why do I have to give whole milk to my toddler?

[Clisby Williams]

Melissa wrote:

>Hello,
>
>I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
>whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
>right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
>like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
>to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
>get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
>she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?
>
>

Fat, protein, and calcium. And yes, you can get them from other
sources. If your child
isn't dairy intolerant/sensitive, you can get them from other milk
products, like yogurt
and cheese. My 17-month-old does still nurse, but only 3-4 times in a
24-hour period,
and I doubt seriously he's getting 16 oz. from me. (I could be wrong,
of course.) He won't
drink plain cow's milk, although he likes it with a little chocolate
syrup - I would imagine
anything that makes it a little sweeter would make it more palatable to
a child. (I give
him only a few ounces of this a few times a week, because I don't want
him to get
in the habit of wanting sweet drinks all the time. I don't worry about
nutrients, though,
because he eats anything that isn't nailed down, including other dairy
products.

Clisby

Clisby

[Melissa]

Hello,

I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?

[ºFree~Spiritº]

On Fri, 11 Jul 2003 19:01:21 GMT, Melissa > wrotc:

>Hello,
>
>I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
>whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
>right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
>like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
>to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
>get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
>she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?

You are right - its the fat and calcium. And whole milk is the easiest way to
get it I guess. If she does not like milk you always could modify the taste
(throw in a banana and run it through the blender - or strawberries etc.) If not
make sure she gets what she needs from other sources. As there are plenty of
lactose intolerant people I am sure there are some diets out there where you can
get all the nutrients she needs into her.

I kept track to make sure they get a variety of stuff by making things available
)still do) amd not making other "Bad" things available. But otherwise let them
choose what to eat.


Free Spirit
DD(7) DS(10)

[Astromum]

Melissa wrote:
> Hello,
>
> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
> whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
> right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
> like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
> to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
> get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
> she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?

I just asked a similar question on mkb, you might want to check out some
of the answers, but what I got from there it is indeed the fat and calcium.
The most important fat is the Omega-3, which is also plentyful in fish.
I'd think there are many different ways to make sure your child has a
balanced diet, and it is silly to measure a healthy diet with just the
amount of whole milk a child consumes. But they have to set a standard
somewhere, so you can just say 'yes' and do whatever you think is best.

--
-- Ilse
mom to Olaf (07/15/2002)
TTC #2
"What's the use of brains if you are a girl?"
Aletta Jacobs, first Dutch woman to receive a PhD

[She's A Goddess]

"Melissa" > wrote in message
s.com...
> Hello,
>
> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
> whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
> right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
> like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
> to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
> get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
> she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?

I'd change ped's. You are correct - it is the easy availabilty of fat and
calcium (as well as various other vitamins and nutrients) that makes whole
milk such a "good thing". My DD was intolerant to cow's milk proteins as a
nursing infant and whenever we attempted to give them to her as a baby and
toddler until recently. At 22 months she is still nursing but I've recently
had a new baby. As my milk started to change to colostrum in pregnancy I
asked my ped about the "need" for milk and he laughed at me. Told me to
make sure she got some good fatty foods and to label watch for calcium. If
I felt she wasn't getting enough calcium he said to give her a Tums or two
per day which I did. If I felt she wasn't getting enough other vitamins he
said to feel free to give her a kids multi-vit. I bought a bottle but she's
got a good diet so she only gets one occassionally and she thinks of it as a
treat. Honestly, I would find another pediatrician who doesn't push
something on you without giving you a *very* good reason but some may feel
thats going too far in an instance like this.

Rhiannon
Madison Sophia - 9/6/01
Owen Grady - 6/23/03

[Sharon Bailey Glasco]

Melissa > wrote in message >...
> Hello,
>
> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
> whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
> right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
> like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
> to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
> get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
> she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?


Hi Melissa,

My DS is allergic to dairy, so he has never had milk or other dairy
products. You are right - there are other ways to get fat and calcium
in their diets. I think alot of people like milk because it is easy
and reliable, and of course, their kids like it. But for children who
either don't like milk, or can't drink milk (and I think the two are
related), you have to be more creative.

I have always found the fat intake a non-issue. My son loves meat of
any kind, will eat pasta/bread with olive oil drizzled on it, adores
fattier fish like salmon, and some of the other "non-traditional"
fats, like avocados. He also is a french fry fiend, and loves potato
chips, tortilla chips, etc. We have always tried to push the healthy
heart fats first, and he has always been accomodating, but we also let
him enjoy an occasional treat of the "bad" fats as well. Of course,
if your DD will eat other dairy, like cheese or yogurt, that is a good
source of both calcium and fat.

The calcium issue was much trickier for us, because of the dairy
allergy. If your daughter will eat other dairy, again like cheese, or
yogurt, then I would push these. Calcium fortified OJ is a really
good source; my DS has 6 ounces in the morning with his breakfast.
Other non-dairy sources include chickpeas (will she eat hummus - my DS
loves hummus with crackers), spinach, broccoli, canned salmon, refried
beans, tofu, dried apricots, dried beans.

