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?

Just step up the other types of dairy (and calcium rich products) in the rest of her diet. She could have Greek yoghurt with fruit for breakfast, a piece of cheese for a snack, creamy sauce in fish pie for dinner (served with broccoli or a leafy green veg which are great sources of calcium), and a mug of warm milk before bed, and then all the occasional diary products, like ice cream, custard, hot chocolate etc. But if she enjoys a glass of milk then I’m not sure why she shouldn’t have it - my kids have milk at school for morning break - I have a glass sometimes….

Swathes of Asia don't drink milk (apart from breastmilk as babies) OP. I'm not saying people don't have nutritional requirements but there are lots of different ways to fulfil those requirements. Japan and China have notably failed to die out!

Bad is what way? There isn’t any peer reviewed medical papers which say it is ‘bad’ for people. I had to be dairy free while my youngest couldn’t have it but I’m gone back to it now I can.

btw - rice milk isn’t suitable for under 5 yrs olds.

I do wish people would not use AIBU like this.

it’s not really want it is for.

There is literally no ‘AIBU’ at all in this post. It’s simply a request for information.

As long as having other dairy products instead of milk like yoghurt and cheese OR a dairy alternative is fine too but check that it's fortified.
Eg you could sub Greek yoghurt for an alpro yoghurt.
Oat milk is nice for cereals and the barista version is very creamy.

It's certainly bad on both animal welfare (worse than beef) and environmental (not as bad as beef) grounds.

ive been vegetarian for 20 years so I feel I am sufficiently able to state that soya is pretty damn bad for the environment.

kievs glad to see we agree on that then 🙄

Different genetics

If you are cutting out milk - for pretty much any reason - cheese and yoghurt are also out.

Personally at that age I would ask your GP for advice. There are lots of nutrients in milk, and whilst some plant based versions are fortified with additional vitamins studies on dairy products has shown that the bodies actually uptake of nutrients is higher in dairy products (it is literally what milk has evolved to do).
basically lactose is designed to help calcium absorption, which is really important for bone health particularly in growing bodies.

I don’t drink milk, just don’t like it and even have black coffee. I think I was put off by being forced to drink room temperature milk at school!

So, once my children were weaned, I did not really offer them milk to drink, they tended to copy me and drink water or juice. They were not keen on yogurt but did eat plenty of cheese. As adults, only one child has milk in his cups of tea, the other two don’t drink any hot drinks - again copied from me as I only have one cup of coffee a day and hate tea!

But they were very healthy children growing up, rarely ill and took part in lots of sports. My sons are now 6 ft 4 ins and 6ft 7 ins tall so a lack of milk has not affected their growth!

However, I think you need to check your information about milk being unhealthy, unless your daughter has allergies to milk, there is no reason not to give her milk to drink as long as it is not a substitute for healthy foods.

How is it bad? It's full of protein, calcium, fortified with vitamins too. Oh and fat. Fat is good, especially for growing kids! It's bloody brilliant stuff.

Vegans disagree but that's up to them.

I can’t have dairy. Dairy-free cheese is fucking disgusting and anyone who likes it is a weirdo. No ifs, no buts. It’s absolutely rancid. I just have to go without. Dairy-free sweet alternatives are pretty decent in my experience because they tend to use coconut and I like coconut. I use almond milk, I like the nutty taste but I exclusively use it for a cup of tea or hot chocolate. I don’t cook with it and I don’t have cereal or a glass of milk etc. The weird part is all the stuff with milk in that you never realised has milk in (like sweet chilli sensations or brioche burger buns or naan bread or some chips etc). It’s a pain in the arse.

With children, it’s a bit different. Many children still get a lot of their calories and nutrition from milk. Whilst some “milk alternatives” are fortified, it’s actually much harder for the body to absorb the nutrients from those “milks” so they aren’t going into their body. It requires you to watch what else is going into them, not just as your milk alternative but also in their wider diet to ensure they’re getting those nutrients. Moreover, many children get vital calories from milk. “Milk alternatives” tend to be much lower calorie and that isn’t ideal for young children who are looking to get a lot of calories in. Keep in mind that filling a child up on a lower calorie option may result in weight loss and a reduction in overall calorie intake. Again, the answer is to consider the whole diet rather than just what you’re swapping milk for.

Not necessarily, my kiss won’t drink milk but will happily have dairy cheese and Greek yoghurt.
@GPFavo I agree dairy free cheese is rank. I feel for you.

On the other side of that coin, a billion people or so in India, Pakistan and Central Asia, Russia consider it fundamental to their diet.

however I’m assuming OP is in Europe/the U.K., where milk has been a nutritious part of our diet for thousands of years. It certainly better than oat water and additives that is 3x the price.

dairy products have excellent levels of protein and bio available vitamins and minerals that aren’t replicated in any other “milk drink” products. They do have stabilisers to make them long life though.

also the bacteria that exists on your skin and in your gut, lactobacillus, is present in milk and dairy, and helps your microbiome. Milk alternatives just cannot do this, and the additives and stabilisers might not be as beneficial for your microbiome as the trending health halo vegans want you to believe.

China is the world’s largest dairy importer and their government is actually campaigning aggressively to increase dairy consumption because of the health benefits.

food.chemlinked.com/market-insights/chinas-dairy-market-how-a-population-known-for-lactose-intolerance-became-the-worlds-largest-dairy-importer

It’s simply not true to say that there are other ways to achieve the same health benefits - it’s about balancing that choice with other factors (ethical, financial, health, environmental etc).

Nope. 9 adults in my office and every one drinks tea, coffee or both with semi-skimmed.

I use Alpro. My cuppa. We all do, can’t tell the difference.

Also not a baby cow.

Milk is not as good for you nowadays as many here would have you believe.

My kids drink milk. It's one of their favourite drinks.
I drink milk everyday.

We use it in our cooking/ cereal.

As someone with allergies, my heartfelt advice is not to cut out any food group for your child while they are still developing unless they have a specific allergy or intolerance to it.

By the time they're old enough to make dietary choices (e.g. vegetarian or vegan), they'll already have done a lot of their growing. Until they're old enough to have strong views, give them a bit of everything.

Yes but that isn’t relevant to ops situation; who just wants to cut milk out because it’s “bad” and no one else drinks it.

Following. I find the whole drinking animal milk a bit weird but am concerned about replacing it for nutritional reasons.

Sesame seeds are high in calcium and other minerals. You can get them as sweets (in bars or as halwa), or just add the seeds themselves to stir fries, salads etc. Tahini is a paste made from sesame seeds, which you can spread on toast or use to make dressings.
Why are you looking to give up milk? Are you worried about the hormones it may contain, or is it an animal welfare or an environmental issue?
A bit more background information means we can make more useful suggestions.

OP what do you mean "bad"?

Is it specifically cows milk or all dairy?

If you clarify what you mean by that, then people might be able to suggest ideas or reassure you.

I'm veggie and am considering cutting out dairy for ethical reasons but need to do a lot of research before I do so I'm not in a position to suggest anything.