Milk

[Cantmakesoftboiledeggsforthelifeofme]

Do you drink it, do you give it your kids?( cows milk)
If you don’t give it your kids, what do you give them instead? What can I give my 4 year old as an alternative? Doesn’t she still need cows milk for the dairy?

Nobody needs cows milk. My eldest has never had a glass of milk in her life and she’s 7. She stopped drinking bottles at 1. My son just turned 1 and we are weaning him off milk too.

Why are you asking - it seems a random thing to think about when your kid is 4.

Our DD had an Alpro growing up milk when she was younger instead of cows milk, it has all sort of added vitamins etc. Now she is 4 she just has standard soya milk with us.
She isn't on a vegan diet though so gets dairy via other foods (cheese, yogurt etc).

No we don’t drink it. We all use oat milk.

@KievsOutTheOven Because i’m
thinking about stopping milk but need an alternative for dairy surely?

We have cows milk on cereal most mornings and in coco or warmed up with a spoonful of honey before bed.

Why do you want to stop giving her milk? It's good stuff

Its quite literally all autistic ds will drink he is 14 and yes I still give it too him younger one (also autistic) isn't bothered too much by it and rarely has it

My DD is 18 and has never drunk milk. EBF, bottle refuser, wouldn't drink formula or expressed milk out of a cup. Has never had milk on her cereal.
She has only just started eating cheese in the last 5 years. Would eat yogurt, custard, ice cream etc.
She seems OK.

Why are you stopping milk? Is it financial? Health? Ethics? Are you stopping dairy or just milk?

They don’t need a milk drink. My eldest is allergic to milk in it’s raw form but can take cooked milk so we used cows milk in food and she got her whole RDA that way. When she was younger she couldn’t tolerate cooked milk either, so we used fortified milk replacement drinks. Soya milk is probably no good if you suspect allergies as the proteins are similar. We used oatly barista.

My son isn’t allergic so he gets his RDA of dairy from his diet so we are cutting out milk as a drink.

Apparently I did the same as did my two kids. Never been an issue, we get enough calcium from diet. Is there a reason you are stopping it?

DD has milk on her cereal in the morning and a cup of warm milk with stories as part of her bedtime routine. Occasionally a hot chocolate after being out in the cold (actually about 1/16 tsp cocoa in some milk and long May she believe this is a treat!) She used to be lactose intolerant but grew out of it, so back then she had oat milk or almond milk. Oatly barista is good.

She has it as a bedtime drink as it’s comforting and part of the routine, but also gets plenty of dairy through yoghurt, cheese, butter, etc.

Most plant milk is fortified anyway. Just checked the side of my cheapo Lidl oat milk, and it's got calcium, vitamin D, vitamin B12 etc in.

You don’t need dairy, mine children were allergic to cow milk and now don’t have it out of preference. They don’t need dairy or even a milk alternative but you need to make sure they are getting enough calcium, vitamin D and iodine.

Exactly

But watch the sugar also as sone are very sweet

OP, many people cannot properly absorb calcium from non-dairy alternatives.

Milk, cheese, yoghurt are excellent sources of calcium vitamins, protein and hydration

Why do you not want to give your DC regular milk?

These threads are magnets for vegan fundamentalists who prioritise their 'ethics'over proper nutrition, so take their advice with a pinch of salt and consult a dietitian before making any serious changes to your and your family's diet

If your DC have a proper milk allergy you would have consulted a dietitian already I would assume

i just always read how bad it is and barely anyone I know drinks it, but I need an alternative to ensure she gets enough dairy

Nobody here is a “vegan fundamentalist” - most people who have replied have children with dairy allergies who will have extensively researched how to get enough calcium; and who will have been under care of paediatrics and dieticians.

I’m in my 50’s and still like a glass of cold milk at bedtime!

Well, she doesn't need dairy per se, just the nutrients it provides, which you can get elsewhere. Does she like cheese, yogurt, eggs? If you were to go full vegan you'd have to research supplements quite carefully, but otherwise it's fine.

What do you mean by how bad it is? Bad in what way? Bad for the individual, bad for the environment? Because it's not an unhealthy drink.

You really need to do some proper research - you can’t just ask random people what to do. Look up what your child needs for their age, using the NHS or similar, and then find products which provide it. Don’t just cut a food type out because your friends don’t take it or you think it’s “bad” without clarifying exactly what your issue is. Soya, for example, is really bad for the environment.

Where do you read this?

Cows milk is good for most children. Some children have allergies or intolerances. It is possible but more challenging, to get the same nutritional benefits elsewhere. Plenty of vegan families do this for ethical reasons.

Consumption of dairy is associated with greater height.

Some proper info:

www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/food-types/milk-and-dairy-nutrition/

Soya IS bad for the environment, but given that the vast majority of soya grown worldwide is used for animal feed, if you were genuinely concerned about that you'd give up eating meat (particularly pork and chicken- and eggs).

Barely anyone you know drinks it? I don't believe this

Doesn't she have yogurt or cheese in her diet?

Mine all loved milk and drank gallons of the stuff by choice. But plenty of children don't and are fine. A babybel or other cheese with lunch, yogurt or fromage fraiche with fruit as a snack... there are loads of ways of giving your child the calcium and protein they need.