Can I Add Freshly Expressed Breast Milk to All Ready Refrigerated Milk?

My sister did this, but she would only add it to what she pumped that day. She had a few containers labeled Monday, Tuesday, etc. Whatever she pumped Monday went in the Monday container, and so on. That way, she knew when the milk would be bad.

I'm pretty sure it's fine to do this, but do you need to? I was always told it was better to store milk in 2-3oz portions so that you aren't wasting it if you pull out a bottle and the baby doesn't finish it. If baby is still hungry you can always pull more out.

2-3 oz per pumping session for a 3wk old is GREAT!!!!!!!! http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkcalc.html is a great resource for knowing how much milk.

I'm a peer counselor with Nursing Mothers Counsel, and here are our guidelines:

NURSING MOTHERS COUNSEL MILK STORAGE AND HANDLING GUIDELINES

Breast milk can be frozen in glass or plastic bottles. If using plastic, look for ones that say ““BPA free.”” Bisphenol A is a hormone-disrupting chemical (developmental and reproductive effects in animal testing) that can leach out of plastic (polycarbonate) bottles.

If freezing milk in bags, buy ones specifically designed for breast milk. Fold the top several times and seal. You may want to place smaller bags inside a larger plastic storage bag to protect them from puncture.

Label the date and time on each container. Use oldest milk first. Store in small amounts (2-4 oz.) to limit waste.

Use a slow-flow nipple. When feeding your baby from the bottle, hold it horizontally so the milk flows slower than when it’’s held at an angle.

Storing Fresh Milk in the Refrigerator (39 degrees or less), on the shelves, not the side door:
- Fresh milk keeps for 7 days
- You can add freshly expressed and cooled breast milk to milk already in refrigerator

Storing Milk in the Freezer:
- First cool freshly expressed milk in the refrigerator; then freeze
- Leave one inch at the top of the container; milk expands as it freezes.
- Milk keeps for 2 weeks in the freezer compartment inside a refrigerator
- Milk keeps for 3 months on a freezer shelf (compartment with separate door)
- Milk keeps for 6 months in deep freeze (below 0 degrees)

Defrosting Milk:
- Defrost overnight in the refrigerator or thaw in a bowl of cold, then warm water
- Once defrosted, it keeps for 24 hours in the refrigerator or 4 hours at room temperature

Storage at Room Temperature:
- Fresh milk keeps for 6-8 hours at 75 degrees or less; at 79 degrees or so, it keeps for 3-4 hours.
- If baby doesn’’t finish the bottle at the feeding, discard the milk.
- Do not add new milk to previously fed milk
- Wash bottle before using again

Warming Milk:
- Never microwave milk. Microwaving changes the composition & has potential to burn.
- Swirl the bottle to mix any fat that separated.
- Place bottle/bag in a bowl of warm (not hot) water
- Hot water can destroy the antibodies in breast milk.

The easiest thing for me was to freeze the bags of milk in 2-5 ounces (whatever I pumped) and then deforst as needed. For instance my son would drink 3-8 oz bottles at one point and I knew I needed to take out 24 oz of frozen milk.

Adding to the same days milk is fine. I would however check your milk to see how long it actually lasts refrigerated. I discovered mine only lasts 48 MAX before turning. A sniff and a taste will tell you for sure and save your little one a tummy ache. Good luck!!

The small 2-3 ounce you pump each time would be PERFECT portion control. I would not add breastmilk from different pumping sessions that were longer than 2 hours apart.

Check the La Leche League website, but I'm pretty sure you have to cool down the freshly expressed milk before adding it to he chilled milk. You aren't supposed to add fresh, warm milk straight from the breast with already chilled milk. But you can put the new milk in the fridge and combine thm when they are both cold.

The lactation consultant I worked with said that it was find to add freshly expressed milk to milk that has been in the fridge. However, 4-8 days seems like an awfully long time to keep breast milk in the fridge. I'd put it in the freezer after a max of 3 days.

I was told not to,that if I wanted to add it to the refrigerated milk to put the other it in the fridge and cool it down and then poor them together.But did you know you can leave it out at room temperature for 4 hours?You could pump leave it out and pump again in 4 hours.But just to be sure you could call and ask the baby's doc or a lactation specialist.

i have done that quite a few times. i always smelled it first and if it didn't make me gag(lol) i combined them. i have even let a smaller frozen one unthaw and had to pump and added the fresh milk to it. you should fine. best wishes.