Donor human milk becoming more accessible to premature babies.

Medical staff has long recognized the benefits of human milk for babies, and especially so for premature babies. However, for a variety of reasons, some mother’s are not able to provide milk for their babies.

Until the 1970’s there were about 20 breast-milk banks across the country. Then as fears about the risk of HIV/AIDS transmission through breast milk began to increase, almost all these banks faded away.

Now with more secure screening, the health benefits of human milk for babies is making a comeback.

Vancouver, on the west coast, has had the longest operating human milk bank and for a long period was the only remaining human milk bank in the country.

In Calgary,Alberta, a human milk bank has been operating since 2012.  Since opening, they’ve seen the demand for human milk from their operation increase by 40 percent. The not-for-profit Mother’s Milk Bank takes in the donated milk, screens and pasteurizes it and distributes it for premature babies, and others who need it.  Their human milk stocks are now distributed to hospitals throughout the western province, and even to hospitals elsewhere in the country.

While pasteurization does affect some of the nutritional and immunologic components of human milk, many immunoglobulins, enzymes, hormones, and growth factors are unchanged or minimally decreased. Physicians say donor human milk provides many benefits over formulas and can reduce incidence of necrotizing enterocolitis (damage to a newborns intestines) and sepsis.  This they say can reduce hospital stays and costs.

In 2010, the Canadian Pediatric Society issued a position statement citing the importance of breast milk and that, if needed, the short supply of donor milk should go to sick preemies that need it the most. That same year, the Canadian Neonatal Network called on hospitals across the country to open milk banks.

In addition to the Vancouver and Calgary human milk banks, Toronto Ontario opened one last year, and the Quebec government said it will open a publicly operated human milk bank in spring of this year.