Israel's human milk bank tripled activity after October 7, helping feed wartime babies, study finds

A study in Military Medicine details how Israel's National Human Milk Bank in Ramle tripled its activity after October 7, 2023. Over 400 donors supplied milk to 46 healthy babies whose mothers were killed, abducted, wounded, or drafted. About 200 new donors joined. Researchers Prof. Francis Mimouni and Dr. Sharron Bransburg-Zabary reported family anxiety dropped from half to under 25%, and over 80% said the donation helped them cope.

A study published in Military Medicine describes how Israel's National Human Milk Bank, operated by Magen David Adom in Ramle, tripled its activity following the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack. The bank supplied breast milk from over 400 women donors to 46 healthy babies whose mothers were murdered, abducted, wounded, or recruited into the IDF. Around 200 new donors joined the effort. Prof. Francis Mimouni, chairman of the Israel National Council for Pediatrics and Child Health, and Dr. Sharron Bransburg-Zabary, director of the milk bank, led the study. They reported that family anxiety dropped from half at enrollment to under 25% after infants received donated milk, and over 80% of families said the donation helped them cope with the war's consequences. The milk bank used MDA motorcycles to collect milk during missile attacks. Mimouni emphasized that the project's success was driven by motivation and described donor milk as a symbol of solidarity.