Life
Whether you are breastfeeding straight from the boob or feeding your baby breast milk from a bottle, there will likely come a time when you will need to store your extra milk. And, even after following proper storage guidelines, it's possible for the breast milk to spoil. Yeah, not good. And unlike milk form a bottle, you don't want to play fast and loose with your baby's nourishment. Which leads to the question, how do you know when your breast milk has gone bad?
The rule of thumb with any suspect food item is that if you’re ever in doubt, throw it out. The same applies to breast milk, which can be heartbreaking for a new mom who is running low on sleep and sanity. As any breastfeeding mom will tell you, stored breast milk is invaluable to a mom who has to go back to work or when she needs to leave the baby in someone else's care. It's also important to have a supply of expressed milk so that your partner can take turns feeding and bonding with the baby.
By following the storage duration guidelines for fresh human milk found on the Centers for Disease Control's website, you can easily extend the life of your breast milk and keep it safe for baby. But if they day comes when you're questioning the freshness of your supply, here are some ways you can check to make sure your stored breast milk hasn't gone bad.