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Are breast milk banks good alternatives to baby formula? How they work in North Carolina

The ongoing baby formula shortage and considerable risk around homemade formulas have raised questions about access to breast milk, especially for parents and caregivers for whom breastfeeding isn’t an option.

While breast milk can have some health benefits for infants, there are numerous reasons why it may not be feasible for some to breastfeed. And there are also sometimes cases of people having breast milk to give.

For folks in either situation, milk banks can help by getting breast milk to babies who have a medical need for it. Milk sharing groups have also become popular on social media, though experts have expressed some safety concerns.

Here’s what to know about milk banks and milk sharing and how to give or receive in North Carolina:

What are milk banks?

Milk banks collect breast milk from healthy people who are producing it but, for various reasons, aren’t using it or have extra and redistribute it to hospitals and families that are caring for infants who would benefit from breast milk.

Typically, the Human Milk Banking Association of North America says, the milk is screened, pasteurized and tested before it’s distributed.

The donated milk typically goes to hospitals or families that have gotten a prescription or recommendation from their child’s doctor, usually because of a medical need.

North Carolina milk banks

WakeMed’s Mothers’ Milk Bank is the lone HMBANA-accredited bank in North Carolina, meaning they are certified as adhering to the organization’s guidelines and standards.

The group has drop-off sites and distribution partners throughout the state.

To learn more about donating, visit wakemed.org/care-and-services/womens/support-for-baby/mothers-milk-bank/donating-your-milk, call 919-350-8599 or email mothersmilkbank@wakemed.org.

WakeMed primarily distributes milk to babies in the state’s Neonatal Intensive Care Units that need it, but milk can also be distributed to families that have a prescription for babies that have a medical need. To get a prescription, you should talk to your child’s pediatrician.

Despite some thinking of milk banks as an alternative to baby formula, the Mother’s Milk Bank is not able to distribute breast milk to those in need solely because of the baby formula shortage, a WakeMed spokesperson told the Observer, because of limited stock.

What about milk sharing groups?

In addition to milk banks, there are also numerous “milk sharing groups” on social media meant to connect people with breast milk to give and people who need it for their children. Some Facebook groups, for example, have tens of thousands of members from around the country and world.

The practice has become so common that some have started for-profit online exchanges for people to buy and sell breast milk.

But both the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Food and Drug Administration “recommend avoiding Internet-based milk sharing sites and instead recommend contacting milk banks,” per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Research has demonstrated that some milk samples sold online have been contaminated with a range of bacteria,” the CDC says.