A new study highlights a growing trend in the United States: mothers are increasingly engaging in informal breast milk sharing to feed their infants. This practice, often organized through online networks and personal connections, underscores significant gaps in the country’s support systems for new parents.
The Scale of Informal Milk Sharing
For the first time, research has quantified the prevalence of this practice within a large and diverse sample of American mothers. The findings reveal that informal milk sharing is more common than previously understood.
- Overall, 9.4% of mothers reported using shared or donated milk.
- While 6.1% used pasteurized milk from formal milk banks, a significant 3.7% relied on informal milk sharing from friends, family, or peer-to-peer networks.
What is Informal Milk Sharing and Why is it Happening?
Informal milk sharing is typically the parent-to-parent transfer of breast milk, where a person with a surplus provides it to someone who cannot produce enough for their own child. This can sometimes include direct breastfeeding of another person’s child.
Experts point to systemic failures as the root cause. Professor Jill Demirci, one of the study’s lead researchers, cites inadequate paid maternity leave, insufficient lactation support, and a lack of accessible, safe alternatives as primary drivers pushing parents toward this solution.
Weighing the Risks: Shared Milk vs. Formula
The practice is often debated, but experts stress the conversation must focus on “relative risk” rather than viewing shared milk in isolation.
- Risks of Informal Sharing: The primary concerns involve the potential transfer of medications, substances, or certain health conditions through milk, as well as unsanitary pumping practices or improper storage.
- Risks of Formula Feeding: Professor Demirci notes that formula feeding is not without its own risks, as evidenced by recent formula recalls and shortages. She emphasizes that human milk provides active immune and biological protections that formula cannot replicate.
It’s important to note that non-commercial, informal sharing has not been linked to significant documented risk, as donors are typically giving the same milk they feed their own children.
Public Health Response and Future Outlook
This trend serves as a critical signal to policymakers and healthcare providers.
- A Call for Open Dialogue: Researchers urge pediatric professionals to maintain open, non-judgmental communication with parents about infant feeding, ensuring they feel safe to disclose their practices.
- A Call for Structural Action: The findings are a wake-up call for the need to create more accessible systems for safe breast milk alternatives, such as expanding the reach and affordability of formal milk banks.
The rise of informal milk sharing is a direct response to structural shortcomings in maternal support, highlighting an urgent need for a more robust and equitable lactation infrastructure in the United States.
Newsweek