Traveling With Breastmilk

Hi! I am Chantal Katz, mom of five kids under age eight. As an RN and IBCLC of over 10 years, I have worked with hundreds of families. I find it helpful to meet with pregnant parents before they give birth, so that once baby arrives, they know what to expect. Then, postpartum, we are able to troubleshoot and strategize, based on their individual needs. 

There is no one-size-fits-all approach to breastfeeding. Together we work on achieving your individual goals, whether that is exclusively nursing, exclusively pumping, combo feeding, etc. I specialize in helping busy mothers make schedules (for traveling, going back to work, and everything in between). No two mother-infant dyads are alike and I come from a place of acceptance. I am here to support families and provide them with the guidance they need throughout this exciting (and sometimes scary) chapter of their lives!

The most common question I receive once all the basics are covered (how to nurse, how to pump, scheduling, back to work, etc.) is how does one travel with breastmilk?   Flying with breastmilk does not have to be stressful! You just have to be organized. Over the past 8 years, I feel like I have experienced every permutation of traveling while breastfeeding.

I have flown all over the world while nursing/pumping and my biggest piece of advice is if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. It doesn’t matter if I am flying alone to Singapore for a weeklong trip without my baby, or skiing with my family, these are some of my thoughts:

1. Invest in a good cooler (to be honest, I have several and they serve different purposes depending on the length of my trip). If you are going on a short trip, a PackIt can suffice. For longer trips, I recommend a YETI (but make sure to read the instructions on how to properly freeze it and close it beforehand).

2. Bring your pump, parts, pumping bags, and a sharpie with you. I also recommend a wet-dry bag to hold your dirty pump parts so they don’t wet the rest of your personal items.

3. If given the choice, it is ideal to bring frozen breastmilk with you because it is not technically a liquid while frozen, TSA won’t test it. 

4. If traveling with freshly pumped or thawed breastmilk, do not worry, just plan to spend extra time at security because they will test each bag. You may need to remind the TSA agent not to dip their testing stick into the breastmilk because it will contaminate it; there are other methods they can use.

5. Inform TSA that you are traveling with breastmilk, and they will have you put it in a separate bin for screening. 

6. As long as there are still ice crystals present in frozen breast milk, it is safe to refreeze. Meaning, if you are flying with frozen milk and it has started to thaw, it is still safe to pop it back into the freezer and use at a later date.

7. Of note, you can travel with breastmilk even if you do not have your baby with you. I always recommend putting your milk bags inside of one larger ziplock bag to prevent unfortunate spills (been there!)

I could write an entire book about tips and tricks re: traveling with little ones, pumping on the go, and so much more…. but in the meantime, all of my tried-and-true baby products are listed here. Feel free to reach out if you are looking to speak with a lactation consultant.

Chantal Katz is a registered nurse and international certified lactation consultant (IBCLC). She received her BSN, MSN, and ML from the University of Pennsylvania. She is passionate about helping families achieve their breastfeeding goals, and educating them based on data and experience. Learn more about Chantal (and her go-to Hospital Packing product list) at www.chantalkatz.com