Lolli’s Lesson: Freshest First

Did you know that the composition of your breastmilk changes to meet the needs of your growing and developing baby? How wild is that!? One of my most favorite aspects of breastmilk–wow, God is so cool to do that!

Because of this, we want you to feed your baby the freshest milk first. This doesn’t mean that because you fed your baby milk dated a month ago that there will be problems–not at all! Breastmilk is going to be the most nutritious food you can feed your baby regardless if it is freshly pumped OR from your freezer stash.

Thank you, Christina, for capturing your breastmilk before freezing. She even went a step further and has the time noted on the bag as well!

Feeding the freshest first is the best choice for your baby. For instance, your breastmilk you pump for your baby while at work, can be given to your daycare provider for the next day’s bottles. This is super helpful when providing milk for your daycare provider. I wrote all about that in a previous blog post that you can find here. Such an easy process for families and care providers!

Ideally, any breast milk you collect to feed your baby is something you have pumped fresh within a couple of days of needing it. When you know that you are going to be away from your baby, you can begin planning for a feeding with little effort. Pumping after the first morning feed is always a great time as the volume of milk is at its’ greatest—so a couple of mornings of pumping after the first feeding will get you off to a great start in accumulating enough for a feeding while you’re away from your baby. Likewise, when you are away from your baby during a feeding, you should plan to pump to protect your supply.

When providing milk for your daycare providers, it is always a comfort for everyone involved to have some “extra” frozen breastmilk available in 2-4 oz bags in case more is needed. When providing and using breastmilk from the freezer, to keep the freshest supply available in your freezer, you will use the oldest frozen breastmilk FIRST. One way we describe using breastmilk from your freezer is a “first in, first out” method.

It’s a magical notion—to give your baby the exact calories, fat, protein, and carbs they need for their developmental stage–so take advantage of that! This is accomplished by feeding the freshest milk first! Your baby will be happy you did!