How long can expressed breast milk be kept and how should it be stored

Because they need to go to work, breastfeeding mothers after giving birth are always worried about breastfeeding. It is very troublesome to frequently run back home from work to feed the child, and the body will not be able to bear the running process. Therefore, some people will save the expressed breast milk so that the child can eat it whenever he is hungry. However, expressed breast milk cannot be stored at room temperature and must be refrigerated in a clean container. The storage time should not exceed 24 hours.

Breast milk storage temperature and time

Expressing breast milk in advance and storing it for later use, the storage temperature and time of breast milk have become topics of concern for mothers. Generally speaking, there are two main types of breast milk storage time: one is the room temperature storage time, and the other is the refrigerated storage time. The specific analysis is as follows:

Breast milk room temperature storage temperature and time :

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.

Breast milk refrigeration storage temperature and 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 a deep freezer, the temperature is kept below 0℃ and the door is not opened frequently, the shelf life can be more than 6 months.

It should be noted that when taking out refrigerated breast milk to feed the baby, it must be thawed first. You can put the container in a pot of heated water and warm it to the appropriate temperature.

Breast milk storage container

What container should be used to store breast milk? In daily life, we often see mothers using plastic bottles, glass bottles, and even containers such as lunch boxes and thermos bottles to store breast milk. So are these containers really suitable for storing breast milk? See what experienced mothers have to say.

Experienced mothers say that the best breast milk storage containers are plastic products that are suitable for freezing and have good sealing, such as plastic bottles; the second best are glass products, such as glass bottles. Please note that it is best not to use metal products to store breast milk, because breast milk contains rich active factors, which will attach to metals and reduce the nutritional value of breast milk.

In addition, there is now a kind of fresh-keeping bag specially used for preserving breast milk on the market. Mothers can also use the fresh-keeping bag to preserve breast milk. Regarding the method suggested by some friends of using containers such as food-saving boxes and thermos bottles to store breast milk, experienced mothers said that it is actually possible, but everyone must ensure that they can be sealed and preserved.

PS: Stored breast milk will decompose and look a little blue, yellow or brown. Moms don’t need to worry, this is normal. Just shake it gently before feeding.