An Idaho mother has started selling creams and soaps made from breast milk online to help others deal with the effects of aging.
Britni Eddy, from Rigby, Idaho, started selling her breast milk after her husband accidentally spoiled hundreds of ounces she had pumped and was storing in a freezer.
‘When I was six or seven months postpartum, my husband was reorganizing the garage, and he moved our freezer. He got distracted and didn’t plug the freezer back in, so my entire freezer stash [of breast milk] got ruined,’ Ms Eddy said.
Desperate not to waste it, she had the idea to make it into skincare products and began creating intricate soaps that she says help with aging, stretch marks and dry skin.
Eddy said: ‘The awesome thing about breast milk soap is that you can use breast milk that is expired in your freezer, that you can no longer feed the baby, because it doesn’t lose its benefits for skin if it’s expired.’
After perfecting her recipe, she launched her business, called Mama’s Magic Milk, in August. In addition to turning her own breast milk into beauty products, women can send Ms Eddy their breast milk and she will turn it into soaps, lotions or diaper cream.
Ms Eddy has also teamed up with a local mom who is still nursing her baby and will provide the milk if people who are not lactating want to order.
Britni Eddy, from Rigby, Idaho, with some of the soaps she has made from breast milk
Ms Eddy with her husband and baby daughter. Her business began when Ms Eddy repurposed breast milk her husband had accidentally spoiled by turning off the freezer it was stored in
Buyers can customize their order with added essential oils like lavender or chamomile. They can opt for soap bases, including shea butter and goat’s milk, and choose a shape for the soap, such as an animal, rose or heart
Breast milk is high in fats and is therefore perfect for a creamy soap and it is thought to be soothing for skin conditions such as eczema.
When people place an order and send in their breast milk, they can customize their items with added essential oils like lavender or chamomile.
They can opt for soap bases, including shea butter and goat’s milk, and choose a shape for the soap, such as an animal, rose or heart.
Each soap usually requires between five to six ounces of breast milk, which costs $30 for six bars. The lotion and diaper creams are priced at $15 each.
Ms Eddy told EastIdahoNews.com: ‘It helps with aging, wrinkles, stretch marks, and dry skin. It’s not just for a baby. In a baby, it’s going to help with diaper rash, it’s going to help with eczema, it’s going to help if they have any cuts, and it helps heal those sunburns.’
While she recognizes some people may find it strange, she said: ‘I think people are just uneducated about it. They don’t understand the benefits that come with breast milk as far as skincare and nutrition.’
She said her husband was initially unsure of her breast milk soap, but now he loves it.
Breast milk that has been pumped can last for up to four hours at room temperature, up to four days in the refrigerator and up to a year in a freezer.
If it is not properly stored, bacteria can grow in the breast milk, which can lead to vomiting or diarrhea in a baby.
Ms Eddy said: ‘The awesome thing about breast milk soap is that you can use breast milk that is expired in your freezer, that you can no longer feed the baby, because it doesn’t lose its benefits for skin if it’s expired.’
Ms Eddy has sold in Florida, New York, Arizona and Alabama.
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