News that human breast milk sold online for babies can contain dangerous bacteria shouldn't come as a surprise, says Sarah Jane Hughes, a legal expert and faculty member at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law in Bloomington.
"Breast milk should be from known sources, or procured through known sources such as hospitals, to reduce the risk of contamination," said Hughes, University Scholar and Fellow in Commercial Law at the Maurer School.
"Breast milk for donation often is frozen quickly after expression to be preserved," Hughes added. "If not handled properly, it can deteriorate quickly. Breast milk donors to hospitals should be pre-screened for communicable diseases, such as AIDS or hepatitis."
In a study published online in the journal Pediatrics, researchers bought and tested 101 breast milk samples sold by women on a popular website, which they did not identify. Three-fourths of the samples contained bacteria at high enough levels to sicken babies, the researchers found.
A long-time faculty member at the Maurer School, Hughes also has experience as a breast-milk donor in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. She can be reached at 812-855-6318 or [email protected].
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