How to Safely Thaw Breastmilk

Thawing breast milk improperly can destroy important proteins and may lead to spoilage. Knowing how to thaw frozen breast milk is important for both you and your baby's care provider.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Cool or warm water

1. Remove the breastmilk from the freezer. If you have time, leave it in the refrigerator overnight or at least 12 hours. Thawing breastmilk this slowly will assure the proteins within the breastmilk stay in tact and that the milk will not get warm enough to spoil.

2. If you have little time, remove the milk from the freezer and hold it under cool running water or place it in a cup of cool water and occasionally agitate it. You can gradually increase the temperature of the water, but unless you plan to use it immediately make sure the breastmilk remains cold.

3. Remove the thawed milk from the container and put it in your baby's bottle, then keep it refrigerated until you warm it for use. Once the breastmilk has been thawed once, do not refreeze it.

Tips & Warnings

• Never use a microwave to thaw or warm breastmilk. Microwaves can create hot spots within the milk and destroy some of the milk's valuable proteins.

Resources

• Breastmilk Care