The first breast milk bank in Vietnam comes into operation

Starting February 17, many Vietnamese babies will receive care from a human milk bank. The first pilot bank in Vietnam is located at the Da Nang Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital. It is expected that the human milk bank will support the care and treatment of 3,000 to 4,000 babies per year.

The Da Nang Human Milk Bank collects, sterilizes, tests, and safely stores breast milk from donors and provides it to infants with special needs, such as premature, low birth weight, or medical conditions. The Human Milk Bank also protects, promotes, and provides advice and support for breastfeeding.

The source of milk donated to the bank is from healthy mothers, aged 18 and over, who are willing to donate breast milk. Mothers will be examined and tested before donating milk. Mothers will have to stop donating milk while donating milk and need to use one of the drugs contraindicated for breastfeeding mothers; mastitis or abnormalities of the skin - around the breast; the child is discharged from the hospital and the mother is not able to donate milk at the milk bank; does not want to continue donating milk for any reason.

Children who receive milk from the Breast Milk Bank are premature, underweight, or have certain medical conditions... while their mothers are away or absent, or their mothers have little milk or have certain illnesses that prevent them from breastfeeding.

Breast milk is the best food for babies, at least for the first 6 months of life.

Every year, more than 33,000 children under the age of 5 die in Vietnam. Studies show that among the solutions to reduce child mortality, breast milk is the most important solution and has an impact on child survival. The establishment of a human milk bank will help improve child survival and health. In particular, children will have access to safe breast milk, regardless of the circumstances in which they are born.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that breast milk is the most important solution that can prevent more than 800,000 deaths (13% of all deaths) in children under 5 years of age. However, many children are still not fortunate enough to have access to their mother's milk, making them more vulnerable, especially when they are premature or underweight, orphaned or severely malnourished. To date, there are about 550 breast milk banks in the world, of which Brazil is considered a pioneer with about 220 banks of different sizes.

In Vietnam, according to the National Institute of Nutrition, the rate of exclusive breastfeeding in the first 6 months is 24.3%. Lack of breastfeeding support combined with high cesarean section rates hinder the practice of breastfeeding.

According to PNVN