When can babies have real milk instead of formula all the time?

Rebecca - posted on 03/30/2010

hi my son had reflux and spewed all the time on formula at 7 months i tried him on straight cows milk but added 50mls of water just to make it not so strong i kept putting the 50mls of water in until he was 12 months old but as soon as he was on cows milk he stopped spewing.. my daughter is 6 months old and has reflux too am going to try the same thing with her..

Karen - posted on 03/30/2010

One year old. I suppose you could start introducing whole milk at 11mo but I wouldn't go any earlier than that.The baby can't break down the protiens in regular milk this young. You should talk to your pedi though, I'm sure they would have some advice for you.

Donna - posted on 03/30/2010

my daughter was about 9 months old and i was going through 2 of the huge cans of powdered formula a week. she was always cranky and didn't sleep through the night. i thought she was colicky. one day i decided i would try to give her milk. i checked with her pediatrician and was told to give it a try, just keep an eye out for allergic reactions. let me tell you, she and i slept through the night and she was satisfied. you areher mother, follow your gut and just let her pediatrician know what you want to do.

Elena - posted on 03/30/2010

Just a quick comment on skim (skinny), 1% and 2% milk... they are terrible for your health! Unless milk is whole, you can be sure it contains powdered milk... Powdered milk contains oxidized cholesterol, which is harmful to our bodies. Milk is meant to be drunk raw and whole. Pasteurized milk is devoid of beneficial enzymes, which are destroyed during the pasteurization process. Many vitamins are destroyed as well. The entire chemistry of the milk changes during this process.... Please do your research on this topic. The mainstream is well behind times on this and you are bound to get uneducated advice from many doctors, dieticians, books, journals, magazines, etc.

Elena - posted on 03/30/2010

Hi! Your daughter can drink milk from birth! RAW milk that is! If you can't breastfeed (which is best for your little one) for a good reason, then the best alternative is to make your own formula based on REAL (raw and whole) milk! Raw milk is alive with necessary enzymes and it is naturally antibacterial. You need to find credible sources, - clean farms with loved, pasture-fed Jersey cows! You can make formula from raw goat milk as well. There is also a meat-based alternative. Store bought formula, especially soy based, is not the best thing you can give to your kid. My guess is that you simply may not be aware of misinformation surrounding us, moms! I highly suggest checking out Weston A. Price Foundation (www.westonaprice.org) and their incredible research work. You will be amazed at how brainwashed our culture is! I hope I can plant a seed for a well nourished healthy baby and aware parents. If interested, you can check out my website at www.nutritionalhealingclinic.com, - I posted a recipe for a homemade formula on my site. Your little one is smart for not wanting to drink juice, - it sounds like an act of self-preservation to me... I addressed juice on my site as well. Weston A. Price Foundation addresses it on their site too. I really think your entire family will benefit from getting familiar with this international organization. Good luck and wishes of vibrant health to you and your family! Elena

Jane - posted on 03/29/2010

well, i know people dont like old fashioned moms, or should i say granmoms.....but i put my middle son on cows milk at about 4 mths old, and let me say he always had the most beautiful teeth, and strong bones...he had no alergies, and is 6'3.....it definitely didnt hurt him any.....out of the 3 he had the best teeth.....he was the only one with the best teeth....hope it helped....mainly, it is all about if your baby can handle it....if so, go for it.....

Cath - posted on 03/29/2010

In Australia they don't recommend your baby has cows milk until they are 12 months of age and it should be full fat milk, not skinny (unless your child is very large). They said you can put a teeny bit in of cows milk with their rice cereal at about 8 - 10 months, but not much at all. They shouldn't be drinking any milk other than formula or breast milk up until 1 year of age.

Carrie - posted on 03/29/2010

at one year of age and have you tried white grape juice? its not real strong like apple juice.

Victoria - posted on 03/29/2010

At least 1

Tanya - posted on 03/29/2010

when the child reaches 12mths, thats the age i think tat u are supposed to start introducing "real milk". I used to dilute it a little bit to begin with so it wasnt too rich for my children, then gradually made it so it was just full cream milk. sometimes its good to introduce goats milk aswell, especially if the child had asthma, or any kind of allergy towards the cows milk. hope this helps you.

Deja - posted on 03/29/2010

Ashlee,
I know that when out oldest was about 10 months old, we tried her with regular milk. She didn't start having it all the time until she was closer to turning 1

Danielle - posted on 03/29/2010

mix the juice with water and make it so that she can't have the formula...that worked with my son :-)...as far as i know they have to be at least one year old to have milk although when you switch is up to you completely

Rebecca - posted on 03/29/2010

12 months is usually the go, my son changed over at 12 months and loves it, but I do know children that stayed on formula alot longer and now won't touch cows milk.

