Prolacta Bioscience Salutes World Breast Milk Donation Day May 19

Breastfeeding Mothers Honored for Helping Save Lives by Nourishing the Most Vulnerable Premature Infants

DUARTE, Calif., May 11, 2018 – Prolacta Bioscience, the pioneer in human milk-based neonatal nutritional products for premature infants, is highlighting World Breast Milk Donation Day on May 19 to celebrate the donor moms who share the healing power of breast milk with the most critically ill infants in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

"The month of May celebrates moms; first on Mother’s Day and then again on World Breast Milk Donation Day,” said Scott Elster, president and CEO of Prolacta Bioscience. “We are incredibly grateful to mothers who choose to donate their excess breast milk to provide life-saving nutrition to the most vulnerable preemies in neonatal care.”

To express gratitude to mothers who contribute their time and effort to donate their excess breast milk for the health of preemies, Prolacta is asking friends and followers to share the best advice their mom gave them. Prolacta will feature the responses on Prolacta’s social media channels, including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. During World Breast Milk Donation Day, Prolacta will also invite moms to join the conversation on social media by using hashtags #MilkDonorsTouchLives and #MilkDonors.

Prolacta supports a variety of donor milk programs for moms who wish to donate their excess breast milk, including direct compensation and charitable options for moms who donate breast milk to preemies while also making a contribution to charity. Supporting donor programs is one way that Prolacta helps hospitals meet the American Academy of Pediatrics’ (AAP) recommendation that all preterm infants receive human milk, whether it’s mother's own or pasteurized human donor milk.1

When used as part of an exclusive human milk diet (EHMD)2 , Prolacta’s neonatal nutritional products are clinically proven to improve health outcomes 3,4,5 and reduce hospital costs 6,7 for critically ill, extremely premature infants weighing between 500-1250 g (1 lb 1oz to 2 lbs 12 oz) at birth, in the NICU, as compared to cow milk-based fortifier or cow milk-based preterm formula. An EHMD devoid of cow milk not only decreases the risk of health complications for premature babies, but also reduces the number of days spent in the hospital, and reduces the overall costs of care, according to a study published in the Journal of Perinatology.7

About Prolacta Bioscience

Prolacta Bioscience, Inc. is a privately-held life sciences company dedicated to Advancing the Science of Human Milk®. The company pioneered the development of human milk-based neonatal nutritional products to meet the needs of critically ill, premature infants in the NICU. Prolacta leads the industry in the quality and safety of nutritional products made from donor breast milk and operates the first and only pharmaceutical-grade manufacturing facility for the processing of human breast milk.

1. American Academy of Pediatrics "Breastfeeding and the Use of Human Milk." February 2012. Pediatrics. 129(3): 827-841. doi:10.1542/peds.2011-3552.
2. An EHMD is when 100% of the protein, fat and carbohydrates in an infant’s intake are derived solely from human milk.
3. Sullivan S, et al. An Exclusively Human Milk-Based Diet is Associated with a Lower Rate of Necrotizing Enterocolitis than a Diet of Human Milk and Bovine Milk-Based Products. The Journal of Pediatrics. April 2010. 156(4):562-567. doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2009.10.040. The randomized study of 207 infants weighing 500-1,250g compared the benefits of an exclusive human milk diet with a diet of both human milk-based and cow milk-based products. 

4. Cristofalo EA, et al. Randomized Trial of Exclusive Human Milk versus Preterm Formula Diets in Extremely Premature Infants. The Journal of Pediatrics. December 2013. 163(6):1592-1595.
doi: 10.1016/j.jpeds.2013.07.011. The multicenter randomized controlled study examined 53 extremely premature infants weighing 500-1250g who were fed either a bovine milk-based preterm formula or an exclusive human milk diet, comparing the duration of parenteral nutrition, growth and morbidity. 

5. Abrams SA, et al. Greater Mortality and Morbidity in Extremely Preterm Infants Fed a Diet Containing Cow Milk Protein Products. Breastfeeding Medicine. June 2014. 9(6): 281-0285. doi:10.1089/bfm.2014.0024. This cohort study included 260 extremely preterm infants born weighing less than 1,250g who received a diet that ranged from 100% cow milk to 100% human milk. 

6. Ganapathy V, et al. Costs of Necrotizing Enterocolitis and Cost-Effectiveness of Exclusively Human Milk-Based Products in Feeding Extremely Premature Infants. Breastfeeding Medicine. February 2012. 7(1):29-37. doi: 10.1089/bfm.2011.0002. This cost-effectiveness analysis of 2,560 extremely premature infants less than 28 weeks gestational age in 257 hospitals nationwide, comparing the impact of an exclusive human milk diet composed of mother’s milk fortified with a human milk-based fortifier versus mother’s milk fortified with cow milk-based fortifier. 

7. Assad M, et al. Decreased Cost and Improved Feeding Tolerance in VLBW Infants Fed an Exclusive Human Milk Diet. Journal of Perinatology. March 2016. 36:216-220. doi: 10.1038/jp.2015.168. The study retrospectively looked at 293 preterm infants between gestational ages of 23 to 34 weeks and birth weights between 490-1,700g in the Level III NICU. The study compared the clinical and financial impacts
between infants that were fed an exclusive human milk diet; cow milk-based fortifier and maternal milk; mixed combination of maternal milk, cow milk-based fortifier and cow milk-based formula; and formula between March 2009 and March 2014.