WHY WE NEED A MOTHERS MILK BANK…

Mothers Milk Bank Pty Ltd is a charity set up by Marea Ryan, in order to provide pasteurised donor mothers’ milk to infants where mother’s own milk human is not available. Every baby has the right to the optimal nutrition.

The Mothers Milk Bank is a community of Health Professionals and volunteers who have donated their time, energy and enthusiasm to this project. All are united in the belief that this service will play a vital role in ensuring the health of Australia’s children.

In conjunction with a similar initiative being established in Perth, the Mothers Milk Bank is committed to seeing a network of donor milk banks operational around Australia within ten years. Mothers Milk Bank aims see milk banks established to provide human milk for all babies up to the age of at least six months.

This will lay the foundation of the future health of Australian children by ensuring optimal physical and neurological development for all infants. Donor human milk banks around the world have demonstrated that donor milk saves lives, and prevents a wide range of illnesses from developing.

In the absence of the infant’s own mother’s milk, donor milk offers the benefits of human milk for the infant including:

• Optimal nutrition
• Easy digestibility
• Immunological protection against many organisms and diseases
• Infection-fighting components such as immunoglobulins

Human milk also contains growth factors that can:

• Protect immature tissue
• Promote maturation, particularly in the gastrointestinal tract
• Promote healing of tissue damaged by infection

Common reasons for prescribing donor milk:

• Prematurity
• Allergies
• Feeding/formula intolerance
• Immunologic deficiencies
• Post operative nutrition
• Treatment of some infectious diseases
• Treatment of inborn errors of metabolism

In relation to the financial implications from not having donor human milk available, the impact on the Australian health care dollar is huge when considering greater hazards for the infant who is not exclusively receiving human milk for the first 6 months of life. Our health system continues to pay for the ongoing costs of individuals whose health, has been compromised at the very beginning of their lives.

Private donations and sponsored facilities and equipment have allowed us to begin this vital service. Your support is required for the vital service to continue. The Mothers Milk Bank would appreciate a financial contribution to be received from the Federal or Queensland State Government.

There is no cost to the mother’s, the milk is a gift.

You will be making a difference by supporting the mothers’ milk bank and help us provide pasteurized donor human milk to our Australian babies in need.

Donations to:-
mothersmilkbank Community Enterprise Foundation
BSB: 633-000 Account: 130098981 Bank: Bendigo Bank

You may claim any contribution as a tax deduction.

www.bendigobank.com.au

Our babies thank you for your support
Marea Ryan
Director