DS is now a healthy and very active three year old, at the top of the
charts in both weight and height, without ever consuming milk. This
of course doesn't stop my MIL from asking every time she calls, "Has
he started drinking milk yet?" - this despite the fact that she knows
he is allergic! :) I guess old habits die hard!

HTH,

Sharon
Mom to James 6.2.00
EDD #2 5 December

[H Schinske]

Melissa wrote:

> I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
>whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
>right? Can they not get this from other sources?

Of course. Milk is just a convenient nutritional package. I've compared it
before to people saying "Oh, if you live in Minnesota you MUST have a winter
coat." Well, that isn't entirely true. You could get by with long underwear,
layers of sweaters, and a waterproof jacket on top. It isn't the way most
people would choose to do it, but if you were going to live in Minnesota for
only one winter, and you already owned lots of things to layer and you didn't
want to buy a big expensive winter coat, you could get by fine.

In any case cow's milk doesn't have the really good fatty acids anyway.

--Helen

[toto]

On Fri, 11 Jul 2003 17:13:58 -0700, "Sue"
> wrote:

>You don't have to give her milk. Yes, whole milk given to toddlers until
>about age two (my girls are 10, 6 and 8 and still drink whole milk) because
>of the calcium and fat that is needed for brain growth. Will your daughter
>drink milk if you make it chocolate? But, you don't have to give her milk
>and can certainly find other things to fill in for the milk. If you want to
>try other sources, that's fine, but you will have to make sure that it is in
>the recommended amount needed for your daughter's age group. I doubt that
>your daughter could eat a whole cup of broccoli to get the recommended
>amount, but you can try different things throughout the day and hopefully
>that will be enough.
>--
>Sue
>mom to three girls

Interestingly, considering Barbara's asthma attack, I just found this
new study. I can't vouch for it because I haven't read the full text
of the study itself, but it seems to say that children who drink whole
milk and use butter actually have a reduced chance of developing
asthma later on.

I agree, btw, that you don't have to give a child who dislikes milk,
milk to drink. I suspect that there are ways of getting the fats and
calcium children need other than milk.

http://www.asthma.org.uk/news/news81.php

Full-cream milk, butter and brown bread can help to reduce
the risk of asthma symptoms in young children, according to
new research. A study of 2,978 children, born within six months
of each other, followed their progress between the ages of two
to three, collecting and analysing data on their food intake and
asthma symptoms.

Researchers found that the children who consumed full-cream
milk and butter every day as part of their diet were less likely to
have asthma symptoms than those who ate it less frequently.
Brown bread was also found to be associated with lower rates
of asthma and wheeze when eaten every day.

National Asthma Campaign experts have welcomed the study
but cautioned that links between diet and asthma are still
largely unknown.

The study, carried out in the Netherlands, also looked at other
foods, including semi-skimmed milk, dairy products such as
yoghurt and chocolate milk, white bread, margarine, cheese,
fruit and vegetables. Levels of asthma prevalence were split
into three categories: those who had experienced asthma
symptoms at some point in their lives; those who had recently
experienced symptoms; and those who had recently experienced
wheeze. Full-fat milk and butter consistently featured more
regularly in the diets of children who had fewer symptoms in
each of these categories.

Professor Martyn Partridge, the National Asthma Campaign's
chief medical adviser, commented: 'This is an interesting study
showing an association between eating brown bread and milk
products and a lower prevalence of asthma and wheezing.
Whether the association is real and causally related or whether
it reflects some other shared lifestyle change is not clear but it
is one of a large number of recent studies suggesting
associations between nutrition and lung health.'

The researchers admit that lifestyle could have played a part in
the findings. For example, families who eat brown bread rather
than white may have healthier habits that were not taken into
consideration in the study, which could be responsible for
reducing the risk of asthma.

However, previously researchers have found correlations
between consumption of full cream milk and low incidence of
asthma symptoms in young children. Studies have also
suggested that the increase of asthma in the western world may
be due to a greater intake of polyunsaturated fats in our diets.
Milk and butter are both high in saturated fat.

Professor Partridge added: 'The increasing prevalence of asthma
almost certainly reflects multiple lifestyle changes over the last
three decades. Nutrition may be one such change, but there is
too little data yet to enable us to give concrete dietary advice as
to how to eat to avoid asthma.'

Anne Pearson, a nurse on the Campaign's Asthma Helpline,
agreed: 'Foods generally are not common triggers for asthma.
It's very important that children have a well balanced diet, and
dairy products play an important role in this as they are a vital
source of calcium, riboflavin, protein and vitamins A and B12.

'There's a common myth that drinking milk produces mucus
in the airways,' she added, 'but this is not the case: it just
thickens the saliva temporarily. If you suspect that food is
causing a problem for your child, you should keep a food
and symptom diary for a period of time, then take it to your
GP.'


--
Dorothy

There is no sound, no cry in all the world
that can be heard unless someone listens ..
Outer Limits

[Sue]

You don't have to give her milk. Yes, whole milk given to toddlers until
about age two (my girls are 10, 6 and 8 and still drink whole milk) because
of the calcium and fat that is needed for brain growth. Will your daughter
drink milk if you make it chocolate? But, you don't have to give her milk
and can certainly find other things to fill in for the milk. If you want to
try other sources, that's fine, but you will have to make sure that it is in
the recommended amount needed for your daughter's age group. I doubt that
your daughter could eat a whole cup of broccoli to get the recommended
amount, but you can try different things throughout the day and hopefully
that will be enough.
--
Sue
mom to three girls

Melissa > wrote in message
s.com...
> Hello,
>
> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
> whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
> right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
> like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
> to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
> get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
> she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?

