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Parenting

09th Sep 2018

This viral photo of breast milk shows how magical women’s bodies are

A woman's milk can literally change depending on her baby's needs.

Anna O'Rourke

There’s a reason it’s called liquid gold.

You don’t need to tell us twice that our bodies can do some pretty amazing things, but a viral photo of a woman’s breast milk is proving just how brilliant they are, especially when it comes to feeding our little ones.

Ashlee Chase shared this image of two bags of her breast milk, produced three days apart, on Facebook.

The top bag contains breast milk from when her seven-month-old son Eliott was healthy, while the bottom bag contains more yellow-coloured milk that she produced when he became sick with a fever and comfort-nursed throughout the night.

Incredibly, this was her body’s way of helping the baby to get back to full health.

White blood cells known as leukocytes, which help to protect against infection “increase dramatically in a woman’s milk supply when her baby is sick,” according to Romper.

Ashlee’s doctor confirmed that this was what happened to her – she produced milk with more fat and antibodies to help her son fend off illness.

Elliot’s seven-year-old sister was sick with a strep throat but he managed to avoid catching it.

“The illness knocked my 7-year-old out for a week, but the baby only got a runny nose and a slight fever the night before I noticed the yellow,” Ashlee said.

Women’s health expert Jennifer Wider explained to Yahoo Lifestyle how it works.

“The baby’s saliva goes back into the breast and then the breast manufactures special milk to protect the baby,” she said.

“This is one of nature’s beautiful tricks to protect the offspring and to keep the population healthy and growing.”