So my pedi said we could start introducing whole cows milk closer to 11 months. LO eats oatmeal with whipping cream mixed in, or milk, or half and half. Eats yogurt no problem. I mix in a ton of dairy as I'm pushing as much fat as she will eat (she's skinny)
What's the deal with cows milk?? How is it inferior to formula? I read that in Canada peds offer it at 9 months. Is this true? Any Canadian bees want to chime in? I'm ok with waiting til 11 or 12 months I just want to feel ok doing so
eggplant / 11861 posts
We gave it to her right at 12 months! I think because it has less iron and other nutrients!
I could be wrong!
DD took right to it!
I think they do offer it younger in Canada
@oliviaoblivia?!?!?
cantaloupe / 6131 posts
My son had no issues with dairy food products so I offered whole milk at 11.5 months and he drank it without any issues but got awful diarrhea and this terrible diaper rash and it kept happening so we switched to toddler formula for a month. We transitioned again to milk after that and he had zero issues. So I guess we switched around 13 months?
nectarine / 2987 posts
It's different from formula because it's a beverage, not a source of balanced, complete nutrition. So if your child is getting most calories from solids and has a wide range of foods then milk can be a good source of fat which is so vital for toddler brain development. But most kids aren't eating a wide, balanced variety and getting most calories from solids until close to a year, which is why they need formula or breastmilk until at least then. DS couldn't do milk at all so as we decreased nursing and formula we increased water and other fat sources.
persimmon / 1363 posts
@Littlebit7: they just changed the recommendation from 12 months to 9 months, between my 2.5 year old and my 9 month old. I started my 2.5 year old on milk at 12 months and my 9 month old a week shy of 9 months because she was starting in daycare and I didn't want to pump. So far no issues!
hostess / wonderful grape / 20803 posts
With DS2 I think around 11 months (maybe 11.5) but I was still nursing 4x a day then. With DS1 it was after 12 months and we went very slowly due to dairy intolerance.
nectarine / 2243 posts
@MrsSRS: interesting. Thanks for the explanation really helpful!!
@Rockies11: is this in Canada? Interesting for 9 months that's what I had read
Any European bees want to chime in??
nectarine / 2987 posts
@Littlebit7: oh good. I was hoping it didn't come across as obnoxious!
kiwi / 556 posts
@Rockies11: How much of her food intake is cows milk versus solids? I am intrigued by this 9 month idea! Formula is so expensive- but like others have said, I thought cows milk couldn't replace breast milk/formula that early.
grapefruit / 4418 posts
3 weeks before her 1 year appt per less recommendation. She wanted us to start before her visit in case there were any issues or allergies. I stopped pumping at a year but she still nursed often at that point when we were together.
persimmon / 1363 posts
@Littlebit7: yup, Canada. It's the new feeding guidelines here.
@ldh112: I should have expanded on that a bit. She's in daycare 4 days a week, 8-9 hours a day. She eats A LOT of solids so I was comfortable that she was at least getting enough sustenance over the time that she's in daycare. I breastfeed her on demand on my days off and she breastfeeds a lot still overnight. I wouldn't have tried it with my older girl because she was very slow to get into solids, but with my younger I felt like it would be worth a shot since she eats more than my two year old does now. In Canada no one really pumps at work because mat leaves are so long, so I just didn't want to get into it with work. It's been working really well so far - she is eating a lot of solids, drinking milk, and she's happy as a clam all day long. And she's a big girl with no signs of slowing down growth
honeydew / 7622 posts
My American naturopath said we can start as an addition to her diet, not as a replacement to nursing or formula. She's 10.5 months. As soon as she kicks this cold we are going to start giving it to her, just a couple oz a day.
nectarine / 2210 posts
I started adding an once or so into her bottles of pumped milk around 10 months.
cantaloupe / 6791 posts
I started mixing it into his BM bottles when he turned 11 months. By the time he was one, he was drinking all cows milk in bottles, in addition to nursing when we were together.
persimmon / 1328 posts
I'm in England and as far as I know they still reccomend 12 months here! We switched DS over gradually right around his first birthday.
pomegranate / 3601 posts
I'm in Germany and while it is recommended to start offering milk with the introduction of solids, so around 6 months, it is in minimal amounts and to be used to mix baby oatmeal in combination with water. Full on drinking cows' milk at 11-12 months.
I started offering my DS cows' milk at 12 months and my DD at a little before 11 months.
pineapple / 12566 posts
@Pumuckl: That's how it is here too (Austria). Mixing cow milk with cereals around 6 months is ok'd by the ped (but we didn't do it). We started introducing milk to drink around 11 months with DD and 12 months with DS.
kiwi / 705 posts
We started at 11 months to gradually prepare my kids for me to stop nursing at 12 months. My daughter didn't like it so it was a very gradual introduction with just a sip or two some days, she eventually came around throughout the course of the month. My son loved it (actually loves anything he can eat) so he's had cows milk feelings instead of breast milk feeding a a few times (he'll be 1 in 3 days) but we always give him a solid snack with his cows milk, which we don't always do with the breast.
nectarine / 2951 posts
We started mixing his bottles @11 months with formula and milk. By 12 months he was solely on whole organic cows milk.
pomelo / 5660 posts
I started earlier than I wanted to because pregnancy dried me up and she straight up refused formula. I started introducing WCM at 9 months when I discovered I was pregnant and my milk supply tanked. She loved it and she took right to it.
pomegranate / 3858 posts
@FaithFertility: I'm in Ontario, and I was told 12 months, no earlier by our ped...I think we pretty much started then.
ETA but that was 2 years ago. We'll see what happens in another year and a bit!
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
Around 11 months with meals just so she would get use to the taste. 11.5 she dropped her day bottles so we offered it then. She didn't drink much. Then at 12 months cold turkey with no bottles and we just offered milk with all meals. Took her a couple weeks to really start drinking it and finding a sippy she loved.
pear / 1599 posts
I introduced it at 11 months with DD and I just started with DS he is 10 months. At 12 months we will quit formula.
pomegranate / 3231 posts
We introduced it at 10mos. Our ped recommended it, and my pumping supply was dwindling. It went smoothly and allowed me to avoid introducing formula.
pear / 1547 posts
One thing to watch out for is if more than 24 oz cows milk per day puts LOs at risk for iron deficiency.
wonderful kiwi / 23653 posts
I started offering WCM soon after she turned 11 mo to get her used to it. She was still on formula (I had weaned by then), and also eating solids as usual. By 12 mo we weaned from formula also and just went on WCM full time.
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