed with breast milk have stronger resistance than babies fed with formula. Therefore, many mothers insist on breastfeeding. However, as working women, mothers cannot breastfeed anytime and anywhere. So how to preserve the milk sucked by the breast pump? Today, let's talk to you about the issue of breast milk preservation.

Breast milk storage time at room temperature

Generally speaking, there are two ways to store breast milk. One is when the mother works in a company, because the company does not have refrigeration equipment, so the breast milk can only be stored at room temperature. The storage time of breast milk stored at room temperature is shorter. Mothers should pay attention to marking the time on the bottle of breast milk to avoid the baby drinking expired breast milk and causing digestive tract diseases.

Breast milk storage time at room temperature:

Colostrum (milk expressed within 6 days after delivery) - can be stored for 12 hours at room temperature of 27-32℃.

Mature breast milk (milk expressed 6 days after delivery) - can be stored at room temperature of 15°C for 24 hours; at room temperature of 19-22°C for 10 hours; at room temperature of 25°C for 6 hours.

Stored breast milk will decompose into two separate layers: milk water and milk fat. It may look a little blue, yellow or brown, which is normal. Before feeding the baby, the mother should shake it well to make the milk and water mix into one.

Breast milk refrigeration storage time

Another situation is that the company has refrigeration equipment, or the mother squeezes out the breast milk at home and puts it in the refrigerator in advance, so the breast milk can be stored for a longer time. Unless there are special circumstances (such as the mother is going on a business trip), parents should not store breast milk for too long, and try to give the baby fresh breast milk, which is better for the baby's health.

Breast milk refrigeration storage time:

Refrigerator storage: 0-4℃ can be stored for 8 days.

If it is a small freezer box in the refrigerator, the shelf life is two weeks.

If it is a freezer room separate from the refrigerator, but the door is frequently opened and closed to take items out, the shelf life is 3-4 months.

If it is in a deep freezer, the temperature is kept below 0℃ and the door is not opened often, the shelf life can be more than 6 months.

It should be noted that parents need to thaw breast milk stored in the refrigerator before feeding it to their baby. You can put the container in running cold water and gradually increase the water temperature to heat the breast milk to the appropriate feeding temperature. Or put the container in a pot of heated water. It is best not to use microwave ovens and other equipment, which can easily destroy the nutrients in breast milk. At the same time, microwave ovens heat unevenly, and milk that is too cold or too hot can easily harm the baby.

How long can breast milk be stored?

1. Use a breast pump to squeeze the milk into a sterilized bottle and store it in a refrigerator at a temperature below 5 degrees Celsius. The storage period is 24 hours, and it can be stored in the freezer for 7 days. Breast milk that has been thawed after freezing cannot be refrozen and can only be refrigerated; once the refrigerated breast milk is warmed, it cannot be refrigerated again even if it has not been fed, and must be discarded.

2. Mature breast milk at room temperature can be stored for 24 hours at 15°C

3. Place mature breast milk at room temperature at 19-22°C for 10 hours

4. Mature breast milk at room temperature at 25°C for 6 hours

5. Refrigerate mature breast milk at 0-4℃ for 8 days

6. Freezing: Mature breast milk can be placed in a single-door refrigerator for 14 days

7. Double-door refrigerator for mature breast milk for 3-4 months

8. Refrigerated mature breast milk for more than 6 months

Warm Tips: It is normal for expressed breast milk to decompose, but thawed breast milk cannot be re-frozen. Try to let your baby eat less frozen breast milk, because freezing will cause the loss of certain antibodies, but compared with formula milk, frozen breast milk can still enhance the baby's resistance to diseases and allergies.

How to store breast milk

The common function of a breast pump is to preserve breast milk so that the baby can have healthy and nutritious breast milk even when the mother is not around. If you want your baby to drink healthy and fresh breast milk, how should you preserve it?

1. Breast milk can be stored in the refrigerator or frozen. Please put the expressed breast milk in a bottle with a sealed cover, or put it in a VIA cup with a covered cover;

2. If the milk is to be fed to the baby after being sucked out, a sterilized breast pump must be used;

3. Refrigerate the milk immediately after it is extracted;

4. Breast milk can only be stored in the refrigerator for a maximum of 48 hours (do not place it on the refrigerator door) and frozen for 3 months;

5. If you want to add newly expressed milk to the milk stored in the refrigerator during the day, you must use a sterilized container, and the earliest expressed milk cannot be stored for more than 48 hours;

6. Do not refreeze thawed breast milk;

7. Do not add fresh breast milk to frozen breast milk

Breast milk heating method

Do not heat the milk in a microwave before feeding, as the temperature will be uneven and may burn your baby.

Heating or boiling breast milk directly over fire will destroy its nutrients. Therefore, the best way is to warm it in hot water not exceeding 50 degrees Celsius.

If possible, the mother can still express the milk according to the breastfeeding time when she is at work, or use a breast pump to suck out the milk to ensure that the milk can be fully secreted next time. It is recommended to express milk every 3 hours during work hours, and you can express milk at the same time every day, so that milk will come at that specific time.