A team of medical researchers has found that in human milk, pasteurisation inactivates the virus that causes COVID-19, confirming milk bank processes have been safe throughout the pandemic, and will remain safe going forward, too.
A team of medical researchers has found that in human milk, pasteurisation inactivates the virus that causes COVID-19, confirming milk bank processes have been safe throughout the pandemic, and will remain safe going forward, too.
The study – published this month in the Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health – was a partnership between UNSW and a multidisciplinary team from Australian Red Cross Lifeblood Milk.
There are five human milk banks in Australia. As the COVID-19 pandemic evolves, these milk banks continue to provide donated breast milk to preterm babies who lack access to their mother’s own milk. Donors are screened for diseases, and milk is tested and pasteurised to ensure that it is safe for medically fragile babies.
“While there is no evidence that the virus can be transmitted through breast milk, there is always a theoretical risk,” says Greg Walker, lead author and PhD candidate in Professor Bill Rawlinson’s group at UNSW Medicine.
Read more at University of New South Wales
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