Meagan - posted on 03/29/2010

i have 3 kids and i put all 3 of them on cows milk at 11mths and nothing happened they loved it and it made part of my grocerys a bit cheaper i started with 1 bottle of half boiled water half cows milk it they dont throw up your good but if they throw up it the keep with the formula

Shaylene - posted on 03/27/2010

Its Fine to switch your daughter over to 2% now. When I tried to switch my baby from formula to cows milk she didnt like it too much so i did have milk and have formula to start.

Michele - posted on 03/27/2010

My daughter was 6 mos old when I completely switched her over to 2% milk. She did great on it, I had no trouble with her, it didn't change her sleeping habits, didn't have any bad affects on her. The doctor's of course gave a higher age...but the day I listen to a doctor will be the day I stop being a mother...You think about how things were before there were all these set ages & things for kids...those kids grew up just fine. Like I said, I switched my daughter over at 6 months.

Adrienne - posted on 03/27/2010

My doctor said that I could introduce cow milk to my boys at 11 months old. So that's what I did and they never had a problem with it.

Kristin - posted on 03/27/2010

One year is recommended. If there is a history of allergies, don't do it before 1 year. Talk to her doctor before you do anything. When she is cleared for milk, it is whole milk for the first year. Her brain needs the fat for development and her body needs the extra calories to keep up with her growth and energy needs.

Has she started solids yet? If so, talk with her doctor about how much formula she should be getting. If her nutritional needs are met, don't feel like you have to give her more. She can continue trying juices and water or just water. Sometimes no other options for a bit is just what you need to tip this in your favor. If she needs the additional calories from the formula, then just give it to her and see if you can find coupons to help with the cost of the additional formula.

Do you know why she's turning her nose up at the juice? It might be too sweet (water down 50/50) or too cold (let sit on the counter for a bit) or is she getting it in a bottle (maybe time for a big girl cup). It is an adjustment to go from warm milk to cold anything else. We are all a little funny about the foods and drinks we like; temp, texture, color, etc.. She may just need some additional tries with the same juice before she decides she likes it. Just get the cans or whatever, the little bottles just for kids are a waste of money. Also, if she's getting cereals, mix some fruit juice in there instead of water or formula. Just some thoughts to try.

Good luck.

Juliette - posted on 03/27/2010

Doctor say wait until the baby is one years old. Try adding a little more water to her formula since she is drinking so much. Also try mixing some of her juice together and see if she likes it better.

Amanda - posted on 03/27/2010

I would try to talk to WIC about your situation and they may provide you with a few more cans of formula a month. I wouldn't try to start cows milk til atleast 10 months and then only substitute a little bit so they don't become lactose intolerant. Another option is to give your baby more baby food with cereal mixed into it to make them fuller so they wont eat more formula than needed. Hope this helps and good luck!

Krystal - posted on 03/27/2010

they say 12 months but to be honest it wont do her any harm if you give her whole milk now. my mum gave me whole milk when i was only 11 weeks old and put me on solids because i refused breast and formula. my son is 10 months nearly 11 months and hes been having whole milk since he was 8-9 months and hes fine with it, he still has 3 bottles of 6oz formula and has 1 bottles of 4 oz whole milk. im giving him the whole milk because hes goin off his formula. she can also have it in her cereal and food at her age. i would suggest goin to your doctor, you would get better advice from your doctor as different ppl will tell you different things. i did ask my doctor before giving my son whole milk but she said to go ahead. hes doing just fine and im not mixing it with the formula either and it hasnt constipated him or anythin he absolutely loves it. hope this helps in some way. best wishes :)

Laura - posted on 03/27/2010

They say you shouldn't give cows milk till atleast a year old as their stomachs aren't able to digest the protein in it properly till then and it doesn't contain enough iron etc and it should be whole milk until they are 2 years old as they need a higher fat intake till then

Michelle - posted on 03/27/2010

I started giving my son whole milk when he was a year old. That's when the Doctor said to start though I don't think it would be a problem to start earlier as long as you give something else to make up for the other nutrients that formula provides. If she's a good eater than it shouldn't be a problem to giver milk, though whole milk is probably a better choice than 1% or fat free.

