Making pureed food using frozen BM and re-freezing the mixture?

[lkmiscnet]

I have an 8 mo stash of frozen BM, as I had planned to wean my LO in the next couple of months.

I just started making baby food purees and thought it best to use the frozen BM to thin it and continue nursing my LO. I have the excess lipase issue where it gives frozen BM an off taste and smell, and it seemed like a good idea to mix it with food rather than have it go to waste.

I thaw the bag in warm water and add it to the food and puree it in my food processor. Then, I freeze the puree in ice cube trays and empty out the cubes in a freezer bag to thaw individually as needed.

So, basically the previously frozen BM is getting re-frozen, since it's mixed with the puree. Is that a problem to do that?

[groovyem]

According to Medela and my lactation lady, you cannot do that. I had the same idea, but it's still breastmilk and cannot be-refrozen

[CheriK]

Actually, it's probably okay, not great but safe, to refreeze breastmilk. The problem w/ thawing and refreezing is that with every state change (fresh to frozen to thawed to frozen to thawed) you lose some living cells and some nutrients. It sounds like you're mostly concerned about it being safe to drink, which it would be. Your baby is still getting most milk directly from the breast - no loss of cells or nutrients there. So you're really just using the milk to thin the baby food, not as a major source of live cells or nutrients. I would think it's fine.

If you're worried about the milk, you could make the puree really thick without adding liquid, then thaw the milk just before feeding it to baby and add it then.

For more info about refreezing breastmilk:
Previously frozen milk that has been thawed can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. While there is limited evidence to date that milk thawed for a few hours may be refrozen, this results in further breakdown of milk components and loss of antimicrobial activity. At this time, the accepted practice is not to refreeze thawed milk. (from LLLI, http://www.llli.org/FAQ/milkstorage.html)

and:
One study was recently published in the journal “Breastfeeding Medicine”. In this study, milk was frozen, warmed, and refrozen several times. The study found that the milk is relatively robust, remained safe, and retained its nutritional value despite repeated changes in temperature. In fact, some of the samples were left at room temperature for up to 8 hours (after being thawed and refrozen). These samples still had bacterial counts below that considered safe, although higher levels than samples that had been kept refrigerated after thawing and refreezing. The milk did lose some nutritional value, however. (Rechtman, David, et. al. Effect of Environmental Conditions on Unpasteurized Donor Human Milk, Breastfeeding Medicine, Mar 2006, Vol. 1, No. 1 : 24 -26).

[groovyem]

In regards to PP. Thanks for the info!