At 10pm, my DS started crying so I woke up, heated up a bottle and took it back to my room. When I got there, he had fallen back asleep.
I thought he'd wake up within a few mins so I put the bottle of milk next to me and fell back asleep.
Ff 3 hours..
I woke up and he's still sleeping.
Warmed up milk was at room temp for 3 hours.
I put it back in the fridge and am pumping now.
What would you do? Toss the milk? Feed it to him?
It's about 5 ounces .. 
coconut / 8681 posts
@chopsuey119: If it's pumped breastmilk I think I'd still feed it to him. I think it's good at room temp for up to 6 hours?
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
@Running Elley: thanks!! even if I heated it up then kept it at room temp?
coconut / 8681 posts
@chopsuey119: I think so! That's the part I wasnt sure about though lol. I wouldn't throw it out personally! That stuff is liquid gold around here 
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
@Rainbow Sprinkles: @Running Elley: haha ok thanks ladies! 
clementine / 916 posts
@chopsuey119: Depends how long it was in the fridge. If it had been in the fridge for only a couple of hours I would keep it. Otherwise I would cringe and toss it.
I accidentally left out some the other day for a couple of hours. It had been in the fridge for one day.. so, after smelling it and err.. tasting it.. I tossed it. It tasted a little bit sour. 
I read that only fresh breast milk has the chemical properties necessary to fight off bacteria at room temperature for 6 hours.. but I'm definitely no expert!
honeydew / 7968 posts
I hate wasting, but I'd throw it out... U heated it and it sat for 3 hours. I would feed it if u had pumped it and left it out....
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
The lactation consultant who came to my room when I was at the hospital said the rule was 5-5-5
5 hours freshly pumped at room temp
5 days in the fridge
5 months in freezer
Haven't fed the milk to DS since I had another pumped bottle in the fridge.
Decided to call the lactation help line at my hospital in the am before making a decision!
Will let everyone know what they say
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
She said bc it sat out for 3 hours, their guidelines say that it should be thrown out.
:T
coconut / 8861 posts
I tend to use the 3-4 hour rule. When I'm leaving for work in the morning and getting LO's stuff ready for daycare, I know that I can leave the milk out for an hour or so before it becoming an issue. I just don't chance milk that's been left out too long.
blogger / watermelon / 14218 posts
I heard the rule is 6-6-6!
I always go by the smell test. Even if it looks chunky, if it doesn't smell sour I feed it to her. You can always taste it yourself. If it's spoiled you will definitely know!
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
I'm gonna taste it later and give it to him if it tastes fine
hostess / wonderful honeydew / 32460 posts
@mrs. wagon: ok cool! I don't think I've ever smelled breastmilk!
blogger / watermelon / 14218 posts
@chopsuey119: we're always warming and re-refrigerating our bottles (LMW is a grazer during the day! totally unpredictable) so I smell every bottle before I warm it. It should smell like nothing, or sweet!
squash / 13199 posts
I would toss it. Each time it gets heated up and then cooled down it affects the millk, so I wouldnt heat up a bottle twice
coconut / 8299 posts
I did that once too! I warmed up 5ozs and DD wouldn't drink it (she fell asleep). I forgot about it and it sat out for 2.5 hrs. So I put it back in the fridge and reheated it later and gave it to her. I tasted it and it was normal so I fed it to her and she was fine. I think I'm alot more laid back as a 2nd time mom. If this was my first baby, I probably would've thrown it out! lol
coconut / 8475 posts
My pediatrician said (unlike formula) BM is something that gets very different when spoiled....changes color and smells and tastes sour. He said if it doesn't smell or taste innu then it's fine. He said it takes a lot for BM to go bad! I think those guidelines are for extra safety...but honestly in your situation, if it tastes and smells fine, I'd feed it to him. That's just me; I wouldn't have done so until my ped encouraged it though.
coconut / 8475 posts
@Mrsbells: oh yeah. This.
I actually wouldn't heat it up again though, I'd take it out like 15min before the feeding so it's not super cold but I wouldn't stick it in the warmer a 2nd time. I think that's pushing it.
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
Toss it. If it were freshly expressed you could have let it sit for 5-6 hours and then fed it to him, but since it was in the fridge and then reheated then sat out for so long, I think properties could be destroyed or bacteria could have gorwn.
blogger / watermelon / 14218 posts
@TurtleDoves: that's what our ped said too. He said if the breastmilk is bad, YOU WILL KNOW. Once I was going to toss a few ounces anyway so I left it out overnight. It STANK so bad, I almost threw up when I took a whiff!!!
cantaloupe / 6630 posts
I probably wouldn't heat it up again (sorry!!!) - I'm sure I read somewhere that you should only do it twice.... but to be fair as pps have said, if you smell it and it's okay then I think you're good to go. I have lost SO much milk because A refuses bottles.
coconut / 8475 posts
@mrs. wagon: barf! I know, I've had the pleasure as well. There's no denying when its gone bad 
hostess / wonderful persimmon / 25556 posts
I totally would stick it back in the fridge. Give it a sniff and it smells fine, use it. I used to struggle with that when I was bottle feeding and got so tired of tossing breastmilk, I quit the rules and went with my nose.
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