Freeze-Drying Breast Milk Research

Decades of studies find freeze drying preserves nutrients and antibodies, which are reduced or lost in breast milk frozen for more than two weeks.

Spray and Freeze Drying of Human Milk on the Retention of Immunoglobulins (IgA, IgG, IgM). 4. Castro-Albarran, J.; Aguilar-Uscanga, B. R.., et al Dry. Technol. 2016, 34, 1801–1809 4.

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/07373937.2016.1141781

The effect of freeze-drying and storage on lysozyme activity, lactoferrin content, superoxide dismutase activity, total antioxidant capacity and fatty acid profile of freeze-dried human milk. Dorota Martysiak-Żurowska, Patrycja Rożek &; Małgorzata Puta Drying Technology, Volume 40, 2022 - Issue 3. Article | Published online: 22 Sep 2020

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07373937.2020.1824188

Vitamins, fatty acids, and antioxidant capacity stability during storage of freeze-dried human milk. Blanca Lozano et al. International Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, Volume 65, 2014 - Issue 6. (Article | Published online: 19 May 2014)

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24840090/

The Effect of Freeze-Drying on the Nutrient, Polyphenol, and Oxidant Levels of Breast Milk. Cortez, M.; Soria, E. Breastfeed. Med. 2016, 11, 551–554.

https://doi.org/10.1089/bfm.2016.0102

Friend, B.A., et al. “Evaluation of Freeze-Drying, Pasteurization, High-Temperature Heating and Storage on Selected Enzymes, B-Vitamins and Lipids of Mature Human Milk.” Journal of Food Protection, vol. 46, no. 4, 1983, pp. 330–334.

https://doi.org/10.4315/0362-028x-46.4.330

Jarzynka, Sylwia, et al. “Combination of High-Pressure Processing and Freeze-Drying as the Most Effective Techniques in Maintaining Biological Values and Microbiological Safety of Donor Milk.” International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, vol. 18, no. 4, 2021, p. 2147.

https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18042147

Oliveira, Mariana M., et al. “Development of a Human Milk Concentrate with Human Milk Lyophilizate for Feeding Very Low Birth Weight Preterm Infants: A Preclinical Experimental Study.” PLOS ONE, vol. 14, no. 2, 2019.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0210999

Sproat, Thomas D. R., et al. "Lyophilized (freeze-dried) human milk for preterm infants: a scoping review." Journal of Perinatology. 2024.

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-023-01861-8

Research finds regular freezing impacts the nutritional content of human milk and decreases protein and caloric content over time.

Influence of refrigeration or freezing on human milk macronutrients and energy content in early lactation: Results from a tertiary centre survey. Luminița Păduraru, MD PhD, et al Paediatrics & Child Health, Volume 24, Issue 4, July 2019, Pages 250–257,

https://doi.org/10.1093/pch/pxy164

Effect of Freezing Time on Macronutrients and Energy Content of Breastmilk. García-Lara N.L. et al. Breastfeed Med. 2012 Aug; 7(4): 295–301.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3411345/

Contact us if you’d like access to the full studies behind any of the freeze-drying breast milk research that we’ve included here.

The freeze-dried process…

  • has been studied for decades and used by milk banks worldwide.

  • preserves antibodies and 97% of nutrients and maintains overall caloric density.

  • can improve the taste of your milk by deactivating the lipase enzymes.

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