Breastmilk Going Sour Quickly

M.:
I had a similar problem, my breastmilk tasted/smelled soapy and metallic. It was because I had extra lipase in my bm. It's actually pretty common but at the same time not a lot of bfing moms know about this, or even doctors. A good lactation consultant should know about it. Go to the LLL boards and search excessive lipase and you'll find tons of great info.Google it as well. Good thing is that the milk is not really spoiled, some babies won't like the taste but others don't care.
I had a "milk lab" in my kitchen. I saved 1 oz milk samples and tasted it everyday to find out when it started tasting funny:) In order to inactivate the lipase you have to scald the milk before freezing it. I did it for the longest time, until eventually my milk started tasting/smelling fine. Sometimes as the baby grows and milk changes composition the lipase issue resolves.
Good luck!!

I have had this happen every single time I have tried to go on bc- I have five kids- glad to know it isn't just me- my ob treated me like I was crazy when I would tell him about this!

I'm pretty sure breastmilk usually tastes slightly sweet and doesn't have much odor to it when it's fresh. Kellymom is a good resource for breastfeeding moms. According to the site, human milk will taste/smell sour the same way cow milk does if it has gone bad. Here are two links that might be helpful. Best wishes!

http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/lipase-expressedmilk.html
http://www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/milkstorage.html

Was this the first time you had "sampled" your milk? I have heard that breast milk is really sour and disgusting to anyone other than a baby... so it might just be what your milk tastes like. One of my friends threw out a lot of her pumped milk for the same reason and she realized that is just what it tastes like LOL.

Breast milk is sweet and very palatable to babies. This is why a lot of parents have a hard time weaning to formula and cows milk. I don't know who told you it would last 8 days but that isn't accurate. It should last 2 maybe three days. It must be used within 6 hours at room temp. Never re-refrig. feedings. Whatever baby doesn't finish and wont finish within 2 hours needs to be thrown out.

Hi! I have never heard of breast milk tasting sour. A baby tastes just like we do except more sensitive. Breast milk has a light sweet taste. I breastfed for 13 months. I was told by many lactation consultants that bm only lasts 3 or 4 days in the fridge and a few months in the freezer.(dont remember exact on the freezer) also, if your baby drinks some of the bm and u put it back in the fridge or on the counter to use later it MUST be used within 30 minutes. BM is highly digestable and the moment it comes in contact with saliva it starts breaking down. I hope this helps a little bit. I'm sorry you are having difficulties.

I always froze my milk immediately and only thawed out what i needed each D..