Call For Breast Milk Donors Near Denver
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Thursday, March 08, 2007
The freezers are running low at the HMBANA milk bank in Denver. Despite donations of more than 10,000 ounces each month, demand for the live-saving donor milk has risen enough that the staff at The Mother's Milk Bank at St. Luke's Medical Center is worried that they may have to turn away some recipients that have a true medical need for donor milk.That is unless we can spread the word and attract some new donors.
So, I'd share the following story with my Colorado readers (and those from neighboring states) and ask you to help spread the word.
From CBS4 in Denver:
Julia Lam is a beautiful, happy baby, but the six-month-old is also very sick. She's undergoing aggressive chemotherapy to combat an unusual form of lymphoma.
"This is without a question a life threatening disease process for her," said Dr. Lorrie Odom, a Pediatric Oncologist.
Lam has to wait to eat until medical tests are finished, and when she gets hungry for milk, it will be breast milk, for its nutrition and antibodies.
"To give her the best chance to tolerate the chemotherapy and its side effects," said Dr. Odom.
Lam's mother's milk supply dwindled when she got sick, so now her human breast milk is donated.
If you are a lactating mother anywhere near Denver, are free of any communicable diseases and have the ability to express extra milk, please give consideration to becoming a donor. You can contact The Mother's Milk Bank at St. Luke's Medical Center for more information:
Phone (877) 458-5503
Email: mmilkbank@health1.org
Web: www.bestfedbabies.org
Labels: Milk Banking and Sharing
thanks for the heads-up. i'm north of denver. unfortunately, i only have a manual pump and don't get out very much with it or i'd be happy to donate. i don't think i can justify buying an electric pump since julian has yet to take a bottle and i'm with him most of the time.
but anyway, i will spread the word on the AP groups (in CO) i'm a member of.
according to local news stories, lactating mothers have to have babies younger than 6 months to donate. any idea why? i know some moms who's kids are older than 6 months and they are asking why the cutoff date. thx!
Amy, to teh best of my knowledge, you can donate until your child turns one, you just have to start donating before they turn six months.
I think the main reason for this is because you have to donate at least 200 ounces and they worry that if you begin donating "late in the game" you may not be able to reach that 200 ounce minimum.
Not sure, I'm guessing on that really.
I've always registered as a donor a month after my child was born, though this time around he's 5 months and I'm not quite to the point of having 200 ounces ready to go. Just a lot harder when I have to pump specifically for the milk bank. Last time around I'd donated about 2000 ounces by now.
Not that I want to trade my wonderfully easy EBFing back in for my days of EPing. ;) But I do miss having all that extra milk laying around.
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