Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

If formula is based on cows milk why can't I just use cows milk from 6m to a year?

26 replies

barbamama · 03/02/2008 20:22

Have posted this in weaning as well. LO is nearing 6m and am thinking about weaning - he is attempting a bit of BLW already grabbing things. So far he is ebf but I am thinking about introducing formula - maybe one bottle a day. My question is, why does it have to be formula, which is based on cows milk, why do the guidelines say no cows milk as a bottle until one year? And what do I use for porridge, breakfast, drinking from the cup etc?

Am I mis-remembering or do they say ff cows milk is ok in food from 6m?

OP posts:

Marne · 03/02/2008 20:25

I think formula has extra vitanins and calcium in which baby needs up to 12 months?

moondog · 03/02/2008 20:28

You can.
It's not a weird processed product like formula.
They have you believe you can't because formula costs a bomb.

TotalChaos · 03/02/2008 20:32

Cows' milk is fine in food from 6 months. Not sure about MD's conspiracy theory, but when I was baby, the "rules" were that cooled boiled(wtf) cow's milk was fine as the main drink from 6 months

dirtygertiefromnumber30 · 03/02/2008 20:34

At 6 months you can use cows milk on cereal and in cooking etc so I just thought 'why am i bothering with formula for her bottle?'

She was eating really well by 7months (blw) and i knew she was getting all the vits she needed etc so she has been drinking cows milk from 7 months.

MAMAZON · 03/02/2008 20:36

if you are weaning at 6months then they are getting (hopefully) the nutrients they need from the food you are giving.

full fat cows milk is fine

andiemustlosehalfastonemore · 03/02/2008 20:37

if you are going to carry on bf then jack newman says cows milk for one drink a day is fine I did this with ds1 as I went back to work link here

PaulaYatesBiggestFan · 03/02/2008 20:38

Agree with moondog - it's a farce all this follow on rubbish but it makes some folk a lot of dosh

PaulaYatesBiggestFan · 03/02/2008 20:38

Agree with moondog - it's a farce all this follow on rubbish but it makes some folk a lot of dosh

wildwoman · 03/02/2008 20:41

its not just the "evil" formula copanies that reccomend not touse cow milk as main drink until 1+, its the WHO and the department of health iirc. If you think that you baby has a fantastic weaning diet go for it but just remmeber the days when the baby has a cold or is teething and only wants milk, formula can act a s a saftey net during those periods.

harpsichordcarrier · 03/02/2008 20:43

wildwoman, barbamama is going to carry on bf, so cow's milk won't be the main drink.

wildwoman · 03/02/2008 20:43

fine then, no problem

Original poster

barbamama · 03/02/2008 20:44

Exactly! I will still bf as well - so in theory he should get all the vits etc from me and/or the food (I will also give him omega 3 supplements from 6 months too0.

OP posts:

PaulaYatesBiggestFan · 03/02/2008 20:46

I think people can tend to forget that WHO guidleines are for theworld and not for Britain where pegasus is weaned on spinach brulee on a bed of shredded squid

andiemustlosehalfastonemore · 03/02/2008 20:48

or a fruit shoot and a greggs

Original poster

barbamama · 03/02/2008 20:50

Ok so say tommorow I start the one bottle of full fat (organic of course! for our pegasuses ) bottle a day in preparation for weaning in a few weeks when he can help himself to whatever he wants and I will give him some porridge etc with cows milk, how do I introduce it? He takes 7oz or so of ebm from a bottle if I just give it to him as cows milk is it likely to upset his stomach or anything?

OP posts:

wildwoman · 03/02/2008 20:52

any cange in a baby's diet willprobably affect his stools but that doesn't mean it's bad, I would try a small amount first if he has only ever had bm.

