Not donating breastmilk, selling breastmilk!

[Ozzieshunni]

Steady supply?

 

[midori1999]

Should doctors and nurses who save lives also donate their time? I think that it is asking a lot for a woman to donate her resources & time away from her own child to pump and EXPECT her to donate it and make someone feel guilty for it. That mother may have no other means to work and bring money into the house. Selling the BM may be saving her own child's life by putting food on the table and a roof over thier head. Maybe insurance companies should start paying for BM as they would a life saving medication in those
cases. Women get paid For being surrogates and egg donations. Wet nurses got paid. I dont expect anyone, especially a stranger to do something like that for free!

Until I becamse unable to donate breastmilk due to repeated and recurrent mastitis and a currently undiagnosed problem with one breast, I was already pumping milk ready to be donated once I had passed the screening process. I would have also continued to donate milk for as long as possible. All for free and using my own resources and even including driving the milk to the milk bank an hours drive away as they could not collect it from me. All at my own expense and my time (and milk) given for free. I am not alone in doing that, nor exceptional. No-one that donates milk to milk banks in the UK is paid for it, yet the cost of it to NICU's is approx £100 per litre due to the processing costs.

So no, I don't think it is a lot to ask a woman to do this, not at all.

No-one in the UK is paid to donate eggs or to be surrogates either, it is illega and neither have I ever heard of anyone being paid to wet nurse, but I do know of cases where it's been done for free.

I think Mothers selling breastmilk as it is their only means of income is potentially one of the worst scenarios for doing it, for the reasons freckleonear outlines below.

Why shouldn't someone give their time for free, or even their money if they can afford to? Isn't that how charities work and function?

I don't agree with selling breastmilk either. The safety of private milk sharing is based on trust and complete honesty, so paying for breastmilk increases the risks. Introducing money into the equation could also negatively affect the donor's own child.

Very good points.

the mother theresa/high and mighty act is a bit over the top.. it is a personal right and choice if they want to sell or donate their milk and who is anyone else to judge?? That kind of logic is wonderful in dreamland, but here in the real world farmers charge for their produce why is this any different? Besides that, I know I for one DON'T have the extra resources to be buying storage bags, shipping out milk and or gas money to donate my milk, not to mention the time i would rather spend the "hours" driving on time with my own child IF i had any extra hours apart from working/taking care of a new baby/family-which I certainly don't! On a side note, i found this post interesting because i have recently looked into donating to a local hospital (you go in and pump) but its certainly not my business if anyone else is wishing to sell or even simply be reimburssed for their expenses, and looking into donating does not make me any better than anyone else.

It's hardly that at all, as I said, lots of women do just that.

I've lost babies that came very close to needing donor milk (luckily I managed to express) and seen other women who did need it for their babies. That people feel they can't give their own time for free to potentially save a baby's life does sadden me, but I only gave my personal opinion on it, which is I don't think it's a lot to ask. I didn't say what others should or shouldn't do.

 

[cheese lover]

I think along the same lines Midori. I know there are babies that would need the milk I make and because of that it feels wrong that I would deny those babies potentially life-saving milk because I wanted to get reimbursed for my time and expense. I'm not saying that people who do want to be reimbursed for their time and expense are wrong, that's just how I see it and how I feel about the situation. The milk bank that I donate to gives free containers to put the milk in and I would be pumping anyway so I'm only "out" the gas that it takes to get the milk there.

 

[ggbaby2]

I personally don't think there is anything wrong with it at all, if you choose to donate then that's a beautiful thing but if you choose to sell (especially if its because you need the money) then that's fine too. I don't see why some are so put off by it, how is it different from anything else you would sell?

 

[DarlingMe]

looked at the site they mentioned in the article.. .no idea what this guy wants to do with the milk, lol If it was just a fetish thing, why would he specify over a year lactating? hmmm
"Needing some of your breast milk. Fresh frozen is fine. Would like to find someone that is in there 9 plus month of production. Ideally over a year lactating. If you can provide any amount contact me. Not needing gallons. Just a reliable recurring source. Just a business deal. Tell me what you have. And we will go from there. Thanks"

Would that be "toddler milk" maybe it tastes better after 9 months? This is why selling BM is so taboo! Cuz of idiots like this!

