High lipase

[Jennbee]

After reading some posts and replies here I have come to believe that I have high lipase breastmilk. With my first baby, I tasted the milk that I would put into a bottle for her and wondered how she could drink such funny tasting stuff...she did drink it though.

My second baby is now 3 months old and will not always accept a bottle of my breastmilk while I'm gone to college. I went back to college when she was 2 weeks old (yes, I know....) and my DH took parental leave to stay home with her. So, sometimes she would drink from a bottle and some days she wouldn't (not so bad when I wasn't gone as long during the day). But, now I'm gone 3 days of the week from 7:30 am to 4:30/5:30 pm. During that time I pump, usually twice to have milk for the next day.

What my DH noticed was that baby wouldn't drink the thawed (previously frozen) milk, but would more likely drink the milk that was pumped the day before. I've tasted my thawed milk and it has a weird soapy taste and I've tasted next day milk and it has that weird taste too. This was my second week back to class and of the four days this week...baby only drank from the bottle on Monday. She went hungry for many hours, but the odd thing is that it seems like she's come to accept the hunger until I get home...she doesn't act hungry while I'm gone. On the second day that she wouldn't eat my DH tried to give her cow's milk in a bottle..... because he was worried about her not eating. I told him to not give her any cow's milk and that we'll just try a faster flow nipple or a sippy cup, or just a little cup.

I don't know what to do....any advice?

Also, I've been trying to get her to nurse more often during the evening and during the night.

[BabyA'sMom]

Good Website for it

There's plenty you can do to make your pumped breastmilk usable.

The la Leche League website has a forum and a whole section on milk storage further down the page. Most of that section covers high lipase and procedures for scalding milk right after pumping to deactivate lipase and make it usuable at a later date.

Go to http://llli.org and click on resources and then click on the forum link.


Good luck!

[beru]

Check out this link on the LLL forums!

http://forums.lalecheleague.org/showthread.php?t=297

This was a lifesaver for me.

In short, I scald my milk in a bottle warmer to deactivate the lipase. Read that thread for details, etc.

[Jennbee]

I forgot to add that baby won't drink my milk even after I scald it, freeze, then thaw. I tried giving her some from a little medicine measuring cup, and she did drink a very small amount....maybe 1/2 oz. That was yesterday, she wouldn't nurse when I got home from class (gone 7:30 am to 5:30 pm). She cried and cried, like she was so sad. She finally nursed about an hour later.

Today she didn't drink from a bottle either. She drank a small amount from the medicine cup though. Maybe she just doesn't like bottles.

I just feel so sad about this.

[PatioGardener]

Originally Posted by Jennbee

.

Today she didn't drink from a bottle either. She drank a small amount from the medicine cup though. Maybe she just doesn't like bottles.

I just feel so sad about this.

This behavious may have nothing to do with your pumped milk and everything to do with her not liking bottles.

[nandodianenicole]

I also suspect the baby may be rejecting the bottle. Keep trying, diff nipples, etc. There is also the finger feeder method and spoon/cup feeding. Or just keep trying with the bottle, she will get it eventually.

I too have high lipase, and I was NOT able to scald my milk and freeze it, it would still be awful tasting. The only thing I can do is microwave it (I know, sounds bad) but as soon as I pump (I have a microwave at my office) or sometimes if I am somewhere else I will do it as soon as I get home-- I microwave my bm in a glass baby bottle (I dont like to microwave anything in plastic) for about 30 seconds (I microwave 4oz)--so your time may be adjusted by a few seconds more or less. Then I can freeze it in the baggies and it comes out fine thawed. That is the only thing that has worked for me. Give that a try. I know I have microwaved it enough when the glass bottle cant be picked up with my bare hands. Luckily I only have to do this 1x a week (Friday) so the milk last the weekend. But the lipase in other peoples milk can break down immediatly, so microwave it as soon as you pump or as soon as you get the chance.
Good luck!

[3girls1boy]

My milk didn't get funny tasting unless it had been frozen. Because I was only gone two nights a week, I was able to stay one day of pumping ahead and the milk that had just been refridgerated tasted okay.

[Jennbee]

she does drink a small amount from a cup now.

i don't microwave the milk, i just wait until i get home in the evening then scald it. i looked into buying a portable bottle warmer, but it said that it does't heat breastmilk enough to kill the good properties...is that too low of heat?

her last weigh-in was good. she averaged about 1/2 oz oz day of weight gain...so nursing her more often during evening and night must be good.

Originally Posted by nandodianenicole

I also suspect the baby may be rejecting the bottle. Keep trying, diff nipples, etc. There is also the finger feeder method and spoon/cup feeding. Or just keep trying with the bottle, she will get it eventually.

I too have high lipase, and I was NOT able to scald my milk and freeze it, it would still be awful tasting. The only thing I can do is microwave it (I know, sounds bad) but as soon as I pump (I have a microwave at my office) or sometimes if I am somewhere else I will do it as soon as I get home-- I microwave my bm in a glass baby bottle (I dont like to microwave anything in plastic) for about 30 seconds (I microwave 4oz)--so your time may be adjusted by a few seconds more or less. Then I can freeze it in the baggies and it comes out fine thawed. That is the only thing that has worked for me. Give that a try. I know I have microwaved it enough when the glass bottle cant be picked up with my bare hands. Luckily I only have to do this 1x a week (Friday) so the milk last the weekend. But the lipase in other peoples milk can break down immediatly, so microwave it as soon as you pump or as soon as you get the chance.
Good luck!

[veganone]

I have high lipase too. The soapy taste is definitely high lipase... DD will take scalded milk, but I couldn't bring myself to throw out the 30 oz I had already frozen when I found out. DD took it in small amounts mixed with fresh milk. You could try doing that with your thawed, scalded milk and see if she'll take it that way...

You could have your DH try finger feeding, maybe? DD always took a bottle... You could also try Breastflow bottles, which I hear people really like.

Good luck, momma!