Friday, January 29, 2010

Halt those Haitian breastmilk donations...

I thought this was a little bit amusing. All these American women started shipping their breast milk to organizations that could get it to starving babies in Haiti. But now the people on the receiving end are saying "We never wanted your breast milk..."
Nevertheless, it is very encouraging that women were willing to give in such a meaningful way. And the influx of milk donations will undoubtedly help milk banks here in the United States.


It turns out that Ploude and a bevy of United States breast-feeding advocates may have unleashed a well-meaning but misguided flood of mothers’ milk to the earthquake-shattered nation, one that aid workers in Haiti say was not requested — and is not needed.

“Tell them not to send it,” said Eric Porterfield, a spokesman for the American Red Cross. “I’m 100 percent sure we didn’t ask for that.”

... Now the challenge is to quell the response of well-meaning mothers while still retaining support and awareness for breast milk donations to feed premature babies in the U.S. or to help those whose mothers can't nurse.

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