| Breastmilk Storage Guidelines (for healthy babies) | ||||
| ------------------Duration----------------- | ||||
| Location | Temperature | Freshly Expressed Breastmilk | Thawed Breastmilk/ Previously Frozen | Comment |
| Countertop, Table, etc | Room temperature (up to 77 ºF or 25º C) |
6-8 hours | Do not store | Containers should be covered and kept as cool as possible; covering the container with a cool towel may keep milk cooler. |
| Insulated Cooler Bag | 5-39 ºF - 15-4 ºC |
24 hours | Do not store | Keep ice packs in contact with milk containers at all times, limit opening of cooler bag. |
| Refrigerator | 39 ºF 4 ºC |
5-7 days* | 24 hours ** | Store milk in the back of the main body of the refrigerator. |
| Freezer (Self contained frig freezer unit) | 0 ºF -18 ºC |
3-6 months | Do not refreeze thawed milk | Store milk toward the back of the freezer, where temperature is most constant. Milk stored for longer durations in the ranges listed is safe, but some of the lipids in the milk undergo degradation, resulting in lower quality. |
| Deep Freezer | -4 ºF -20 ºC |
6-12 months | Do not refreeze thawed milk | |
| References: All guidelines, except where noted, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC Health Information for International Travel 2008. Chapter 8. (http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/yellowBookCh8-Breastfeeding.aspx) * Sosa R, Barness L; Bacterial growth in refrigerated human milk, Am J Dis Child, 1987; 141:111-115. **Arnold L; Recomendations for Collection, Storage and Handling of a Mother’s Milk for Her Own Infant in the Hospital Setting. 3rd Editions. The Human Milk Banking Association of North America, Inc. 1999, p. 18. |
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