“Breast milk has many benefits and contains numerous antibodies and immune components that protect babies from disease and help build the immune system. It also contains unique active components that support the development of the brain and body — processes that are especially critical for premature babies and sick infants.
These components are absent from infant formula and exposure to formula may lead to severe intestinal illness and developmental harm,” explained Dr. Sharron Bransburg-Zabary, director of the national human milk bank of Magen David Adom (MDA).
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A mother holds a baby, with a bottle of breast milk at foreground
(Photo: Pilin_Petunyia/iStock by Getty images)
“Breast milk, like a unit of blood, is a human tissue with no substitute. However, unlike blood, which serves the donor, breast milk contains a variety of unique active maternal components designed to support the child. Although milk from the bank is less active and less personalized than milk provided directly through breastfeeding or by the biological mother, most of its components survive the processing carried out by MDA’s national milk bank. The unique benefits of donor breast milk and the lack of any proper substitute reinforce the need for breast milk donations. Without these donations, it would not be possible to provide this vital milk to premature babies, newborns and medically vulnerable infants,” she added.
The national human milk bank of MDA, located at blood services center in Ramla, was established in 2018 as a joint initiative with Israel’s Health Ministry. The milk bank collects, tests and supplies around 350 liters of breast milk each month to thousands of premature babies in neonatal intensive care units across the country, as well as vulnerable newborns, while maintaining the highest safety standards and ensuring optimal nutrition.
Since its establishment, around 1,000 women have donated to MDA’s national milk bank, helping save thousands of premature babies and infants. The bank stores two types of breast milk: “preterm milk,” donated by mothers who gave birth from week 34 of pregnancy and up to six weeks after delivery, intended mainly for premature babies, and breast milk from mothers who delivered at full term.
Since the outbreak of the war in October 2023, a special project launched jointly by MDA and the Health Ministry has expanded support beyond premature babies to infants injured themselves, babies whose mothers were injured or killed, and reservist mothers separated from their infants and unable to provide breast milk. Over the past three years, the national milk bank has supplied around 2,500 liters of breast milk to about 60 infants whose mothers’ milk was inaccessible for these reasons.
Breast milk donors must meet special eligibility requirements to ensure both their suitability as donors and the safety of the milk provided. These requirements include blood tests for viral infections conducted by MDA Blood Services, along with additional criteria designed to ensure the donor’s long-term eligibility, the safety of the expressed milk and confirmation that the donor’s own baby has an adequate milk supply. Donated milk undergoes a lengthy process before reaching infants in need and therefore must be expressed and stored under optimal conditions.
For more information, contact MDA’s national human milk bank via WhatsApp at 052-6344101, email at [email protected] or by phone at 073-2630200, Sunday through Thursday between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.