freezing breast milk

julybride

Okay can you help me with this one. I'm due to have my first little one and will (fingers crossed be breast feeding) it has come to my attention thatthe freezer bags for breast milk are rather expensive!!!!!:eek: does anyone know:

1. If you can use ordinary freezer bags?
2. If there is an alternative?
3. why they are so pricy? is it special plastic?
4. where i could pick them up for a reasonable amount?

mrs_mix

The proper bags are pre sterilised thats why they are expensive Boots £7.99 for 40 bags I would assume you can only use pre-sterilised and not ordinary ones as it would be difficult to sterilise them yourself
pam xx

bellsbells

I got mine from Boots - but as mrs_mix says they are sterilised and everything, so I am not sure that you can compromise on these. A word of caution - a very small number of women cannot freeze their breast milk very sucessfully due to the way it is made up. Basically when you defrost it is tastes 'soapy'. It is not bad as such, but not very nice tasting. Hopefully this won't be an issue for you, but can I recommend from bitter experience a couple of things -
Don't buy loads and loads of milk bags until you have done a trial and checked that your milk freezes ok:o
Don't express and freeze loads of milk until you have tried defrosting some and tasting it. I did not, and when I discovered that I could not use it, and had to pour oz after precious oz down the sink that I had spent hours expressing I cried!:(
I am not trying to be a scare mongerer (sp?) here, as the majority of women don't have a problem at all. I will pm you a bf support site I used - they will have more ideas about bags and the best places to buy them.
Good Luck, :j

bb

scaredy_cat_2

i would recomend looking at nct.org.uk site - they have both breastfeeding helpline, advice but they also sell resuable glass or plastic storage - so although they might be expensive to start obviously you won't need to buy as many

Glad

I used small plastic tubs which I sterilised first
they were also ideal for freezing baby sized amounts of food later on so well worth the money

shell2001

Also people say not to try feeding a breast-fed baby from a bottle until breastfeeding is established but I would say introduce the bottle of expressed milk early on. I waited until DD was about 3 months and it took months and quiet a few pounds to find bottles/teats that she would use.

The best I found were the NUK ones as they have to use the same lapping motion to get the milk as the hole on the teat is on the side rather than the top.

Good luck, I fed both my girls for 8 months and loved it (talking about it now I feel sad I will never have that experience again). Make sure you get the nurses or midwifes to show you the correct latching on position and if at first you dont succeed try try again. It is hard work in lots of ways but when I think back to the hassle friends had when out and about heating bottles while baby is crying and all I had to do way lift my top (very discreetly) so much easier.

Good luck - I do envy you!!!!

mum2kathryn

Avent sell some 'semi-disposable' plastic tubs (called Via) which come ready sterislised, then you could sterlise yourself for further use. They also attach to their breast pump.

http://www.avent.com/uk/en/bottlefeeding_via_feeding_system.php

If you email them through their website they might send you a free sample. They are also very handy for freezing babyfood when you get to that stage.

Niki

jennybb

I breastfed my daughter until a week before her 1st birthday, for numerous reasons, including not wanting to give her formula. The one thing that I wish people had told me is that initially it can be toecurlingly uncomfortable, but I promise you that you quickly get used to it. I think people maybe give up before giving it long enough to get used to it, but perhaps if warned would manage better.
Good luck - it's great if you can get on with it - makes life a lot easier too.
I expressed and froze, but it often wasn't worth the hassle - I only managed to express decent amounts first thing in the morning, when in retrospect I might have been better off having a lie in! I was lucky enough to be able to stay off work until after she was 1 so we were together most of the time.
Hope it all goes well for you.

katglasgow

I used to express 2-4 oz every morning and freeze. I found the little bags brilliant as they are presterilised and you can read on them exactly how much milk they have. They also connect up really easily to the pump etc... I found them so easy to use I would def. use them again.

super41

Great news that you're wanting to breastfeed! Loads of previous posts on this forum about the subject if you take a look. Like a previous poster said it can be a little tricky at first but but advice from your midwife or breastfeeding counseller can really help. After that it is so easy and convenient and you don't have to worry about cleaning and sterilising bottles and things.

I have not frozen breast milk as I haven't gone down the expressing route - I find it easier to just feed DS myself and am not going back to work till he is 12 months etc. I suggest you look into all the options e.g. freezer bags but don't lay out your money until you're show you're going to need them. You won't need them immediately anyway. I think its worth investing in a breast pump or again looking at what you want and buying it after baby has arrived. I bought a BN sealed Avent one for £17.50 from Ebay. I've used it half a dozen times when I had to express to feed baby from a cup when he was very tiny. So worth every penny. However it takes me so long to express a couple of ounces I really couldn't be bothered to do it regularly. Others can express loads really quickly, we're all different!

Anyway whatever you decide I wish you all the best and good luck with the breastfeeding!

full-time-mum

I don't see why you can't use other vessels for freezing in provided you can sterilise them properly. I would imagine that all food bags are sterile when they come off the roll but I wouldn't like to swear to it.

To start with, you'll probably struggle to get a whole bag full anyway. I started freezing in ice-cube trays which I sterilised in milton and rinsed with freshly boiled water.

At the risk of being controversial, I think that we sometimes get totally hung up by the sterisliation issue. It is very important but how many of you wash your nipples in sterilising solution before a feed. Come on now hands up - no-one then - I thought not.

It won't be long before baby starts chewing the straps of the car seat and stuffing teddy in too for good measure anyway.

What you need to remember that you need to be very clean and, obviously need to take a bit of extra care in the freezer because of the storing for a while bit.

Good luck with the baby and may I congratulate you on your decision to breastfeed. It might take a while to get started and established (6 - 8 weeks) but it is so much easier in the long run. Don't forget that whilst it is all perfectly natural, both you and baby need to learn the skill so expect a few teething problems in the first few weeks and don't be afraid to ask if you need help - it is not a sign of failure.