Mom Donates Over 400 Gallons of Breast Milk, Sets Unofficial World Record

Elizabeth Anderson-Sierra of Beaverton, Oregon spent 700 days—a total of 5,000 hours—pumping, washing, packing and doing other milk-related activities. And all that hard work has paid off big time: The military vet and mother of two donated 53,535 ounces of breast milk to a milk bank, surpassing the current Guinness World Record of 53,081 ounces of donated breast milk.

“Goal reached,” she announced in an Instagram post. “I. Am. Exhausted.” Um, yeah!

Anderson-Sierra has hyperlactation syndrome, aka an overabundant milk supply. A longtime blood donor, she’s always done what she could for those in need—but when she got pregnant for the first time, she had to find another way to contribute. And she did: Breast milk donation is now her full time job. She has company donations and sponsors supporting her to help cover expenses, and she sends her donations to milk banks as well as individual local families.

Of the 418 gallons of breast milk Anderson-Sierra is donating, 2,500 ounces went to Prolacta Bioscience in California to help micro preemies, 800 ounces were sent to Puerto Rico, and 2,000 ounces were given to two local families. “My freezer has breathing room again and I have less anxiety about running out of room for a few weeks,” she wrote.

Beating the Guinness World Record was initially a joke between Anderson-Sierra and her husband, but when she realized it was something she could actually achieve, it became a personal goal. To get into the official records, she’ll request her donation total from the milk bank, but since she’s still in the process of pumping and donating, she’s putting that off for now.

If you’re considering donating breast milk, formal milk banking services like Human Milk Banking Association of North America exist to properly screen and store breast milk. The FDA is hesitant to condone milk sharing, since milk that hasn’t been carefully screened, collected or stored can pose health risks to baby, potentially spreading diseases like tuberculosis, HIV and hepatitis-associated antigens. Luckily, more tools are becoming available to address this concern—there’s even an app for that in development.

Please note: The Bump and the materials and information it contains are not intended to, and do not constitute, medical or other health advice or diagnosis and should not be used as such. You should always consult with a qualified physician or health professional about your specific circumstances.