Implications for observant Jewish families in the provision of mother's own and donor milk for their very low birth weight infant

Moshe Yair Kassierer; Deborah L O'Connor; Eva Rutherford; Asaph Rolnitzky; Sharon Unger

doi:10.1177/0890334414545538

Implications for observant Jewish families in the provision of mother's own and donor milk for their very low birth weight infant

J Hum Lact. 2014 Nov;30(4):402-4. doi: 10.1177/0890334414545538. Epub 2014 Aug 4.

Authors

Moshe Yair Kassierer¹, Deborah L O'Connor², Eva Rutherford³, Asaph Rolnitzky⁴, Sharon Unger⁵

Affiliations

¹ University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
² Department of Nutritional Sciences, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada.
³ University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁴ Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
⁵ Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, ON, Canada Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada Department of Paediatrics, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada [email protected].

PMID: 25092199
DOI: 10.1177/0890334414545538

Abstract

Jewish law recognizes the importance of breast milk, and breastfeeding rates are high among religious mothers. Infants born at very low birth weight are medically fragile, and breast milk is of critical importance for their health protection and optimal growth and development. For observant Jewish infants and their families, there may be scenarios for special consideration in their health care. This report reviews briefly the relevant Jewish laws related to breast milk provision, both mother's own milk and donor milk, in the neonatal intensive care unit with background information for counseling such families.

Keywords: Judaism; banked donor milk; breastfeeding; expressed breast milk; family counseling; low birth weight infant.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Breast Feeding*
Culturally Competent Care
Female
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Infant, Very Low Birth Weight*
Intensive Care Units, Neonatal
Judaism*
Maternal Behavior*
Milk Banks*
Ontario