What alternatives are there instead of giving your 1 year old full fat cow's milk?

[2015mom]

I think my LO is allergic/lactose intolerant to full fat cow's milk. What other alternative are there to give my 1 year old?

My LO has been breastfed for a year. When he turned 1 I gradually decreased the breast feeds as follows:

Week 1 - 2 to 3 breastfeeds a day and 1 bottle of full fat cow's milk from Aldi.

Week 2 - 1 to 2 breastfeeds a day and 2 bottles of full fat cow's milk from Aldi.

Week 3 - 1 breastfeed a day and 3 bottles of full fat cow's milk from Sainsbury.

Week 4 - quick breastfeed just after nursery and 3 bottles of full fat cow's milk

During week 3 he started getting a cough and cold because he started nursery so I started to give him honey in his milk.

His poos at the end of week 3 have been very lose, like he has diarreah and it causing bad nappy rash and peeling his skin.

I thought it was the honey but didn't put honey in his bedtime feed and he did a poo straight after having milk.

Maybe he cannot handle so much cow's milk.

Have you had the same problem with your LO ?

It could be the change from breastmilk to cows, it can take a while to get used to it. I don't think you should automatically assume a reaction and begin an exclusion diet without first speaking to a dr. Our lo had a few loose bowel episodes when little and some did last a few weeks. It could be teething? Too much fruit? Bug from nursery?

One option would just be to continue breastfeeding him regularly during the day instead, if both of you are still happy with it?

I think the loose nappies are more likely to be teething or bugs than anything to do with the milk. I really wouldn't stop his milk unless on medical advice. Many of the alternatives e.g. Soya, almond don't contain enough Calcium so aren't suitable.

And I'm afraid to say that honey will rot his teeth & encourage a sweet tooth - sorry!

Why would you put honey in his milk? For what benefit 🤔

Plenty of other reasons for the symptoms above.

I would highly doubt an allergy. You'd have seen some kind of reaction by now if he was CMPA or LI - unless you are dairy free yourself that is.

It wouldn't just be a case of changing his milk drink anyway, it'd be a total dairy free diet.

HV or GP if you're concerned.

Soya milk for 1+

www.alpro.com/uk/products/drinks/soyaplus1/growthdrink

Yeah I thought it could be a bug from nursery because he caught a cough and cold from there which is going to happen because he needs to build up his immune system... Week 1 of nursery he got a cough and cold

Maybe in week 2 he got an infection

I considered teething too....

Only reason I concluded milk was because he seems to poo straight after drinking milk.... Maybe it's too quick and might not even be the milk

I just gave the honey because of his cough.... Taken that out of his milk now

Going to try to get a dr's appointment and see what the dr says also

Honey should not be given to under ones as it can contain botulism. Three full bottles of cows milk sounds like a lot. If you suspect an intolerance you really need to seek medical advice.

He is over 1 and I have only given him honey when he had a cough which was over 1 years old

Three bottles of milk is not a lot, one in the morning .. One before his afternoon nap and after his lunch and one before he goes to sleep

We had the same thing, it did turn out to be CMPI for my DS. He'd always suffered from reflux but it didn't occur to me to try cutting anything from my diet.

We saw the GP, who referred us to a dietician and prescribed a dairy free formula. DS wouldn't drink it though so I went dairy free and carried on breastfeeding.

He has no trouble with dairy now, we re-introduced it gradually under the dieticians guidance.

Thanks Bella ...

That's nice to know that if your LO had an intolerance he grew out of it

Hope my LO does too

3 bottles is quite a lot as they only need around 300mls per day from age 1

Not sure if this is helpful but I have lactose intolerance. If I have a small amount of lactose then I'm mostly fine but a whole glass of milk and I react badly.

There are lots of lactose free products out there now so if it's that then there is whole milk he could still have.

I was considering going back to breastfeeding but I wanted to wean him off because I am pregnant and thought will be too much to tandem feed

Well I am back at work now so would only be able to breastfeed morning and night and He is now getting frustrated that I am not giving him enough milk, either that or my milk has changed fed to colostrum as I am 22 weeks pregnant

If he was lactose intolerant then it would have presented itself already as breast milk is full of lactose

Your pregnant so your milk has changed. Stop the honey and slowly drop the breastmilk. My DC found semi skimmed easier to digest than full fat

You can get temporary lactose intolerance from having a stomach bug. My DD had this and we switched to lactose free formula for a few weeks. We asked our GP before switching her and it made a difference within a few hours. The GP didn't prescribe it as you can buy it without a prescription. My DD was on normal formula at the time as she was under 12 months.

Semi skimmed not recommended under age 2 as it has less fat fewer calories

Thanks penfold and Quackduck very helpful

We use the alpro soya 1-3 year old milk

dementedpixie makes a valid point. I should have said but we had the support of the GP and HV and it was the GP who said try semi skimmed. The Arla Lactofree milk is also suits my DC, might work for your DC

I would say 3 bottles is quite a lot of over 1 year, as it's roughly double the recommendation and will fill him up too much so he eats less different food.

Milk wise I would try oat milk or koko coconut milk. They do taste different. But oat milk is great on breakfast.

Then try giving just 300ml max of lacto free milk a day.

At 1+ I would say bottles aren't really needed and can actually cause quite a few issues with their jaw and teeth later on. Can he just have milk in a cup now? A cup with breakfast, and a cup after dinner but not actually at bedtime. Then teeth can be cleaned before he sleeps which is important now he's older

"Only reason I concluded milk was because he seems to poo straight after drinking milk.... Maybe it's too quick and might not even be the milk"

If is too quick . If you stimulate the one part of the GI system (eg the top by feeding) you can trigger action at the bottom. It's like a dodgy curry doesn't really run through you - it's still in your stomach, but eating (curry or anything) stimulates your body to expel.

It's part of the way that parents of old (in the days before every home had a washing machine and disposables hadn't been invented) that parents achieved more clean/dry nappies by 'training' - what they were doing was putting the baby on the potty immediately after feeding and they could be pretty sure something would pop out

That seems like a lot of milk to me if he is eating three meals a day.

If he's over one he can drink it from a cup too, better for his teeth.

Mine turned his nose up at all milk from 13 months. He self weaned of the breat at that time. Chocolate, banana, strawberry, yoghurt, soy etc. Has only drunk water and occasionally watered juice since. Still alive and thriving. Eats cheese so no allergies. Milk just isn't for everyone.