Pat, that is a good point about NICU babies needing the donor milk.  I am not sure, however, that milk sharing would  negatively affect the availability of donor milk for these babies.  Many moms who participate in peer-to-peer milk sharing are not willing to go though the process of donating to milk banks.  If milk sharing becomes more commonplace, and moms are informed of the great need to have donor milk available for NICU babies, I speculate that more moms rather than fewer moms, might be willing to go through the steps necessary to donate to milk banks.

If hospitals informed breastfeeding mothers of the importance of donor milk for NICU babies, I think we might see an increase of available donor milk.

Laura Spitzfaden, LLLL, IBCLC

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