How much milk?

angelicmary85

Hi Guys,

I was just wondering if anyone knows how much milk toddlers should be getting in a day?

My DD is 17months and drinks nearly a full bottle in the morning and the same again before bed. She hasn't wanted milk during the day for several months now so I don't try her anymore.

She doesn't eat very much so I decided this morning to cut her bottle down by half and see if she would have some breakfast. Although she didn't want to eat straight-away, about an hour later she started to make a fuss and normally she's quite quiet so I tried her with some yoghurt and it was gone before I blinked!

I've tried to give her food before her milk a few times but she's not been overly interested but I'm hoping we're beginning to reach some kind of milestone with her but my question is - Should she still be having her pint of milk a day?

Hell_Dans_Un_Handcart

I think you're good to go so long as she gets plenty of dairy - milk on cereal, yoghurt, cheese, milk puddings like rice pud and custard. No reason why she can't have yoghurt for her breakfast, maybe with some banana and ground almonds?

17 months is such a finnicky age and I often had trouble getting breakfast into my daughter at that point. I usually did a plate of milk-soaked cereal like small Shredded Wheat, or fingers of toast and fruit, and left it in the living room so she could pick at it while she pottered around*. She certainly ate more this way. We ate dinner at the table so I didn't worry about her learning manners etc. If you want to encourage her to eat more in the mornings, can you swap her milk for water and then offer something milky to eat instead?

*don't do what I did and buy a cream sofa [sob]

jackomdj

I know it was not part of your question but bottles are not good for their teeth. We dropped DD's bottle at 12 months & she will have a cup of milk after her breakfast...now at age 2 she still likes a nice drink of cold milk (as does our eldest).

As per the previous poster as long as they are getting their dairy in various forms they will be fine. My DD will often ask for cheese for breakfast & I am happy to let her have this (very continental!)

HTH
Nicky

fsdss

1 pint a day is the recommended amount, so that would be 2 bottles, but also include milk based puddings / sauces, yogurts, cheese etc within that amount,

mrcow

I initially misread the OP as "How much is milk?" and was going to reply 45p per pint.

What you're doing is fine.

Some children are natural milk guzzlers and some just aren't. She's still having some. It all works out in the end. Encouraging her to eat breakfast is a positive step. I give my children milk to drink with their breakfast (just cow's milk) and with other meals, but a pint is a lot for a small person if you think about it if they are eating regular meals too.

Felicity

Hi, my LO has just turned 19 months and he now has a sippy cup with approx. 200mls of milk in the afternoon along with snacks (tomatoes, rice cakes, banana etc), then a bottle of milk just before bed (not taking it to bed with him).

This does not affect his meals at all as he still eats 3 good solid meals a day.

I am aware that I probably shouldn't be giving him that last bottle (especially as it is after bath and he has brushed his teeth by then) but he enjoys it so much and I spent the first 12 months of his life being a slave to 'the guidelines'.

He has very little, if any sweet stuff (just natural sugars as in milk) so I am not too concerned about his teeth.

My 'baby' (he is a toddler but he is still my baby) loves his milk so much and it is a treat and soothing to him. He has a yogurt a day too and cheese etc so he is calcium rich.

I think the concerns around milk as children get older are:-

1. Weight - some 'experts' say too much milk leads to obesity. If your child is a normal weight then I don't think this matters too much. My boy is skinny to normal so I appreciate the extra fat in his diet;

2. Hormones / chemicals etc in milk. Well, there is always a problem with some kind of food or another. I don't worry too much but I do buy him organic milk (from my milkman the organic is the same price as supermarket normal milk);

3. Administration of milk - children are supposed to be off the bottle by 12 months old. I personally think that a bottle at bedtime, if it is drunk very quickly (ie and not taken to bed with them and continuously sipped) does no harm.

Ideally the child's teeth should be brushed after the milk and I intend to get into this habit soon and therefore it can do no harm. If your child has other sweet things then a bottle can be added to a list of issues that could effect their teeth so you need to think about the rest of your childs diet.

Anyway, I hope this helps. I personally have brittle bones, I have broken my arm 3 times in the same place and I therefore want to ensure my baby has a very calcium rich diet

V.Lucky

My son was always a "milkaholic" too. At this age milk is still a food group as opposed to a drink.

angelicmary85

Thank you all for your replies.

I'll fully admit to knowing that she should be fully off her bottle by now but I can't seem to bring myself to take it off her, she drinks out of her cup through the day and doesn't get to take the bottle to bed at night.

She doesn't eat 3 good varied meals a day as she's not really interested in food which is why I'm concerned about taking her milk away to try to make her eat in the morning.

money_saving_diva

Hi - My son is the same - he LOVES milk! (He is 19 months by the way) He is now having full fat cows milk - not follow on milk. He has had it from a cup since 11 months but guzzles down loads! (between 1-2 pints a day!) Because I was worried he was filling up on milk in the morning I swapped the times he had milk and his breakfast. Now he has his breakfast as soon as he gets up. Which he eats well. Then he has his milk about an hour after that. He drinks just over half a pint.
Then he sometimes asks for milk during the day but only about once or twice a week and I only give him about an inch in the bottom of the cup - so just a taste/snack.
Then he we give him about half a pint again before bed (warmed) but he often grizzles for more when he has drank that so often has a bit more.
He doesn't eat as much as I think he should but he eats well and isn't fussy. He is big for his age (height not fat) so i am not worried.
He drinks water during the day so milk isn't his only drink.

The thing I worry about is if he has a bad night and wakes up he often needs milk to comfort him and he goes back to sleep after milk. I think he is a bit old to be having milk during the night. does your daughter still want milk during the night?

BitterAndTwisted

Felicity wrote: »

Children are supposed to be off the bottle by 12 months old.

Who says? When I was a full-time nanny (not THAT long ago) my wee charges had a bottle at bed-time for as long as they wanted it, one of them till he was over two years old. What's the reasoning? I reckon if it gives them comfort and helps them with the going-to-bed-and-sleeping ritual then that's just fine. Although I do draw the line at seeing 4-year olds walking around with a bottle. Sippy-cups are for big boys and girls and at about that age they do enjoy being thought of as big.

MadDogWoman_2

Hi,

My DD is 2 and gets through a pint bottle of milk a day, through food and as drinks.

If DD has something other than cereal for breakfast I make sure she has a glass of milk.

She's on cows milk - personally I don't see the point of follow on milks.

MDW