Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

About DS drinking milk

273 replies

darwinsbabe · 23/04/2017 12:34

I have a DS who is almost 3.

My DH drinks water all the time and we encourage my son to do the same but he always refuses and asks for milk instead. Even with the lure of diluting juice he will opt for milk. My DH thinks he drinks too much milk and not enough water and gets worked up about it. I'm just glad he's drinking and it's something healthy.

Aibu to tell my husband to calm down and continue to let my DS drink milk?

OP posts:
ThreeLeggedHaggis · 23/04/2017 12:55

Urgh. Cows milk is gross. I see your DH's point. It's not actually that healthy either.

I'm not a milk fan. Breast milk for human babies/toddlers - absolutely. Cow's milk for everyone else? Since when did humans need food designed for baby cows? So I'd have to agree with your DH on this one.

Yes. Despite the MN obsession, milk is not healthy in large quantities.

If it's a choice between your son not drinking and only drinking milk, then of course milk is better. But I would be trying really hard to get him drinking something else.

wheresthel1ght · 23/04/2017 12:55

if he is genuinely concerned maybe compromise by dropping to Semi or skimmed milk as they have a higher water content and are obviously less fatty but honestly I wouldn't worry! He is drinking so not going to dehydrate - that argument if completely unfounded and a little bit ridiculous on your DH's part.

user1491572121 · 23/04/2017 12:55

Oh...a good trick is to make DS ice lollies in those moulds you can get...let him help you...put water in...then get him to drop berries in there. Even, if you don't mind...a couple of small sweets...he will probably suck the lollies when they're done in order to reach the goodies inside and as something a bit different.

llangennith · 23/04/2017 12:57

Sport dieticians say the best drink for rehydration is milk. Fruit juices and sweetened drinks don't give you energy, they just rot your teeth.
Nearly all children like milk but for some reason parents decide to offer other drinks, hot and cold, as they get older.

RedOrangeGoldLeaf · 23/04/2017 12:57

My concern would be that I think calcium can inhibit the absorption of other nutrients like iron.

mrbob · 23/04/2017 12:59

Indeed. I have seen a 2 year old in heart failure secondary to anaemia from drinking too much milk. So yes you need to limit it! Possibly easier said than done

lasttimeround · 23/04/2017 12:59

I'd think milk is better than diluting juice

Therealslimshady1 · 23/04/2017 12:59

If you think milk is so bad, why are the Scandis and Dutch who consume huge quantities of it generally slim and healthy?

I have one DS who drinks 2 pints of milk a day ( age 14), and another DS who never drinks milk.

I can't get worked up about either

Milk is not bad for kids, imo

My kids started drinking more water (loads) when they started doing proper sport.

You could always buy DS a novelty sports drinking bottle with water?

CoteDAzur · 23/04/2017 13:01

"My DH thinks he drinks too much milk and not enough water... DH gets totally pissed off and thinks he'll be getting dehydrated confused"

Does your DH think there is no water in milk?

juneau · 23/04/2017 13:01

Dairy is Scary

Original poster
darwinsbabe · 23/04/2017 13:04

I should add btw I that he drinks semi skimmed milk.

I come from a family of milk drinkers so that's maybe why I can't get that worked up

OP posts:
FeedTheSharkAndItWIllBite · 23/04/2017 13:04

I wouldn't water down fruitjuice.

It's a bit like watered down Coke imo (and according to our doctor drinking fruit juice is pretty much like drinking a fizzy drink...)

Yes, there's a lot of controversy about how healthy dairy is. But dairy is liquid. Whether it's water or the same amount but of milk. He won't be dehydrated...

AdoraBell · 23/04/2017 13:05

A DR told me that milk is 70 per cent water. Does your DH know that?

FeedTheSharkAndItWIllBite · 23/04/2017 13:05

Isn't skimmed milk worse than fullfat? That's at least what I once read. But who knows...?

Does he like tea or infused water? I know some children that love it when their water has raspberries (or other fruit pieces) in it.

derxa · 23/04/2017 13:06

My dad died at 92. He had a glass of milk with every meal. I grew up on a dairy farm and drank a lot of milk. I've got bones of steel.

CoteDAzur · 23/04/2017 13:06

"Milk isn't that great for humans. Of course it does have a lot of good stuff IN it but in copious quantities, it's not ideal."

Nothing is great "in copious quantities". You can die from drinking too much water.

In moderation, however, milk is a great nutritional source. If you are going to get picky about "Oooh it's for baby cows, not for my precious poppets", breastfeed them at least until they stop growing.

CoteDAzur · 23/04/2017 13:07

"Dairy is Scary"

Dairy isn't scary. It's just dairy.

What is scary is ignorant rubbish spread on the internet by teenage YouTubers.

lostatsea1 · 23/04/2017 13:10

The whole 'you need to drink x amount of water per day' is a relatively modern concept/fad.

If you child is the eating well and then go with the flow...I agree that you husband making an issue of it is likely to cause many more problems

ILostItInTheEarlyNineties · 23/04/2017 13:12

Why are lots of people touting the comment "It's for baby cows". What an odd statement. Don't you eat cheese, yoghurt or anything with cow's milk in? It's like saying Don't eat eggs, they're laid by chickens. I see no logic in that statement, unless you're a strict vegan for moral reasons?

ButtermilkPancakes · 23/04/2017 13:13

Milk is actually very good for hydration mobile.nytimes.com/blogs/well/2016/06/30/milk-and-other-surprising-ways-to-stay-hydrated/?referer=

DD is 6 and milk is her drink of choice. She has water when it is directly given to her, but if you give her a choice she'll ask for milk over anything else. She is in great health, and has healthy teeth.

chickenjalfrezi · 23/04/2017 13:14

I would say Ilostit that these posters have a point from the fact as a pure food it is not nutritionally designed for humans. If they mean it from a moral perspective then yes they've lost me too....

shellhider · 23/04/2017 13:16

It's fine drinking milk, my DS is 18 and drinks nothing but milk and sometimes waters. He's never been dehydrated.

scootinFun · 23/04/2017 13:16

Dentists recommend milk over juice - even watered down juice

hardboiled · 23/04/2017 13:18

darwinsbabe make sure it's organic milk, at least he won't be overdosing with hormones.

WannaBe · 23/04/2017 13:20

What a load of hysterical rubbish. Fruit juice contains sugar and acid which will wrot their teeth. Milk contains nutritional benefits. And as for a two year old dying of heart failure due to too much milk, I'd imagine that perhaps he was given only milk and no solids or not enough of them.

I recently spent time in hospital and left with a heart condition (less said about that the better), and went from drinking coke to milk and water and occasional tea. My cardiologist doesn't seem to have an issue with it, and certainly had plenty to say about me drinking coke - any coke.

Milk is predominantly water. And for those suggesting giving tea to a three year old. Tea contains ingredients which are detrimental to children and can cause kidney failure and limit iron production amongst other things. Even though we as kids apparently used to drink it out of a bottle and it "did us no harm."

Tell your DH to get a grip. Pissed off indeed. What an arsehole.