By Ocean Francoeur
Special to The Record
We often hear about blood banks and how important giving blood is; there are billboards everywhere with the now-iconic red, single-sleeved shirt campaign. Yet, there’s another bank that needs donations: the mother’s milk bank. Though the regions milk supply manages to meet demand, Héma-Quebec, which handles the bank, is always trying to recruit new breastfeeding mamas. Amélie Boivin, project coordinator for Héma-Quebec, explained how the milk bank is essential to helping babies who are born prematurely. “The bank is in place to help babies who are born at 32 weeks or less. When that happens, the mom typically can’t give milk. Of course, it depends on the woman,” she said. “But usually they’re not producing milk yet, and since the baby is too young to latch, they can’t stimulate milk production. And breast milk is really critical for premies.” See full story in the Wednesday, August 15 edition of The Record.
