Informal Breast Milk Sharing in a Muslim Country: The Frequency, Practice, Risk Perception, and Risk Reduction Strategies Used by Mothers

Abstract

Introduction: Turkey is the first and only Islamic country which has initiated a process to establish a milk bank. However, the effort was abandoned because of religious concerns. Informal breast milk sharing has become a practical alternative to some. Research Aims: To document the religious concerned views and attitudes toward breast milk sharing and to determine risk reduction strategies of mothers in an Islamic country. Materials and Methods: Participants comprised volunteers from relevant forums or members of social media groups on the Internet. The participants (n = 435) were divided into three groups: those who did not share milk (n = 371), donors (n = 48), and receivers (n = 16). A prepared questionnaire was used for each group as a data collection tool. Results: 14.7% of the participants were experienced in informal milk sharing. Seventy-five percent of the recipients and 85.4% of the donors did not enter into a written agreement. Religious rules on milk sharing were reflected in three ways: asking about the infant's gender, limiting the number of sharing parties to 3, and knowing the identity of the donor or recipient. Of the participants, 77.3% believed that it was necessary to establish a milk bank in Turkey. However, 19.5% of the respondents reported that they would not feed their infant with donor milk because of reasons related to the issue of ''milk kinship'' in Islam. Conclusions: Informal milk sharing is a reality and risks similar to those stated in the literature are undertaken. Milk sharing is frequently performed independent of religious concerns and commercial purposes, Comprehensive measures to minimize disease transmission are not routinely implemented.

Wet Nurse or Milk Bank? Evolution in the Model of Human Lactation: New Challenges for the Islamic Population

“…However, they show a positive response to an alternative milk bank that is able to preserve their religious concerns. In the study by Onat and Karakoç [ 22 ], the starting rules would involve knowing the gender of the baby, limiting donors to three, and knowing the identity of the donor and recipient so that “milk kinship” can be safeguarded. Thus, 77.3% of the Turkish participants said that there was a need to establish an HMB in Turkey.…”

“…At present, it highlights the need to adapt the breastfeeding framework, given the reduction in informal milk exchange through the wet nurse, and the difficulties of moving towards a model of milk donation, due to religion reservations. Informal milk donation also runs the risk of disease transmission if certain measures are not taken [ 22 ].…”

“…In addition, currently, a part of the Muslim society affirms that it would accept the implementation of milk banks as long as religious reservations are maintained. For example, as the women in the study by Onat and Karakoç [ 22 ] indicate, knowing the sex of the baby, limiting the donation to a maximum of three babies (to reduce the risk of marriage when a relationship already exists), and knowing the identity of the donor and recipient.…”

“…However, there are currently no milk banks in Islamic countries. Recently, a process was started in Turkey, but it was abandoned due to its incompatibility with the Qur’anic regulation and the socio-cultural beliefs of the population [ 20 , 21 , 22 ].…”

Islamic Beliefs About Milk Kinship and Donor Human Milk in the United States

“…Restrictions on milk kinship may be based on concern for potential transmission of genetic material in breast milk 3,17,18 In their article, "Milk Kinship Hypothesis in Light of Epigenetic Knowledge," Ozkan et al 18 postulate that substances affecting epigenetic regulation can be passed down through breastfeeding. He states breast milk contains genetic material, such as microRNAs and stem cells, which can modify expression of certain genes leading to consanguinity and increased genetic disease.…”