[HollyLewis]

> I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
>whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
>right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
>like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
>to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
>get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
>she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?

You are absolutely correct.

I *am* still breastfeeding, and DS eats lots of cheese. My ped suggested, in
view of those facts, that we give DS 2% milk rather than whole milk. <shrug>
Clearly it's a judgment call. Fortunately, DS isn't picky. We do give him
mostly 2% but sometimes he wants to drink *my* nonfat milk, and if whole or 1%
is what's available in a given situation, he'll drink that too.

And I've certainly never been advised of any particular number of ounces that a
child should drink. Does your doctor also advise that your daughter should
consume exactly so many grams of bananas a day? I mean, it's ridiculous.

It can be a little difficult, though far from impossible, to get enough calcium
from non-dairy sources. If your daughter likes cheese, though, that'll do it.
Or yogurt.

Holly
Mom to Camden, 2 yrs

[Melissa]

Thanks so much to everyone who replied! I appreciate it!

[Stephanie and Tim]

"Melissa" > wrote in message
s.com...
> Hello,
>
> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand this
> whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's need,
> right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child does not
> like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of other ways
> to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every pedi visit I
> get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep getting told
> she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?


I wonder if the three; fat, protein and calcium, aren't difficult to get
into toddlers who eat so little. So the fact that milk packs the big three
gives it an edge in the pediatrician's office. Like instead of examining a
record of the child's overall diet, they just tell you to have your toddler
drink a lot of milk.

Just a thought.

S

[llama mama]

"Stephanie and Tim" > wrote in
:

>
> "Melissa" > wrote in message
> s.com...
>> Hello,
>>
>> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand
>> this whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's
>> need, right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child
>> does not like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of
>> other ways to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every
>> pedi visit I get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep
>> getting told she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?
>
>
> I wonder if the three; fat, protein and calcium, aren't difficult to
> get into toddlers who eat so little. So the fact that milk packs the
> big three gives it an edge in the pediatrician's office. Like instead
> of examining a record of the child's overall diet, they just tell you
> to have your toddler drink a lot of milk.

my 35 month old doesn't like cow's milk, however he *loves* whole milk
yogurt, plain or flavored. he also likes ice cream & yogurt/fruit
smoothies and cheese. i'm pretty sure that takes care of the fat &
calcium intake without pushing something he doesn't like on him.

lee
--
It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate
between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital
connection between them. -Leo Buscaglia, author (1924-1998)

[Stephanie and Tim]

"llama mama" > wrote in message
. ..
> "Stephanie and Tim" > wrote in
> :
>
> >
> > "Melissa" > wrote in message
> > s.com...
> >> Hello,
> >>
> >> I am delurking. I have a 16 month old girl, and don't understand
> >> this whole milk "push". It is the fat and calcium that the toddler's
> >> need, right? Can they not get this from other sources? My child
> >> does not like milk. I no longer breastfeed, but there are plently of
> >> other ways to get fat and calcium into her diet, aren't there? Every
> >> pedi visit I get asked how much whole milk is she getting, and I keep
> >> getting told she needs 16 ounces. Any thoughts on this?
> >
> >
> > I wonder if the three; fat, protein and calcium, aren't difficult to
> > get into toddlers who eat so little. So the fact that milk packs the
> > big three gives it an edge in the pediatrician's office. Like instead
> > of examining a record of the child's overall diet, they just tell you
> > to have your toddler drink a lot of milk.
>
> my 35 month old doesn't like cow's milk, however he *loves* whole milk
> yogurt, plain or flavored. he also likes ice cream & yogurt/fruit
> smoothies and cheese. i'm pretty sure that takes care of the fat &
> calcium intake without pushing something he doesn't like on him.
>
> lee
> --
> It is paradoxical that many educators and parents still differentiate
> between a time for learning and a time for play without seeing the vital
> connection between them. -Leo Buscaglia, author (1924-1998)

My son likes milk fine. But even if he doesn't, I would not worry. Like you,
he eats plenty of dairy stuff. I was thinking from the point of view of the
ped office.

S

[==Daye==]

On Fri, 11 Jul 2003 19:01:21 GMT, Melissa
> wrote:

> Any thoughts on this?

Have you tried offering her chocolate milk. My DD will NOT drink
plain milk. She doesn't like it. We give her Milo and milk.
Milo has vitamins and minerals as well as the chocolate.
Ovalatine (sp?) also has vitamins and minerals in it.

Drinking chocolate milk isn't ideal, but she only gets it once a
day. She eats cheese and yogurt, so I don't worry about the
whole 16 oz. a day. I know she is getting enough.

--
==Daye==
Momma to Jayan
#2 EDD 11 Jan 2004
E-mail: brendana AT labyrinth DOT net DOT au