7 mo. ago • 84%

Would you drink breast milk if it was commercially available?

This question popped into my head after an ADHD moment of deconstructing the concept that humans willingly drink cow milk on an industrial scale. Would you drink milk if it was human women pumping the milk themselves?

97 comments

One thing I've heard mentioned is that the vegan restriction on animal milk is actually about consent, which humans can give (especially when paid), so human milk can be vegan. That opens up the possibility of vegan cheese, butter, etc. but as true dairy products. Seems like an untapped niche to me.

66
- The internet has taught me that human breast milk doesn't make good cheese. Something about the protein content. Either too high or not high enough.
  
  27
  
  Iirc it's not enough. Human milk is pretty lean on the spectrum of fat content.
  
  13
- That opens up the possibility of vegan cheese, butter, etc. but as true dairy products.
  
  There actually are vegan dairy-ish products out there. Several startups have inserted the gene for casein (the main protein in milk) into yeast. So you just harvest the casein, add a little bit of some sort of fat and sugar and you have something that's 99% the same as milk, and can be used in the same sorts of processes.
  
  The only product that I've actually tried was some Brave Robot ice cream, which was well... ice cream.
  
  20
  
  Yeah but did the yeast consent to that?
  
  19
- I believe it depends on the sub-type of Veganism. Some forms of it are more strict and don't allow for as much if any leeway.
  
  8
- The other thing about it is that mammals, with rare exceptions, have to have had a baby before they produce milk, and of course since dairy farmers want to make a profit, they just force pregnancy on their animals and take their babies away to bring about a "surplus" of milk for them to sell. So if this ends up happening with people, I want no part of it.
  
  4
You can buy breast milk in America.

I would rather get it straight from the jugs instead of out of a jug.

66
- I'm ngl I completely forgot milk banks existed but I was also meaning as more of a regular item in the dairy section of whatever grocer you frequent
  
  22
  
  Wow, look at the milk banks on her
  
  46
  
  Imagine being like "hey I saw Mary today, got her milk to make a cake for tonight, it's always a great one"
  
  7
- I'm picturing women in every work kitchen with their tits out and some tap-like contraption attached to each breast, just sitting there idling next to the coffee machine.
  
  6
  
  Like Mad Max: Fury Road.
  
  4
  
  Office wet nurse could be a post-boobie sexualization side gig. Glorious or dystopian future, you decide.
  
  1
I would, but I also think this would turn bad as soon as this was a big commercially available thing.The people pumping would probably be exploited to the point their kids actually needing the milk would get less.

31
- Just like dairy.
  
  21
  
  But without human veal.
  
  6
- Wet-nursing is a thing. Most probably, they'll use hormones to induce lactation in willing women. The question is output.
  
  3
No, I'll keep on getting mine from the fridge at work.

30
- The funniest part is that post is what started the thought process that lead to this question.
  
  17
- How do you milk a fridge?
  
  15
- Do you work at Blizzard?
  
  1
  
  Bobby said I can neither confirm nor deny that
  
  2
I've drank person milk from two different people. It's pretty thin and watery, but sweeter than cow's milk. On the whole I don't feel like I'm missing anything by not having more of it.

20
- Calling it person milk is technically correct but boy oh boy does it make me uncomfortable.
  
  7
It is for sale commercially. Hella expensive! $107 for 50 ml.

https://www.innov-research.com/products/single-donor-human-breast-milk

Now you can get it from private individuals for less - a buck or two per ounce, plus overnight shipping. But there are no food safety guarantees. You have no idea who the donor is, what kind of diet they have (may be an issue if you have food or drug allergies), or their health. That's why it's not recommended by the FDA.

17
Nah. I switched from cow milk to plant milk a couple years ago and while it wasn’t awesome at first, once I discovered oat milk my troubles were over. It’s so damn good. I don’t see how human milk would be an improvement.

15
I assumed the only reason we don't already is because of the ethical issues with subjecting human women to the practices that make bovine milk economical.

13
All milk is breast milk.

12
- TIL: Almonds have breasts
  
  8
  
  Almond milk isn't milk.
  
  2
- See this is one of my biggest issues with Lemmy. The pedantry.
  
  I don't know any person irl who wouldn't know exactly what I mean when I say breast milk.
  
  Because no one refers to any other milk as breast milk.
  
  4
  
  You know what? The four (4) of you are right. The crying baby picture was inappropriate. Maybe this one is better?
  
  1
  
  -3
- I have nipples Greg, can you milk me?
  
  2
Maybe if it had a sexy mascot or something

10
Well, idk about buying but I'll start selling

10
all milk comes from breasts

edit: oh, human breasts. no, as i've heard it tastes gross.

10
- It tastes like 1% with added sugar.
  
  8
  
  I think the best description was it tastes like the milk from a bowl of honey nut Cheerios. It was very accurate to me.
  
  9
- That's a fair point lol
  
  But as far as I'm aware when referring to non human breasts we rarely use that word.
  
