OK so now i'm confused

[RorysRacingMa]

I'm very much anti formula milk (or artificial feeding as GP would say) and particularly believe that follow on milk is just the biggest swizz in the world.

I read somewhere that we're not supposed to give babies 6 months to 12 months cow's milk because it doesn't have enough iron in it, but then apparently neither does breastmilk, so i reckon why not give DS cow's milk. But my sister recently said that there is too much salt in cow's milk and it's not good for babies kidneys to have it as main drink. So what are the facts really, not what Cow abd Gate or SMA would have us believe?

Are you BFing at the moment? If you are then just carry on. There is less iron in breastmilk than in formula, but a far higher percentage of it is absorbed by the baby (it's something like 70% v 15% IIRC) so there is no need to give anything else.

Your sister is right that babies under 12 months shouldn't have cows milk as a main drink - it is fine to use for cooking/cereal though.

My ds was ex-bf for the first 9 months of his life, we did use cows milk on cereal and stuff, but I think that contributed to his dairy allergy, as cows milk is v hard to digest.

The iron thing is a red herring IMO. If you're bfing and offering solids, then if he needs more iron he'll take it from his food. If you're ffing then the same applies, I believe most infant formulas go 0-12 months.

Oh my baby is 2 months old and yes i'm bfing i was just interested to know what it's all about really and what's honestly true about cow's milk and babies.

Your sis has it wrong about salt, RorysRacingMa. It's not the salt content of ordinary cows milk that's the issue - in fact, cows milk is ok for babies over 6 mths, just not as a main drink. Reason? Because if cows milk is the main part of the baby's diet, then he could go short of iron unless he is making up the shortfall with solids. Many babies are not really taking much solid food at 6 mths, so continuing to breastfeed (or give formula) is a way of ensuring they get the iron they need.

Breastmilk does indeed include iron; babies from about 6 mths start to need more, that's all.

The '12 mth' age for cows milk as a drink is notional - it assumes, probably correctly, that most babies are well-established on a range of solids by then. It's got nothing to do with nutritional safety.

Hope that helps!

So it is a ruse for the big companies to make money then as i suspected.

The USA seems to flag up socium levels as a reason not to give cows milk before 1 year:

e.g. from here

Cow's milk is not recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for children under 1 year old. Infants fed whole cow's milk don't get enough vitamin E, iron, and essential fatty acids. They also get too much protein, sodium, and potassium. These levels may be too high for the infant's system to handle. Also, whole cow's milk protein and fat are more difficult for an infant to digest and absorb.

and here

Infants fed whole cow's milk receive inadequate amounts of Vitamin E, iron, and essential fatty acids. They also receive excessive amounts of protein, sodium, and potassium. These levels may be too high for the infant's system to handle. Additionally, whole cow's milk protein and fat are more difficult for an infant to digest and absorb.

The most dramatic effects are on iron levels in the body. Infants fed breast milk or iron fortified formula have normal iron levels. Recent studies show infants often have depleted levels when started on cow's milk at six months of age.

sodium obviously!

it's not just about iron or sodium though. cows milk is designed for baby cows, not baby humans. that is why it has to be turned into infant "formula" to make it digestible for babies.

there are lots of things that make cows milk unsuitable as a main drink for babies

breastmilk does not contain as much iron as cows milk it is true. but no-one ever stops to consider that being as it's made specifically for human babies there may be a reason for that!!! and there is, the small amount in breastmilk is far more easily absorbed and so it need not contain as much as cows milk for example.

it isn't a straightforward comparison

that said, i think if your child was eating a fairly varied diet you could get away with offering milk as a drink from about 10 months or so, if your child tolerated it ok

Seona - those concerns expressed in the US are lumping in all babies in the first 12 months - newborns upwards.

The sodium content of cows milk is not really a concern after the first six months - cows milk is not good as a main drink until a year, but mixing it with other foods is not considered in any way harmful by UK experts.