S'pore woman produces enough breast milk to feed 15 babies -
DONATING: Madam Audrey Yeo and her baby girl, Casey. Madam Yeo donates her excess milk to other babies through the Facebook group Human Milk 4 Human Babies.
Monday, Apr 28, 2014
The New Paper
By Linette Heng
SINGAPORE - Mother-of-two Audrey Yeo jokingly calls herself a cow because she feeds at least 15 babies with her breast milk.
"All I do all day is pump and pump, just like a cow," she said with a laugh.
She pumps about five litres of milk daily - about five times the amount for an average lactating mother.
The 28-year-old woman has been donating her breast milk for the past five months through Facebook group Human Milk 4 Human Babies-Singapore.
She even donates her milk to a five-month old girl across the Causeway whose mother works in Singapore.
Although doctors warn of the risks of infections in sharing breast milk, the parents who receive Madam Yeo's milk are grateful.
Madam Yeo, a school band instructor, bought a $600 freezer specially to store her breast milk. The freezer allows the milk to last for up to six months.
She has about 13 regular recipients. Most of them collect up to 100 packets of breast milk from her flat in Clementi monthly.
Madam Yeo has to feed her baby girl by bottle because the fast flow of milk from her breast might choke the child.
Her situation is unusual because lactating mothers produce an average of 800ml to 1,500ml per day, said lactation consultant Lim Peng Im of Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at National University Hospital.
Before they are introduced to solid food, most babies at six months drink between 720ml and 960ml of milk, according to nutritionists.
"Expressing a high volume of breast milk is not harmful to the mother, but the rush of milk from an overfull breast may cause discomfort and distress for the mother and the baby," said Ms Lim.
DONATING: Madam Audrey Yeo and her baby girl, Casey. Madam Yeo donates her excess milk to other babies through the Facebook group Human Milk 4 Human Babies.
Monday, Apr 28, 2014
The New Paper
By Linette Heng
SINGAPORE - Mother-of-two Audrey Yeo jokingly calls herself a cow because she feeds at least 15 babies with her breast milk.
"All I do all day is pump and pump, just like a cow," she said with a laugh.
She pumps about five litres of milk daily - about five times the amount for an average lactating mother.
The 28-year-old woman has been donating her breast milk for the past five months through Facebook group Human Milk 4 Human Babies-Singapore.
She even donates her milk to a five-month old girl across the Causeway whose mother works in Singapore.
Although doctors warn of the risks of infections in sharing breast milk, the parents who receive Madam Yeo's milk are grateful.
Madam Yeo, a school band instructor, bought a $600 freezer specially to store her breast milk. The freezer allows the milk to last for up to six months.
She has about 13 regular recipients. Most of them collect up to 100 packets of breast milk from her flat in Clementi monthly.
Madam Yeo has to feed her baby girl by bottle because the fast flow of milk from her breast might choke the child.
Her situation is unusual because lactating mothers produce an average of 800ml to 1,500ml per day, said lactation consultant Lim Peng Im of Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at National University Hospital.
Before they are introduced to solid food, most babies at six months drink between 720ml and 960ml of milk, according to nutritionists.
"Expressing a high volume of breast milk is not harmful to the mother, but the rush of milk from an overfull breast may cause discomfort and distress for the mother and the baby," said Ms Lim.