  Mammary glands, udders, and nipples are the three that pop into my head when thinking about animal titties. Which I'm realizing I'm doing a little too much of recently lmao
  
  6
  
  i suppose. i don't think about them much.
  
  -2
- That depends on how you define breasts. From Wikipedia:
  
  The platypus' mammary glands lack teats, with milk released through pores in the skin. The milk pools in grooves on the mother's abdomen, allowing the young to lap it up.
  
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platypus
  
  4
  
  Someone else already beat you to this
  
  0
- It's not great, but that's true of raw milk in general IME.
  
  2
  
  That’s the other thing: raw. I like the science behind pasteurization. I trust it.
  
  Edit: I also find homogenization to be convenient
  
  3
- Nah it tastes fine. Too sweet for pouring over cereal though.
  
  2
  
  Ehhh…
  
  1
Having tasted breast milk as an adult: Nah. Unless I get to have it directly from the titty, it's not something I would choose to drink.

9
- Having had it straight from the source, I have to agree. The method of delivery really defines the experience. I'm not likely to buy a jug of it, but I'd pay $3.69 for a titty in my mouth.
  
  10
  
  and how exactly did that happen
  
  2
So many issues here... Is the harvesting consensual? Are children being deprived?

9
- I mean I picture it like working at a factory. Clock in and start pumping. Also I picture it like certain dairy farms with how they wait for the calf to be fully weened before harvesting the rest, so children wouldn't be being deprived.
  
  Plus if they were being deprived finding more breast milk wouldn't exactly be hard ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯
  
  6
  
  I think the primary concern would be women giving too much milk at work to meet quotas, followed by the risk of women giving too much to make money, not leaving enough for their own children. But breast milk will continue to be produced as long as it's withdrawn, so there should be an ethical way to continue it.
  
  4
I tasted it when my wife was pregnant. Not disgusting, but not something I'd go out of my way for.

9
Probably not, I don't even drink cows milk any more. Not because I'm vegan or anything like that, just purely for practical reasons. Cow milk goes off at the drop of a hat but I always manage to get through all my oat milk or almond milk without it turning.

9
- Seriously, cows milk even pasteurized goes bad way too quickly since I only use it for coffee or cereal.
  
  5
I wouldn't buy it, but if that industry needs people to help with the milking part I might be available.

9
I don't see an issue with it, aside from the fact that it would almost certainly be ridiculously expensive. It's likely more hygienic than cow or goat milk, and you know that the people doing it would be doing so at least as consensually as anyone does any labor in a capitalist society.

8
Nope. If you were to do something useful to it, though - like turning it into yoghurt or cheese - I might give it a try.

8
I'd certainly try it

6
- Yeah I'd try it once. I mean I'm sure I accidentally tasted it when my wife was lactating but I never took a big swig.
  
  2
- Imagine lightly salty cereal milk. It's not bad really.
  
  1
No. It’s not good for your health, as an adult. It also tastes salty. I had to pump breast milk from myself years ago, after each of my two children were born. Not only is it a pain to pump breast milk, but it doesn’t taste very good. I sampled some of it from the medela graduated cylinders I used for storing my milk. My son was having stomach problems and my husband and I were going back and forth about the causes of it. Maybe it was the bottles, maybe they’re shaped wrong, maybe it’s the formula I’m supplementing with because I’m not able to pump as much as I would like to since I work, or maybe it was because breast milk tastes bad. Yes, that last argument was what led me to say that my breast milk was not worse than the Nutramigen formula for newborns with stomach issues. I tasted the milk and the formula. Breast milk has a saltier taste.

6
- Permanently Deleted
  
  8
Dunno. What's it taste like?

5
- It's slightly thinner than cow milk but with a sweeter flavor. Like milk from a cereal bowl but as I said thinner.
  
  7
  
  And how do you know that, ThatWeirdGuy ?
  
  5
For the novelty. Especially if it comes from someone who is on dilaudid

5
- What is that and what does it do?
  
  2
  
  Hydromorphone https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydromorphone
  
  It's the bees' knees
  
  2
Theres a lot of old anecdotal discussions about breast milk being good for bodybuilders/weightlifters despite no scientific evidence so Id be very keen to see a large scientific study on that. If you could manufacture it on an industrial scale Id probably drink it, you could never ethically collect it from human women on an industrial scale and pumping it themselves would be a definite nope.

4
I prefer a titties to table milk

4
3
No I don't use any sort of milk and I'm not about to start.

3
- May I ask why?
  
  3
No. I don't think many people would unless they had some kind of fetish.

3
I tried it before after becoming a parent: It's not very good, so no.

3
I stopped drinking milk in my twenties.

3
Gonna go with no?

2
I didn't drink regular milk so no

2
Isn't all milk, breast milk?

I'm not taking about the make-believe mixes.

1
ITT: All grown men drinking titty milk.

1
The milk producer would have to be on a pretty clean diet for it to taste any good. Given that, and them being easy on the eyes, I'd rather have it straight from the source.

-3

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