“Some of the samples have such a high bacterial content, it is closer to sewage.”
Top athletes are always looking for an advantage over their competition. Sometimes this drive will lead to extreme, dangerous or even illegal steps to get that edge. And one of the latest trends to gain an advantage? Human breast milk.
The benefits of breastfeeding are well established, and breastfeeding is highly recommended by health care professionals and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. But that’s for babies. What about breast milk for adults? And what about breast milk as a way to bulge and gain muscle weight? Or breast milk for the treatment of certain cancers?
Before answering any of these questions, is it best to start by asking, is it safe for adults to consume human breast milk?
The Food and Drug Administration says there are a number of risks to consuming shared breast milk. These risks include “exposure to infectious diseases, including HIV, to chemical contaminants, such as some illegal drugs, and to a limited number of prescribed drugs that may be present in human milk if the donor is not adequately screened. In addition, if “If human milk is not treated and stored properly, then, like any milk, it can become contaminated and drink unsafely.”
Safety of breast milk on internet
A quick search on Facebook market will show you that sharing and selling breast milk is not hypothetical. It happens already. Selling breast milk is not illegal. It is unregulated.
“If human milk is obtained directly from individuals or through the Internet, it is likely that the donor is not adequately controlled for infectious disease or risk of infection,” according to the FDA. In addition, the FDA says that human milk is unlikely to be collected, processed, tested or stored in a way that reduces potential safety risks.
In an episode of the Netflix documentary (Un) No, “Bulking Up with Breast Milk”, these questions regarding the use of breast milk are addressed.
Dr Sarah Keim, Epidemiologist at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, was interviewed for the (Un) Well documentary series. She talks about a study she led that was published in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine in 2015, entitled, “More than a lucrative liquid: the risks to adult consumers of human breast milk purchased from the online market . “
“I do not think there is really any circumstance where one could recommend sharing breast milk,” Keim said. “Unless you have a lab in your kitchen, you can’t really test the milk and know it’s completely safe.”
Keim’s warnings are not hyperbole. Her study tested 102 samples of breast milk from across the country and showed that breast milk purchased online contained detective bacteria in 93 percent of the samples.
“Some of the samples have such a high bacterial content, it is closer to sewage,” she said.
The study says that “the lack of pasteurization and testing not only indicates a bacterial risk, but breast milk also exposes consumers to a host of infectious diseases, including cytomegalovirus, hepatitis B and C, HIV-1/2, HTLV-I & II and syphilis. ”
Keim’s study concluded that breast milk purchased online is not optimal for adult nutrition than for the treatment of disease, because there are more risks than proven benefits.
“Because adult consumers are generally not suitable for milk banks, unless milk comes from a known source – a lactating partner, for example – it comes from an online source and therefore presents many unknown possibilities for communicable disease. Buying online potentially exposes the consumer to bacteria, viruses and contaminants that do not make this a ‘clean’ ‘super food’ for performance nutrition as a supplement. ‘
Where breast milk is most needed
However, there are safe ways to get human breast milk for babies. The FDA recommends that, after consultation with a healthcare provider, people who decide to feed a baby human milk from a source other than the baby’s mother should use milk from a source that has its milk donors screened and took other precautionary measures to ensure the safety of their milk.
“There are human milk banks that take voluntary steps to screen milk donors and collect, process, process, test and store the milk safely. In a few states, safety standards are required for such milk banks. FDA has not been involved in setting these voluntary guidelines as state norms. ”
Verified milk banks can be found through organizations such as Human Milk Banking, Association of North America.
There is another concern to consider when asking whether adults should consume human breast milk, is there enough?
Human breast milk is always in demand. It may be essential for premature babies to receive milk instead of formula. Less than half of mothers with premature babies can provide the milk needed for their babies to provide nutrients, immune stones and growth-promoting components.
During the coronavirus pandemic, the screening of milk donors has become more stringent. This has made maintaining an adequate supply of donor milk even more difficult. Adults who use human milk reduce the potential donor supply of milk banks and take milk away from the primary infants who need it most.
So for the athlete looking for bulk, there is more than just the effectiveness of breast milk in relation to performance to think about. The athlete should also consider the potential health risks and the harm they can cause by using a limited supply of breast milk.
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