 

[lisaf]

looked at the site they mentioned in the article.. .no idea what this guy wants to do with the milk, lol If it was just a fetish thing, why would he specify over a year lactating? hmmm
"Needing some of your breast milk. Fresh frozen is fine. Would like to find someone that is in there 9 plus month of production. Ideally over a year lactating. If you can provide any amount contact me. Not needing gallons. Just a reliable recurring source. Just a business deal. Tell me what you have. And we will go from there. Thanks"

Would that be "toddler milk" maybe it tastes better after 9 months? This is why selling BM is so taboo! Cuz of idiots like this!

I just don't get what he would do with it? Is he lactose intolerant and just wants the occasional bowl of cereal?

 

[swissie]

There are cancer patients that swear breast milk helps fight their disease; https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4187697.stm When I originally heard about people selling breast milk, this is what I thought it was for (the fetish thing didn't even enter my head, how naive am I )

 

[lisaf]

So I wanted to update here... I have been donating my milk anonymously through a local LC because its just going to go to waste in my freezer. She came tonight to pick up more milk and told me that my milk had basically saved a baby's life. That he couldn't tolerate any formulas at all and the mom couldn't feed him.. that the baby was basically starving and the doctors called my LC to see if she had any milk.
It made me cry. I am so touched that my milk went to such a good use. I feel so honored to have been blessed with enough milk to save another mother pain and heartache.

I know I said I see nothing wrong with being compensated, but I have to adjust my opinion a little. When there is a true vital need like that, I don't think its right to ask for money.

 

[DarlingMe]

Congrats Lisa! I am not against donating it, as donating anything else is a great idea. However I don't think it is wrong to accept money for it. I am reading a book that talks about this and apparently in Switzerland & Germany they have national milk banks that pay up to $20 a quart for milk, some donate 2 quarts a day. This was back in the 90's that the book was written so who knows what has changed. They might get double now. Those 2 countries do no use formula though at the time of publication. Either everyone BF or buys breastmilk instead of formula. Apparently a whole country thinks it is ok to charge for!

But again great job Lisa! I am very glad for you and that other family you are helping! It is great that you (and others) are able to donate.

 

[hanelei]

I don't see why some are so put off by it, how is it different from anything else you would sell?

It's very different, because it's not like selling handicrafts or scones, it's like selling your blood or a kidney. Lots more ethical issues and physical/mental health issues.

 

[hanelei]

So I wanted to update here... I have been donating my milk anonymously through a local LC because its just going to go to waste in my freezer. She came tonight to pick up more milk and told me that my milk had basically saved a baby's life. That he couldn't tolerate any formulas at all and the mom couldn't feed him.. that the baby was basically starving and the doctors called my LC to see if she had any milk.
It made me cry. I am so touched that my milk went to such a good use. I feel so honored to have been blessed with enough milk to save another mother pain and heartache.

I know I said I see nothing wrong with being compensated, but I have to adjust my opinion a little. When there is a true vital need like that, I don't think its right to ask for money.

That's just wonderful I wish I had the opportunity to do that but as far as I know it's not possible here- I have never had a lot of spare in any case.

 

[cheese lover]

So I wanted to update here... I have been donating my milk anonymously through a local LC because its just going to go to waste in my freezer. She came tonight to pick up more milk and told me that my milk had basically saved a baby's life. That he couldn't tolerate any formulas at all and the mom couldn't feed him.. that the baby was basically starving and the doctors called my LC to see if she had any milk.
It made me cry. I am so touched that my milk went to such a good use. I feel so honored to have been blessed with enough milk to save another mother pain and heartache.

I know I said I see nothing wrong with being compensated, but I have to adjust my opinion a little. When there is a true vital need like that, I don't think its right to ask for money.

That's an amazing story Lisa!
I need to actually bring my milk to the bank. They're only open during business hours and they're a 40 minute drive one way. I've got about 100 oz for them so far though. It they quit spilling my milk at daycare I'd have more for them.