I don't think I saw this posted before.
http://www.airforcetimes.com/story.p...79-1146494.php
Air Force NCO ships breast milk to baby — 1,500 miles away
By Karen Jowers
Times staff writer
Her baby may be more than 1,500 miles away, but Air Force Staff Sgt.
Mariah LeBlanc still manages to breast-feed — by shipping her milk
from Texas to Delaware.
Three times a day — morning, lunch and evening, she pumps breast
milk for 8-month-old Eliza, puts it in special freezer bags, and
stores it in her room at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, where she
is about halfway through a four-month retraining stint as an X-ray
technician.
When she collects enough, she ships it back to Dover, Del., in an
ice chest.
"I found out I would be coming to school, but I still wanted to
breast-feed," LeBlanc said. "Even though I'm not there with her, I
still have the opportunity to be a part of her growth and
development."
The logistics of pumping, freezing and shipping the milk are such
that not every mother can do it.
"I don't think it's very common, partly because women with young
babies are not often separated from their babies," said Ruth
Lawrence, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Rochester
School of Medicine. "But it's a very worthwhile thing to do. When we
talk about doing the best thing for your baby, she certainly is the
epitome of that."
In many places, it would be more difficult, she said, though not
impossible. The issue is getting a freezer with a reliable power
supply and the capacity to store the breast milk. In addition,
overnight shipping capability varies by location. The milk must be
frozen and stay frozen in transit to keep from spoiling. Breast milk
should not be refrozen once it has thawed, according to the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
In the case of mothers who are deployed overseas, shipping milk — or
any perishable item — is not allowed from some countries because of
customs requirements as well as other issues. For example, Federal
Express ships from Iraq but will not accept perishable food,
including milk, because transit time is four days, and customs
issues could stretch that even further.
Some women find it hard to keep milk flowing when a baby is not
physically nursing, Lawrence said, although "pumping is possible."
LeBlanc is helped by her husband, Mark, a stay-at-home dad who cares
for their two children and is there to receive shipments and put
them directly into the freezer.
LeBlanc said she has received much support from her instructors at
the school, as well as officials at Sheppard who moved her into a
room with a freezer big enough to store her milk.
The ice chest she bought holds about 100 plastic bags made
especially for freezing breast milk. When she collects enough milk,
she packs the bags in the 40-quart cooler, puts extra freezer packs
on top and bottom, seals it with duct tape, and ships it overnight
by FedEx.
Since arriving at the school in late July, LeBlanc has sent home
three coolers. Her husband received the last one at 10 a.m., with
the milk still well frozen, after LeBlanc shipped it out at 5:30
p.m. the day before.
Each bag holds two to six ounces of milk. With the amount of milk
sent so far, the baby has plenty, LeBlanc said.
She knows of no other women at the school who ship their milk, but
does know a lot of other active-duty women at Dover Air Force Base
who are pumping their milk during the day to give to day-care
providers for their babies to drink the next day.
Lawrence said the general recommendation is for mothers to
breastfeed their babies for a year, but the first few months are the
most important for gaining the benefit of mothers' milk.
"As long as she can do it … every day she sends her milk is one more
good thing she's doing for her baby," Lawrence said.
"I'm gone from my family for four months. This makes me feel a
little better, knowing that even though I'm not physically there,
I'm still … a part of her," LeBlanc said.
http://www.airforcetimes.com/story.p...79-1146494.php
Air Force NCO ships breast milk to baby — 1,500 miles away
By Karen Jowers
Times staff writer
Her baby may be more than 1,500 miles away, but Air Force Staff Sgt.
Mariah LeBlanc still manages to breast-feed — by shipping her milk
from Texas to Delaware.
Three times a day — morning, lunch and evening, she pumps breast
milk for 8-month-old Eliza, puts it in special freezer bags, and
stores it in her room at Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, where she
is about halfway through a four-month retraining stint as an X-ray
technician.
When she collects enough, she ships it back to Dover, Del., in an
ice chest.
"I found out I would be coming to school, but I still wanted to
breast-feed," LeBlanc said. "Even though I'm not there with her, I
still have the opportunity to be a part of her growth and
development."
The logistics of pumping, freezing and shipping the milk are such
that not every mother can do it.
"I don't think it's very common, partly because women with young
babies are not often separated from their babies," said Ruth
Lawrence, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Rochester
School of Medicine. "But it's a very worthwhile thing to do. When we
talk about doing the best thing for your baby, she certainly is the
epitome of that."
In many places, it would be more difficult, she said, though not
impossible. The issue is getting a freezer with a reliable power
supply and the capacity to store the breast milk. In addition,
overnight shipping capability varies by location. The milk must be
frozen and stay frozen in transit to keep from spoiling. Breast milk
should not be refrozen once it has thawed, according to the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention.
In the case of mothers who are deployed overseas, shipping milk — or
any perishable item — is not allowed from some countries because of
customs requirements as well as other issues. For example, Federal
Express ships from Iraq but will not accept perishable food,
including milk, because transit time is four days, and customs
issues could stretch that even further.
Some women find it hard to keep milk flowing when a baby is not
physically nursing, Lawrence said, although "pumping is possible."
LeBlanc is helped by her husband, Mark, a stay-at-home dad who cares
for their two children and is there to receive shipments and put
them directly into the freezer.
LeBlanc said she has received much support from her instructors at
the school, as well as officials at Sheppard who moved her into a
room with a freezer big enough to store her milk.
The ice chest she bought holds about 100 plastic bags made
especially for freezing breast milk. When she collects enough milk,
she packs the bags in the 40-quart cooler, puts extra freezer packs
on top and bottom, seals it with duct tape, and ships it overnight
by FedEx.
Since arriving at the school in late July, LeBlanc has sent home
three coolers. Her husband received the last one at 10 a.m., with
the milk still well frozen, after LeBlanc shipped it out at 5:30
p.m. the day before.
Each bag holds two to six ounces of milk. With the amount of milk
sent so far, the baby has plenty, LeBlanc said.
She knows of no other women at the school who ship their milk, but
does know a lot of other active-duty women at Dover Air Force Base
who are pumping their milk during the day to give to day-care
providers for their babies to drink the next day.
Lawrence said the general recommendation is for mothers to
breastfeed their babies for a year, but the first few months are the
most important for gaining the benefit of mothers' milk.
"As long as she can do it … every day she sends her milk is one more
good thing she's doing for her baby," Lawrence said.
"I'm gone from my family for four months. This makes me feel a
little better, knowing that even though I'm not physically there,
I'm still … a part of her," LeBlanc said.
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