I was recently offered the opportunity to test out and review a MilkBank breast milk storage system and I jumped at the opportunity. I am still nursing my son but he is 13 months old and nursing is just a brief winding-down activity before nap and bedtime as opposed to the total-life-sustaining activity it was for his first six months of life.
MilkBank is made by DexBaby. It is free of Phthalates, PVC and BPA. Insulated feeding bottles are great for newborns who eat slowly and often times the milk gets cold before they finish. The storage system doubles as a feeding system allowing you to use the same containers, thus you don't lose or spill any milk (precious nutrients!) transferring it from storage to bottle and the vented bottle is great for all ages, especially older babies.
MilkBank is a breast milk storage system that allows for feeding directly from the storage container, thereby minimizing the loss of nutrients that occurs when you transfer from the pump to the freezer container or bag and then back into a bottle. The storage containers have vacuum storage caps that fit with the vacuum pump to remove excess air which is believed to alter the taste and undermine the integrity of the nutrient-rich fatty material that often sticks to the sides of storage containers. Milk degrades when exposed to oxygen; this storage system removes the excess oxygen allowing for freezer or cold storage of the breast milk without exposure to air.
So you pump some milk and use the vacuum pump to remove the air, you freeze for storage and then when it is time to use the milk you take the container out of the freezer and allow it to come to room temperature. You fill the insulating jar with warm tap water which acts to maintain the temperature of the milk for the duration of the feeding. The bottle-top-nipple attachment has an air valve to aid in the reduction of swallowed air. All the parts are compatible so that the same container used for storage is also used for feeding, thus eliminating the need to transfer the milk back and forth.
While I was testing this product I thawed a few old containers of breast milk to use in the bottles and I was surprised to find that the plastic storage bags began to leak during the thawing time, rendering the milk useless. That alone made MilkBank seem like a great investment.
Washing all the parts in hot soapy water.
Drying all the pieces and parts.
MilkBank products are available for purchase at Babies 'R Us or you can do a zip code search on the website to find a retail location near your home.
I can summarize the pros and cons of MilkBank rather easily. The storage system is far superior to any other I have used. The bottles have multiple components, mainly the venting parts that make washing and drying a little more complex and time consuming than other bottles, but if your baby prefers these bottles and they reduce colic/spit-up/reflux, then the few extra minutes is well worth the benefit.
MilkBank has generously offered to give away a FREE MilkBank system to ONE reader. This contest will end at 11:59PM Sunday February 15, 2009. To enter, leave a comment with a valid email address telling me if you can confirm, first hand, that breast milk really will (or will not) cure pink eye. It's always good to have clear scientific research in our Mom Pockets, ya know?
*For an extra contest entry, please Twitter link to this page.
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