PaulaYatesBiggestFan · 03/02/2008 20:52

i never found it upset them barbar - infact was always surprised how palatable they find it

harpsichordcarrier · 03/02/2008 21:06

otoh my dd's never really took to cow's milk - dd1 used to lob it across the room
but they eat cheese, yoghurt etc, no problem

Original poster

barbamama · 03/02/2008 21:10

So maybe I should just carry on bf and wait for weaning???? Confused. I was thinking of introducing the one bottle now before we start weaning as he is only 22 weeks but seems very hungry and dp keeps nagging me to give him a bottle (he is waking up every few hours now from sleeping through) but I really am not keen on the whole formula thing. I know he might be waking for other reasons like teething too. Also he has just come out of a bf strike afte being ill and still only feeds for a couple of minutes so we are paranoid that we are starving our poor child.

OP posts:

mears · 04/02/2008 11:48

barbamam - you will not starve your DS as long as you breastfeed him as often as he wants. He is night waking to increase your milk supply - as long as you let him feed he will stimulate more milk production.

Breastmilk is extremely important especially as he has been ill.

You are doing brilliantly well having exclusively breastfed so far.

I would stick it out till you start solids at 6 months. There is just absolutely no need for formula unless you have got to the stage of wanting to stop BF, which isn't what your posts sound like.

Original poster

barbamama · 04/02/2008 12:47

No I definitely don't want to stop. Ds 1 bf until a year when he stopped of his own accord - am happy to go til they want to stop really, as long as can work round work when I go back, but he had been on one bottle of formula since 5 1/2 months as I fell for the HV bullshit about topping up as was on 6th percentile blah blah blah. You are right, I am feeding him at night whenever he wants it, I think I just need to get out of the mindset that he should be sleeping through. We are so close to solids now seems a shame - and in hindsight there was no need for the bottle with ds1 either, he was just doing the same thing.

I am just worried because we did go through a sticky patch with the latching on while he was ill and for a while after and he doesn't seem to feed for very long bit then the wet nappies and poos are flowing so I know that everything should be fine. Plus he hardly put any weight on over Xmas and January but then that could be from the virus and chest infection.

You're right - I'm going to try and stick it out!! Thanks.

OP posts:

MesaLoca · 04/02/2008 14:07

If you are breastfeeding then giving cow's milk is no problem surely. Your baby wont be missing out any nutrients. I think this advice must be given out so that formula feeders don't switch to cow's milk which might then cause problems. I read somewhere on MN that in Australia the guidelines say 6m and I am pretty sure that Australian babies aren't all sickly.

Original poster

barbamama · 04/02/2008 14:16

Exactly, I meanif it is ok in food then why not to drink - I suspect the WHO etc is just being careful etc and the formula manufacturers obvioulsy promote it as it is better for them. Once they are up and running with food they could easilh have say cheese sauce, yoghurt, a piece of cheese etc in one day which is just as much dairy, salt whatever as a bottle of cows milk surely?

I guess maybe it would be a bit much for non-bf baby's though as they would be having 6 or 7 bottles a day which maybe too much.

I asked my mum today as she said that when we were babies as soon as you stopped bf you went on to bottles of gold top milk which with me was about 4 and a half months? I am fine with dairy foord, no allergies, excema or any health problems really so I am sure it is just a catch-all precasution. Probably also to try and promote bf as long as possible in more deprived circumstances which is obviously a good thing.

Anyway, I am going to hold off for now and see if we can get up to just before 6m and then see how it goes.

Thanks for all the advice - it is always good to be reminded that most of this stuff is guideline not hard and fast rules!

OP posts:

mears · 05/02/2008 11:38

I think the main thing is that if you give a baby a full bottle of cow's milk, they will be full and not look for a 'proper feed' of breastmilk or formula.

Breastmilk is far more nutricious so it is better not to give large drinks of cow's milk which may unintentionally result in the baby having less of the good stuff ie correctly balanced milk and antibodies.

Cow's milk is for cows at the end of the day

mears · 05/02/2008 11:38

calfs even

Flip

1 2