Bethanie - posted on 03/27/2010

I started introducing milk when my son turned 11 months and he was completely on cows milk by 11 1/2 months. Give her water, it's free and a LOT better for her then juices, even watered down ones. If she is eating solids (which she should be by this age) she shouldn't still be going through so much formula. If she's still hungry, offer her more food, not formula. My son was completely on table food by 10 months and only drank about 16-18 fl oz of formula a day (at 7 months, she should still be drinking a bit more then this). I would also offer water first though, cause she may just be thristy. When she goes to milk at a year, start giving her a liquid children's multi like Enfamil Poly Vi Sol w/iron, half a dropper. This will help supplement some of the vitamins she's missing from the milk. Also, by a year, she won't be drinking milk like she did formula. Only 16-24 fl oz a day is all she'll need. My son is 21 months now and only drinks 14 oz a day. The rest is water or VERY occassionally, 100% All natural juice watered down, no added ANTYHING (this stuff is expensive). I consider this is a treat.

Stevie - posted on 03/27/2010

how much are you watering it down maybe she isnt likeing how much flavor there isnt maybe water it down still but not a ton how old is she now? i like what susan said i use to have wic i hated it so after my son turned 1 we got off thank god but try to call wic and see if they will work with you from my experiance dont count on it i totally understand about being short on money but id say if she is liike 9 months start putting milk in it is she eating foods yet that should also help not go threw so many cans of formula

Jamie - posted on 03/27/2010

Hi Ashlee I'm an ol' time mom I started 29 yrs ago and your daughter will start to let you know when she needs more than just her special milk with the help of your health care nurse/Dr. can advise you on the best steps to take for your princess b/c they have been with you since her birth so they know her history,and can help you to intigrate first foods on a safe monitored schedule. And I agree with Stevie's comment about the water, sometimes your baby probably isn't hungry just thirsty.

Another suggestion is if she likes lemonade then how about unsweetened fruit juices it will have the tartness with none of the saccharines

Susan - posted on 03/27/2010

We got 9 cans of formula a month from our WIC here in Iowa when our LO was little. Have you called your WIC office and said she needs more? Give that a try. They aren't supposed to have regular milk until age 1 but when my LO was still on formula there was a time or two that we gave her real milk because it was available until we could shovel out to get to the store and she did okay.

Ashlee - posted on 03/27/2010

she hates the taste of water and she doesn't much care for apple juice..... i haven't tried grape juice but i tried the water flavoring you know the ones without anything added to them (like no caffeine, etc.) and she doesn't care for those either.... she likes lemonade .... but i'm afraid to give alot to her because of the citrus (i really watered it down before i gave it to her) and i tried SunnyD (REALLY WATERED DOWN and with little water, she didn't like either).......we have a limited amount of money right now...

Rebekah - posted on 03/27/2010

Hi Ashlee, I completely understand the frustration with your little one going though a lot of formula, I also have WIC and the few cans of formula they do provide never seems to last until the end of the month. The rule of thumb when introducing cow milk is wait until your baby turns 1 year old.



here are several reasons to delay the introduction of cow's milk until your baby reaches his first birthday. Most important, a baby's digestive system can't digest cow's milk proteins. Cow's milk also has too much sodium, potassium, and chloride, which can tax your baby's kidneys.



Even if his system could handle it, cow's milk doesn't have all the vitamins and minerals (especially vitamin E, zinc, and iron) that he needs for growth and development in his first year. Giving a baby cow's milk could even cause iron deficiency and internal bleeding. And it can increase his risk of an allergic reaction.



Once your baby's digestive system is ready to digest it, though, milk becomes a powerful ally. A great source of calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin A, milk will build your toddler's bones and teeth and help his body regulate his blood coagulation and muscle control. Almost all milk is fortified with vitamin D, which helps the body absorb the calcium it needs.



Milk also provides protein for growth, as well as carbohydrates, which will give your child the energy he needs to toddle all day! And if your child gets enough calcium from the get-go, there's evidence that he'll have a lower risk of high blood pressure, stroke, colon cancer, and hip fractures later in life.



I hope this helps, and good luck.

Stevie - posted on 03/27/2010

give her some water does she not like grape juice or apple juice but water is good for her also how old is she i started to put 2oz of cows milk with his formula when my son was 9 months and then at 10 months he got 4oz cows with formula 6oz cows at 11 months and by the time he was 12 months/1yr he was on full cows milk acutally i think i moved him a day or two before but i have heard some ppl just going straite over at 11 months and that is ok but yeah id say no earlier than 11 months