exposure through drinking breastmilk

[sekhar69]

Hi,
Many Thanks for this extremely helpful forum.
My Question:
Wanted to ask if there is any HIV or any other STD risk if an adult male drinks ( suckles from nipples) a lot of breastmilk from a hiv positive female for a day or two. By lot I mean maybe the quantity drunk for few hours.
I am not aware of any cuts or bruises inside my mouth but sometimes I do have sores, would that matter?
Has there been any documented cases of HIV through breast milk alone?
Will there be any difference if the milk is first expressed and then drunk from a bottle rather than directly suckled from the nipples?
Please help.
Thanks.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Sore in the mouth would not change my opinion or advice.  The virus would die while breast milk was stored.  EWH

[sekhar69]

Thanks for your quick reply. Just wanted to know if sores in mouth would matter. I do have some canker sores and also it is not always possible to know whether the sores are bleeding or not. Would that be an issue?
Also.. Storing breast milk in a bottle is no different for an adult because the enzymes of mouth / stomach would kill the virus anyway.. Am i correct please?
Thanks.

[Edward W Hook, MD]

Welcome to the Forum.  In newborn infants HIV can be transmitted by ingestion of breast milk however this is not a concern in adults.  In babies the lining of the stomach is different with less stomach acid and other chemicals which kill HIV.  As a result, in the first few weeks after birth, a baby can become infected from swallowing an infected person breast milk.  On the other hand, in adults this is not a problem.  The lining of the mouth and stomach, as well as the enzymes and other chemicals which help to digest food in adults kill HIV.  thus there was no risk for ingestion of a woman's breast milk, IF she was infected.

Ingestion of stored breast milk would not have live virus in it.  The HIV virus dies very quickly once outside the body, thus if the breast milk were put in a bottle and stored it would not survive.

I hope you find my comments helpful. EWH