Physicians prescribe human milk for hospitalized preterm or low-birth-weight infants. Each participating hospital has its own guidelines about who can receive donor human milk.
Why use donor human milk?
In Ontario, about 70 per cent of preterm infants do not have a sufficient supply of their parent’s own milk. In these circumstances, supplementing with donor human milk helps fill this gap and supports better health for these infants.
Donor human milk is essential for extremely vulnerable infants in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). It gives them the nutrition they need and lowers the risk of serious medical complications. The Rogers Hixon Ontario Human Milk Bank is accredited by the Human Milk Banking Association of North America External Link and follows strict infection control and public health guidelines.
Health benefits of donor human milk
- Using donor human milk can help prevent life-threatening conditions like necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), a serious bowel problem that often affects preterm infants
- Research shows that, compared with infant formula, donor human milk can reduce NEC rates by about half in these vulnerable preterm infants
- Hospitalized infants can digest donor human milk more easily than formula. Donor human milk has several components that support infant health
- Donor human milk provides important nutrients and bioactive components, like enzymes and hormones, that support overall health and the immune system
- When parent’s milk is unavailable or insufficient in volume, organizations such as the Canadian Paediatric Society External Link, the American Academy of Pediatrics External Link and the World Health Organization External Link recommend pasteurized donor human milk
Using donor human milk: Frequently asked questions
Open All- Illness or delivery complications are delaying the milk supply
- Not enough milk supply when pumping for multiples (for example, twins)
- Stress from having a hospitalized or sick baby
- Not getting natural hormone signals because the baby cannot feed directly
- A chronic infection or medical condition that prevents milk expression
- An infection that is temporarily affecting milk production (for example, mastitis)
- Geographic separation from the baby
Yes. Donor human milk is provided free of charge to eligible hospitalized infants by prescription.
Yes. Donor human milk is very safe. For decades, no cases of disease have been linked to donor human milk, similar to blood products. Pasteurization (heat treatment) kills any microorganisms in the milk.
Parents from different religions may have unique beliefs about feeding their newborns. This might raise questions about using donor human milk. If you have concerns about diet or your faith, it is a good idea to talk to your baby’s physician or your spiritual or religious leaders for guidance.
Families of the Jewish faith:
Jewish law recognizes the importance of donor human milk. For infants born preterm or who are medically fragile, donor human milk provides the nutrition they need and helps keep them safe from severe health problems.
Families of the Islamic faith:
In Islam, using donor human milk raises questions about whether it connects the baby’s family and the donor’s family. In 2004, respected religious scholars, supported by the European Council of Fatwa and Research, spoke on this topic. They agreed that human milk banks are a good idea because they help preterm infants, which is important in Islam. They ruled that there are no religious rules against using milk banks or donor human milk, and that feeding a baby this way does not create a family bond. Here are the reasons for this decision:
- The concept of suckling, which creates a bond like family ties, needs some clarification. In the Qur’an, there is a verse that lists relatives a person cannot marry, which includes “…your mothers who have suckled you and your foster sisters” [Su¯rat al-Nisa¯’ 04:23]. This verse talks about “motherhood” and “suckling,” which means more than drinking milk from someone. For a real family bond to form, suckling has to happen with close contact between the baby and the parent. If a baby gets milk through a feeding tube or a bottle, that does not count as suckling and will not create a family tie. Also, getting milk from a donor is not the same as having a foster mother, as described in the Qur’an. Most Muslim scholars agree that there is no proof that getting milk from an anonymous donor is haram (forbidden).
The identities of the parents who donate milk and how much they give are not known. Each batch of donor human milk usually comes from three to five different donors. This means that a baby doesn’t receive milk from just one donor, which makes it difficult to feel a connection or sense of family with them. Since the donors are anonymous and we do not know how much each one gives, it does not create that kind of special bond.
Islam is a religion that values the health and well-being of children and makes sure not to put too much stress on its followers. The protective health benefits of donor human milk for medically fragile infants are a strong reason for its use.
Families with vegan or vegetarian diets:
Some families who follow a vegan or vegetarian diet may have additional questions about the diets of donors.
Each batch of donor human milk is usually a blend from three to five donors, carefully combined to support consistent nutrient content. The Milk Bank screens whether donors’ diets are adequate, but we do not have batches of donor human milk from donors who are only vegan or only vegetarian.
