Pasteurization Laboratory

Human milk provides optimal nutrition for infants. As a Registered Dietitian, I am pleased to be a part of the Mother’s Milk Bank, because it gives every infant access to a safe, readily available supply of human milk.
Douglas P. Robertson, RD, LD
Associate Director, Food and Nutrition Services

Breast milk is a precious gift.
Holly Szcodronski, RD, LD, CBE
State WIC Breastfeeding Coordinator
Bureau of Nutrition and Health Promotion
Iowa Department of Public Health

Donor milk is an integral part of our management of the tiniest premature infants when mother’s milk is unavailable. Human milk use in this population prevents potentially life-threatening intestinal infections and blood infections. It also helps ensure the best nutritional and developmental outcomes in these vulnerable babies. We want our patients to have the best care possible, and donor milk is a part of that care.
Tarah T. Colaizy, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Division of Neonatology
Medical Director, Mother’s Milk Bank of Iowa

Registered dietitians play an important role on the health care team and are key drivers on the nutritional management of patients. One important nutritional component is the Mother’s Milk Bank of Iowa for providing the best possible care to our infant patients.
Joan Dolezal, RD, LD
Director, Food and Nutrition Services

Dietetic interns at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics have a very rare opportunity to see the inner-workings of a milk bank and to witness first hand the benefits to the infants. The knowledge and experiences the students gain will enable them to take this expertise to their own places of work to further advance the health of young infants.
Laurie Kroymann, MBA, RD, LD
Dietetic Internship Director

I am a native Iowan. I care deeply about our state. Donor human milk makes a difference in the lives of our most vulnerable population. Knowing this, I was driven to establish the Mother’s Milk Bank of Iowa so that all infants in Iowa could have access to this precious and wholesome natural resource.
Jean M. Drulis, BA
Director and Co-founder
Mother’s Milk Bank of Iowa

Human milk is the best food for human babies, especially those born too early or with other medical problems. Human milk improves the premature or ill baby’s chance of full recovery and good health throughout childhood. If milk from the baby’s own mother is not available in sufficient quantity, the next best choice is human milk from a milk bank such as the Mother’s Milk Bank of Iowa.
Edward F. Bell, MD
Professor, Division of Neonatology

Breast milk is more than a food for premature babies, it is powerful medicine that protects these infants. It is also very easy on their tender stomachs and thus allows babies to reach ‘full feeds’ sooner. When moms can’t provide milk for their babies, for whatever reason, milk from healthy donors fills the gap. With few exceptions, donor milk is as good as mom’s own milk in protecting babies from serious illness.

Premature infants are born with a very immature gastrointestinal tract. One of the manifestations of this immaturity is slow emptying of the stomach. So, if you place a small amount of feeding in a premature baby’s stomach (by feeding tube), several hours later you may find that the feeding has not left the stomach. This slow stomach emptying is a big problem when you are trying to feed these infants, and means that you can for some time only feed them small volumes. Now, stomach emptying is better when you feed mother’s milk than when you feed formula. When you feed mother’s milk you reach ‘full-feeds’ sooner than when you feed formula. Reaching full feeds sooner means less need for intravenous nutrition and better growth.
Ekhard E. Ziegler, MD
Professor, Divisions of Pediatric Nutrition and
Neonatology
Associate Medical Director and Co-founder,
Mother’s Milk Bank of Iowa