13mo won't drink milk - how much dairy should I give?

[makedoandmend]

I really need to give up bf - dds teeth are getting too much of an issue - but she won't drink any other milk (she barely drinks water - I had to finally crack and give her juice today as I'm worried about the amount of liquid she's drinking).

What can I do to make sure she gets enough of the calcium and vits in her diet if she continues to refuse other milks? She has just under a quarter of a pint of cows milk on her cereal in the morning and a large Plum Baby fromage frais. I'm only feeding her morning and night now but would really like to drop those feeds. How much dairy should I be feeding her if she continues not to drink milk?

I thought it was a myth that we get calcium from milk. Plenty of calcium in milk, just not easily used ? I have never given my children any dairy products and they are very healthy. I shall now run for cover while you all tell me I'm wrong!

What do you give you dcs instead?

DD1 is allergic to dairy and eggs - she does drink calcium fortified soya milk though. The dietician said she just needs 3 sources of calcium a day - eg two cups of milk and a fortified soya yoghurt with lunch. So not as much as you might think. I would think that milk on breakfast, plus yoghurt, and cheese in food, would be plenty. Also things like broccoli, sardines (with bones, mushed up), almonds, baked beans - all good sources of calcium. You could also get supplements if you're worried. Maybe worth chatting to your HV about?

Thanks acbs. Unfortunately hv is a total loon whose answer to everything is 'feed her more meat'.
She recommended it for constipation last time...

DD has never drunk milk from 13 months as she refused it but she would have yoghurt or some cheese most days.

Ds2 doesn't have any dairy apart from what there might be in a biscuit or cake or something. He has a soya yoghurt every other day or so and that's about it, plenty of green veg and fish with bones though. We are seeing the dietician again soon to see if he might need a calcium supplement but he hasn't had one so far.

He was having rice milk but they recommended we stop due to high arsenic levels.

I think 3 portions of dairy/equivalents are recommended per day. From Babycentre website:

Milk, cheese and yogurt

Offer your child these foods about three times a day. Dairy products provide plenty of calcium for growing bones, but are extremely low in iron. Toddlers need less milk than babies and should not be given large bottles of milk. Offer about 120ml (4fl oz) of milk in a cup as a drink. In total, your toddler should have no more than 350ml (12fl oz) a day. Large drinks of milk will reduce your toddler's appetite for other foods, especially those higher in iron.

Children aged two and over can have whole milk for drinks, but could change to semi-skimmed milk if that is more convenient for the family. Semi-skimmed milk has similar amounts of protein and calcium, but is lower in vitamin A than whole milk. Skimmed milk should not be given to children under five years old.