To guarantee a better quality of life for newborns, the Human Milk Bank (BLH) of Doctor Ernesto Guevara de la Serna General Teaching Provincial Hospital promotes the collection of food, with the participation of donor mothers and health personnel trained in this procedure.

Las Tunas, Cuba.- Since 2001 this bank has been operating, attached to the Neonatology ward, and it mainly benefits newborns in need of mother's milk, exclusively up to 6 months of age, said nurse Teresa Ortiz Aguilar, mother-child specialist.

The collection is carried out under strict compliance with sanitary norms and cold chains, with the use of means for storage on the premises; a procedure extended to the eight municipalities emphasized by Ortiz Aguilar, who has been linked to the Neonatology specialty for 42 years.

The purpose is to increase the amount of milk stored in the bank, with high-quality standards, whose donors must meet requirements such as not suffering from infectious diseases - such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) - or a specific clinical situation, she said.

The provincial BLH benefits pre-term babies, twins, those with low birth weight, those who have undergone surgery, children of mothers with HIV, and those critically ill or admitted to the intensive care unit who are unable to breastfeed.

According to the specialist, work is done from birth so that exclusive breastfeeding begins in the first minutes, and health promotion actions are also carried out with pregnant women so that they are aware of the importance of this feeding, which is internationally promoted by the World Health Organization.

Research agrees that breastfeeding contributes to the brain development of babies and their growth, and limits the risks of disorders such as diabetes, childhood obesity, and anemia; in addition, breast milk contains protective agents and cells that fight infections, while it provides the mother with protection against breast and ovarian cancer.