URGENT CALL FOR HUMAN MILK DONATIONS FOR HAITI INFANTS

URGENT CALL FOR HUMAN MILK DONATIONS FOR HAITI INFANTS

The Human Milk
Banking Association of North America (HMBANA), United States Breastfeeding
Committee (USBC), International Lactation Consultant Association/United
States Lactation Consultant Association (ILCA/USLCA), and La Leche League
International (LLLI) are jointly issuing an urgent call for human milk
donations for premature infants in Haiti, as well as sick and premature
infants in the United States.

This week the first shipment of human
milk from mothers in the United States will be shipped to the U.S. Navy
Ship "Comfort" stationed outside Haiti. "Comfort" is currently set up with
a neonatal intensive care unit and medical personnel to provide urgent
care to victims of the earthquake. An International Board Certified
Lactation Consultant stationed at the U.S. Navy base in Bethesda, MD is
assisting with providing breast pump equipment and supplies to the
"Comfort." Dr. Erika Beard-Irvine, pediatric neonatologist, is on board
the "Comfort" to coordinate distribution of the milk to infants in need.
HMBANA, USBC, ILCA/USLCA, and LLL are responding to requests to provide
milk for both premature infants and at-risk mothers who have recently
delivered babies on board the U.S.N.S. Comfort, but an urgent need exists
for additional donations.

At the current time, the infrastructure to
deliver human milk on land to Haiti infants has not yet been established.
As soon as that infrastructure is in place, additional donations will be
provided to older infants.

Mothers who are willing to donate human milk
should contact their regional Mothers' Milk Bank of HMBANA. A list of
regional milk banks is available at the HMBANA website at www.hmbana.org.
Currently milk banks are already low on donor milk. New milk donations
will be used for both Haiti victims as well as to replenish donor supplies
to continue to serve sick and premature infants in the U.S. Donor milk
provides unique protection for fragile preterm infants. Financial
donations are also strongly encouraged to allow HMBANA, a nonprofit
organization, to continue serving infants in need.

UNICEF, the World
Health Organization, the Emergency Nutrition Network, and medical
professionals all recommend that breastfeeding and human milk be used for
infants in disasters or emergencies. Human milk is life-saving due to its
disease prevention properties. It is safe, clean, and does not depend on
water which is often unavailable or contaminated in an emergency. Relief
workers, health care providers, and other volunteers are urged to provide
support for breastfeeding mothers to enable them to continue
breastfeeding, and to assist pregnant and postpartum women in initiating
and sustaining breastfeeding.

For more information, contact HMBANA at
408-998-4550 or www.hmbana.org . Additional information can be provided
from the United States Breastfeeding Committee at 202-367-1132
(www.usbreastfeeding.org), ILCA/USLCA at 1-800-452-2478 (www.ilca.org ; or
www.uslca.org ), or La Leche League at 847-519-7730 (www.llli.org) .
Sincerely,



Angela Smith, President
ILCA Board of Directors

www.BirthingWisdom.com