Yahoo News Hurricane Harvey: Mum donates her own breast milk to victims in Texas
A mum from Missouri who had frozen litres of breast milk from when her son was born has donated the resource to mothers in need.
Danielle Palmer found a unique way help those affected by Hurricane Harvey, which caused devastating floods in Houston.
The mother of two from Owensville said she was horrified watching the floods and not knowing how to help those who had lost their homes.
“I can’t imagine being in a situation where you’re losing everything,” Palmer said. “All I could do was sit and pray for the moms and dads and kids.”
Palmer’s youngest son, Truett was born with a congenital heart disease and was unable to take his mother’s milk for long periods.
All the milk that Palmer produced therefore went straight to the freezer — leaving her with a huge supply.
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In the end, it was her son’s speech therapist who suggested she could help by making the unusual donation.
“With breast feeding, stress plays a big role in your supply. If you become stressed, your supply will drop,” Palmer said.
“We gave 1040 ounces (30 litres) and we figured that, if a normal baby gets three ounces, that’s 346 feedings.”
Without electricity to power a pump or a freezer or fridge, there is a risk some babies will not be able to be fed.
Palmer gave her milk to pregnancy care centre Guiding Star Mid-Missouri, who knew of specific Texan mothers in need of supplies.
Palmer says that the milk donated to banks is rigorously tested, so there is no risk.
The image of Palmer, Truett and their donation has gone viral, gaining more than 13,000 likes on the Breastfeeding Mama Talk page.
