Kathy writes:'<We recently had a mom whose pumped colostrum was green, bilious green to light green and then transitioned to whilte milk. It had no odor and we fed it to the baby. Any ideas as to what can cause this?>


Heme is green. It is one of the breakdown product of hemoglobin. (Ever had a bad bruise that went through a slightly greenish phase in its healing?) 


I have read references in the past mentioning the presence of small amounts of temporary blood from various non-malignant growths that can occur in breast ducts. Colors can vary depending on the stage and timing of hemoglobin breakdown. Consensus was that no harm would come to baby. When baby gets such milk directly, color variation passes into baby unseen, thus no questions. Much more often than we may imagine, I bet!


K. Jean Cotterman RNC-E, IBCLC
WIC Volunteer LC, Dayton OH


 

             ***********************************************

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome