baby won't drink frozen milk

Baby won’t drink frozen milk – this is really problematic!

Breast milk is a baby’s only source of nutrition when they are born, supplying enough nutrients to help them develop fully. Because of the importance of breast milk for babies, every mother is concerned about the usage and storage of milk.

Breast milk can be stored in a variety of ways, but the most frequent is freezing. However, if the milk is not adequately frozen, it will spoil and your baby will refuse to drink it.

So, why is it that your kid won’t drink thawed breast milk? Does the milk have a bad odor, or does it have an awful taste?

The next article will explain why your baby isn’t drinking frozen milk and provide you with some helpful ideas on how to correctly freeze breast milk.

Baby won’t drink frozen milk?

There must be a problem with your defrosted bottle if your infant refuses to sip milk. It’s not broken, but it’s changed.

Human milk does not deteriorate nearly as quickly as formula due to the presence of live cells and antibodies. It will keep for a week or more in the fridge, whereas formula will only last a day or two.

The taste of milk changes slightly when it is frozen, but not dramatically. The majority of babies will consume thawed frozen milk just as well as freshly pumped milk.

Even when all of the suggested storage rules have been followed, there are some instances where frozen or refrigerated milk smells and tastes unpleasant.

Lipase is a digestive enzyme contained in all breast milk that breaks down fat and aids in the digestion of the milk. As the milk cools, the activity of lipase increases. 

This signifies that the milk is OK while the infant is nursing because the temperature is always warm. When milk is expressed, however, increased lipase activity occurs almost immediately – as soon as the milk cools below body temperature. 

We don’t know why some mothers’ milk contains more lipase than others, but mothers who have this problem with one kid are more likely to have it with others.

The milk with a high lipase isn’t awful. The nutritional value is the same, and it will not make your baby sick if he or she drinks it, but it may have such an unpleasant sour or soapy flavor that the baby fusses and refuses to drink it at all.

Read more: Accidentally Watered Down Formula?

How to fix the unpleasant smell of thawed milk?

Inquire about your baby’s thoughts

Make a small test to discover if your baby likes frozen milk. Rather than squeezing a large quantity, freeze a tiny portion for 5 days.

Then smell the milk to see whether it has an unpleasant odor. The nutritional value of the milk is unaffected by the soapy odor. It is fully drinkable by the baby.

In case the baby still refuses to breastfeed, the mother can rest assured that the baby will use it as usual. 

On the contrary, if the baby refuses to suckle, you can do the following to deodorize frozen breast milk.

Combine the milk and the other ingredients

To decrease smells, mix fully thawed milk with unfrozen milk in a 1:1 ratio, then try breastfeeding.

Increase the percentage of freshly expressed milk in the combination if the infant is still refusing to cooperate.

After the infant became accustomed to it, the mother progressively lowered the amount of freshly pumped milk utilized in the mixing process.

You should not mix freshly expressed milk with thawed milk and then continue to freeze breast milk if the infant refuses to suckle or does not finish sucking.

Deodorize before freezing

If the previous method of deodorizing frozen breast milk isn’t working, mothers can deodorize breast milk before freezing it. How to go about it:

  • Squeeze the milk and cook it over low heat on the stove.
  • Turn off the heat when the milk begins to bubble around the edges.
  • Breast milk should be cooled and then frozen as usual.

The method for deodorizing frozen breast milk described above is quite effective at removing odor, but it has the drawback of causing the milk to lose part of its antibodies. As a result, it’s important to remember not to boil until the milk is completely boiled to avoid losing nutrients.

Read more: All about Breastmilk Storage & Handling – Valuable Advice for Young Moms

Mistakes to avoid when defrosting breast milk

To ensure the nutrition in breast milk for your baby and to assist the infant’s digestive system in developing in the most thorough way, you must follow the processes as well as the principles of managing breast milk. The following are some additional things to keep in mind when defrosting breast milk to avoid making mistakes:

Do not hastily defrost

If you want to defrost frozen breast milk quickly, don’t put it in warm water. As a result of the abrupt temperature shift, breast milk loses nutrients.

When defrosting breast milk, you should also pay attention to the temperature of the water. Many individuals wish to save time and defrost breast milk by putting it in too hot water, which causes it to lose nutrients. You should also check the temperature of breast milk before feeding your baby to avoid newborn burns.

Do not use microwave

You absolutely must not use the microwave to defrost breast milk. Because microwaves lose some of the protein in frozen breast milk.

Mass defrost

You should never thaw breast milk in batches and then store it in the refrigerator until you need it again.

When frozen breast milk is thawed, it can only be used for 24 hours and must be stored in the refrigerator, do not reheat it more than once. If your baby doesn’t finish the breast, instead of freezing it, throw it away.

Avoid shaking the bottle

After defrosting, avoid vigorously shaking the bottle because this will break some of the protective protein molecules, reducing the nutritional value of the milk.

Other antibodies found in breast milk, such as lysozyme and lactoferrin, promote absolute anti-inflammatory or swelling of the intestinal mucosa only when they are in the correct molecular structure.

Final thoughts

Despite the unpleasant odor, thawed breast milk provides nutrition for your baby. We’ve talked about the best ways to get rid of odors. I hope you find the information in this post beneficial.

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