Lipase

This is a word I had never heard of. It was really frustrating to go through the work of pumping, freezing, washing all the parts and find out my milk was sour! When I had the problem of having a sour smell to my already frozen breastmilk, one lactation consultant knew what was going on, while another didn't.

Spoiled breastmilk is called "Lipase." It is when thawed milk tastes and smells sour.

There is something you can do to prevent lipase. You just need to scald your milk before freezing it.

When do you scald milk?

When it is fresh; before you freeze it.

How do you scald milk?

To scald milk: Place milk in a heavy-bottomed pan over low heat. Stir occasionally until the milk is just hot with steam and small bubbles appearing around the edges. Do not boil.

I used a double boiler. I put water in the outside pan, and my milk in the inner, smaller pan. I just warmed it up ever so slowly until small bubbles appeared around the edges. You are then done.

Does scalding break down the nutrients in milk?

Yes, but not anymore than freezing does.