Safely Storing Breast Milk

Whether you're a new mom or a seasoned parenting pro, breastfeeding often comes with its fair share of questions. Here are answers to some common inquiries that mothers - new and veteran - may have.



How do I store my breast milk?

You can freeze and/or refrigerate your pumped (or expressed) breast milk. It's important, though, to store it in clean and sterile bottles with screw caps, hard plastic cups that have tight caps, or nursing bags (pre-sterilized bags meant for breast milk). Also make sure to put a label on each indicating when the milk was pumped.

How long, exactly, can I store my breast milk?

The National Women's Health Information Center (NWHIC, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) offers these guidelines for storing breast milk:

• You can store it at room temperature:
  - for 4 to 8 hours (at no warmer than 77 degrees Fahrenheit, or 25 degrees Celsius)
• You can store it in the refrigerator:
  - for up to 8 days at 32 to 39 degrees Fahrenheit (0 to 3.9 degrees Celsius)
• You can store it in the freezer (be sure to leave about an inch of space at the top of the container or bottle to allow for expansion of the milk when it freezes):
  - for up to 2 weeks in a freezer compartment located inside the refrigerator
  - for 3 to 4 months in a freezer that's self-contained and connected on top of or on the side of the refrigerator (but be sure to store the milk in the back of the freezer, not in the door)
  - for 6 months or more in a deep freezer that's always 0 degrees Fahrenheit (-17.8 degrees Celsius)

If you thaw frozen milk, you can refrigerate it and use it within 24 hours, but do not refreeze it. And don't save milk from a bottle that your baby already drank out of.

It's also important to note that different resources provide different variations on the amount of time you can store breast milk at room temperature, in the refrigerator, and in the freezer. For example, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends using sealed and chilled milk within 24 hours and throwing out all milk that's been refrigerated for more than 72 hours. Talk to your child's doctor if you have any concerns or questions.

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