Israel's human milk bank tripled activity after October 7, helping feed wartime babies, study finds
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched an invasion of southern Israel, resulting in the massacre of over 1,200 civilians and the abduction of more than 250 hostages. In response, the Israel National Council for Pediatrics and Child Health faced unique challenges in providing breast milk to babies whose mothers were unable to nurse them. The National Human Milk Bank of Magen David Adom, located in Ramle, stepped up to the challenge, supplying breast milk to over 400 women donors for 46 healthy babies.
The number of donors surged to 200 new ones following the war, according to Prof. Francis Mimouni, a veteran pediatrician at Shaare Zedek Medical Center and chairman of the national council. Mimouni explained that the war led to the tripled activity of the milk bank, with emergency need to nourish babies who had been orphaned, whose mothers were abducted or injured, or for babies whose mothers were recruited to the IDF.
Mimouni emphasized that breast milk is essential for premature, sick, and vulnerable infants, as it creates a unique environment of microorganisms that boost their immune protection and prevent allergies. In normal circumstances, donors provided sterile bags with their milk to specific locations, but during the war, MDA motorcycles transported the bags daily to the Ramle milk bank.
The success of the project can be attributed to the motivation of the donors and the commitment to continuing the milk bank's operations during the emergency.
Written by urgent.news from Jerusalem Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
