Hudson Valley Breastfeeding recently became only the second facility in all of New York state to receive a license to store and dispense donated breastmilk from a milk bank.
Milk banks collect expressed milk from rigorously screened and tested
volunteers, pasteurize it, and dispense to hopsitals or individuals
with a prescription. It can fill a gap where breastfeeding isn't
possible, or
where it's slow to get established.
Given that many of the
circumstances that make breastfeeding difficult to near impossible—such
as severe prematurity, maternal illness, or trying to switch away from
formula at a later age due to allergies—are also times when the
fine-tuned nutrition and infection-fighting properties of breastmilk
are particularly needed, it's surprising to me that New York has been
so slow to embrace this option.
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