How long can you leave breast milk out in room temperature before it spoils?

Some folks have told me 4 hrs while others say 6 hrs. Is there any definitive research that shows how long we can keep breast milk that was pumped out in room temperature before it spoils? Asked by Anchorman 51 months ago Similar questions: long leave breast milk room temperature spoils Family.

Similar questions: long leave breast milk room temperature spoils.

For me, it varied with child, but 2-4 hours. I know this will sound hard to believe, but I speak from my personal experience. I breastfed three children, and for some reason the length of time I could keep breastmilk varied between children.My first I could pump and keep breastmilk easily.

At room temperature (I kept my house around 76 degrees), I could leave it sitting out for up to 4 hours, and still be able to feed it to my baby. I could also keep it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or freezer up to 2-3 months. I may have been able to keep it longer in the freezer, but always used it by then.

My second child refused to drink from anything but me! So I never kept breastmilk as he would not take it from a bottle. I always had to feed him personally!

The third would take breastmilk from a bottle, but for some reason it would not keep nearly as long as it did when I had my first child. If his breastmilk stayed out at room temperature longer than 2 hours, it went bad. I could not keep it longer than about 3 days in the refrigerator, and more often than not if I thawed frozen breastmilk for him (even if it had only been frozen for a couple of months or less), it was bad!

I have no idea why my milk was different for the third than it was for the first. So, I must say from personal experience only 2-4 hours out at room temperature (76 degrees or less), to answer your question. However, since it seems to vary, I would offer you this advice.

You may be uncomfortable with this, but I would taste it before you feed it to your baby. That is what I used to do. If it is o.k.

, it has a sweet taste. Try yours freshly pumped so you know what it should taste like. If it was going bad at all, you could tell by the taste.

It has a sting to it, and just tastes bad! No question about it. If you are uncomfortable tasting the milk, then try just smelling it.

If it is starting to go bad, you will notice a difference in smell too. One other thing to share. Often you will find that the milk separates pretty quickly.

The fat will be separated from the liquid of the milk. This does not mean it is bad. Just shake it up.

But again, make sure it hasn't in fact gone bad. That is my personal experience. Here is what you will find most sites say about how long you can keep breastmilk: At room temperature (77 degrees F or less) for 4 to 8 hours At the back of a refrigerator for 3 to 8 days At the back of a freezer for up to 3 months Congratulations on making the good choice to breastfeed.

It served me and my children well! Sources: My experience pumping and storing breastmilk..

If it is freshly pumped Medela suggests only 4 hours at room temperature. But if it is thawed they suggest you do not store at all, Just thaw and feed. I go this info from my handy little Breastmilk storage guidelines magnet that I kept on the mini fridge next to my pump.

You can also go to Medela.com for some really great info.

Breastmilk Storage Guidelines (for healthy term babies) Freshly expressed breastmilk: Room Temp for 4 hours at 66-72 degrees F Cooler with frozen ice packs for 24 hours at 59 degrees F Refrigerator for 5-7 days at 32-39 degrees F Self Contained Refigerator Freezer for 3-4 months Deep Freezer at 0 degrees for 6-12 months Thawed Breastmilk: Do not store at room temp or in a cooler with frozen ice packs It can stay in a refrigerator after thawed for 24 hours Never refreeze breastmilk Hope this helps! .

Breast milk is just amazing...... Now, I have to say that for the better part of the 8+ years I have been pumping and breast feeding my four kids, I have never left it out this long, but the most definitive research performed says you can leave fresh breast milk at room temperature for 10 HOURS! Breast milk has anti-bacterial qualities which inhibit bacterial growth in the milk, even at room temperature. In fact, the bigger issue is not from the milk itself, but rather from other contaminants that affect the milk collection process, such as germs on mom’s hands and skin, the bottle, cap, etc.Here are a couple of really interesting references for the 10 hour figure.

There was a landmark study done in 1987 by researchers named Barger and Bull that compared milk in clean but not sterile containers left for 10 hours at room temperature and 10 hours in the refrigerator. The study found no statistically different bacteria levels! Just amazing!

Here are some articles in order of preference..... llli.org/FAQ/milkstorage.html members.tripod.com/~bmsg/storageconcerns... llli.org/NB/NBJulAug98p109.html parenting.ivillage.com/baby/bbreastfeed/... I myself, never left milk out longer than probably four hours or so. There were a few times when at work I realized I forgot the ice packs and it stayed warm the whole day. There were no ill effects on junior!

All of this may have had more to do with my germ paranoia than actual science. When my youngest was in the NICU and I was hospitalized after his birth I was pumping. I couldn’t get out of bed to deliver his milk to the NICU, and the poor nurses were often too busy to cart it down there for me.

So I often worried about it "spoiling". Once when the neonatologist visited me to discuss my son I asked him about the milk at room temperature. I didn’t believe him at the time, but he said expressed breast milk was fine for up to 12 hours, and in fact has been used over the course of history in medicine to treat the wounds of patients who were injured in emergency situations when no other form of treatment was available.

Again, just AMAZING! Enjoy your breastfeeding experience and good luck with the pumping. What a wonderful gift for your baby!

Sources: Personal experience, www.llli.org happytobeme's Recommendations The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding: Seventh Revised Edition (La Leche League International Book) Amazon List Price: $18.00 Used from: $7.99 Average Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5 (based on 83 reviews) .

I'd err on the safe side... and pay attention to room temp, too. For example, I don't have air conditioning, so in summer, my house is quite warm--I'd want to compensate for that. But we don't keep the house at all warm during the winter--our house is often at only 65 degrees or so in winter--so would be safer longer.

Finding a way to control the temp, whatever the room temp, is your best bet. In short, I'd be wanting to get it at a stable, cold temp as quickly as I could, for safety's sake, and would think about bringing along something to help control temp if I had to do this on a regular basis--a thermal lunchbox and a cold-pak, for example, or a small beeer cooler. Infants can be hit very, very hard by the intestinal troubles that spoiled milk might cause, and there are pathogens out there that can be deadly, very fast..

" "if breast milk is warmed in water before feeding, how long can it be left in the room before contamination" "I made some sun tea (really good! ). Does it need to be refrigerated?

OK to leave at room temperature a few days? " "how long can a fresh turkey be kept at room temperature before cooking?" "how long does it take for nicotine to enter into your breast milk after you smoke.

If breast milk is warmed in water before feeding, how long can it be left in the room before contamination.

I made some sun tea (really good! ). Does it need to be refrigerated?

OK to leave at room temperature a few days?

How long does it take for nicotine to enter into your breast milk after you smoke.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.