18mo cutting down bf -- does she need cow's milk now?

[Splinters]

I wasn't expecting this to happen so soon, but bf does seem to be petering out. We're now down to 1 bf a day, at bedtime, but even then I don't always feel my boobs let down at all.

So does dd need cow's milk in her diet now? And how much? DH and I don't like it and don't drink it at all (or have it on cereal, in tea etc) so it hasn't been an obvious thing to give her, but should we?

After your baby turns one, she needs to have a minimum of 350ml of cow's milk each day. This will provide her with essential protein, calcium, magnesium and vitamins B12 and B2 (riboflavin). Pediatricians now recommend that any cow’s milk be whole milk from a cup after the first year and until the child is at least 2 years of age. This ensures that your child receives enough fat, which is essential to proper brain development. After the age of two, if growth is good, you can switch to low-fat or nonfat milk.
It’s best to limit the amount of cow’s milk that your child receives to 2-3 cups (16-24 ounces) per day, since too much cow’s milk in a child’s diet can put him at risk for iron-deficiency anaemia (because cow’s milk can interfere with the absorption of iron) and may decrease the child’s desire for other foods.
Some moms wish to offer cow’s milk to their toddler, but baby doesn’t like it. If she becomes reluctant to drink milk, try offering two portions of calcium-rich foods instead. Milk should play an important role in your baby's diet, but experts say she shouldn’t have more than the required amount. This is because it may cut her appetite for solid foods, which in turn, could cut her intake of essential nutrients like iron and vitamins. Every few days increase the amount of cow’s milk in the mix till your baby is comfortably gulping down only cow’s milk.

As far as I understand she doesn't have to have cows milk, she just needs to have the calcium and vitamin D, which can be found in other foods.

At that age 350mg of calcium is required. So you can give it in form of yoghurt, cheese, ready brek etc.

Personally I would introduce cows milk though. It is a good source of nutrition generally speaking.

Thanks StepDoor. Obviously she hasn't been having cow's milk since the age of one because she's been having breastmilk, which is why I'm slightly unsure of what to do now. I have hesitated to introduce CM as a drink because dairy products seemed to make me extra sick in pregnancy and GP thought that (plus fact I hate milk anyway) suggested some kind of lactose intolerance that might also appear in DD. Don't know whether this had any foundation in science tbh, but as I say, I loathe the stuff (I like cheese and yog though) and am naturally biased against it..

DD loves plain yoghurt and eats plenty of it, full-fat and organic. We always have hummus in the fridge (calcium), and I have to say I have never worried about VitD as we spend plenty of time outdoors. I'll do some calculations with the 350mg figure. Don't know why I didn't think of just looking that up!

DS1 never really liked cow's milk after he weaned - did have plenty of other dairy (cheese, yoghurt) and other sources of the relevant nutrients, plus plenty of water, so I didn't really worry.