I was wondering if some of you might have some information on what happens to breast milk that has been kept in a deep-freeze for longer than a year.  I am frequently in contact with women who are currently nursing a bio baby and plan to adopt in the future.  They want to express milk to keep for the adopted baby, so they will have it, if they need to supplement, but can rarely predict when the adoption will occur.   We are also seeing some women who have gone all out to induce lactation, and been pumping a significant amount, and then have months and months go by with no baby.   Very few can keep up frequent pumping for an extended period of time, with either no word of a baby to adopt, or having situations where they expected to be able to adopt a certain baby, which have fallen through.  Many have decided to stop pumping and any galactogogues they have been using, and wait to do any more until there is a baby for them. Of course, they hope to be able to use their frozen milk in the Lact-Aid, but there is also concern about how long that milk might have to stay frozen.  Yet another group of women have a sister or close friend who is nursing and willing to express and freeze milk to save for future adopted babies.

I have thought that milk that has been kept in the deep freeze longer than a year would still be preferable to formula, but I don't know what actually happens to the milk.   Does anyone know?  Perhaps, if it is that certain nutrients start to deteriorate, some kind of supplement could be used.  

Darillyn

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