13Mo Old Won't Drink Anything but Water- Seems to Hate Milk

My daughter did something similar. For some reason she only liked water out of her sippy. Try giving him milk in a real cup - that worked for us. She has made up her mind that sippy cups were only for water and was not impressed when she found milk in it. Once we used a regular cup she did great.

Be patient with him. Keep offering it to him. Sounds like he may just not like it because it's not as sweet as breastmilk. You could try just a tiny-tiny bit of Vanilla flavoring (nesquik). It adds the tiniest bit of sweetness that baby's crave. But, it's flavored sugar so I'd keep it to meal times only. And, a little goes a long way, and hopefully you won't have to keep doing it, but to get him hooked on milk, it might just work. Just a thought. :)

To get him to try it, mix it in a bowl and try feeding it to him with a spoon, or let him feed himself. Then, when he wants more, you can say..."Well, I'll just put it in this sippy cup for you and you can drink as much as you like and you can even carry it around with you." Then, hopefully, that'll break his idea that milk in a sippy is bad.

I don't personally believe that all advice from Peds apply to all children. They are not one size fits all. If you are nursing your child regularly and he is getting enough milk then why should you switch to cow's milk that you are having misgivings about? Keep giving him water in a cup and keep nursing him as long as he wants. Listen to your internal mothering instinct and your child's needs. He will stop nursing when you and him are ready. I nursed my first daughter until she wanted to be weaned at 11 months. My second daughter was nearly 3 when was ready. Of course, at that point it was only mornings and evenings and then eventually just evenings. When she was weaned we were both happy and there were no issues. We were simply ready. Cow's milk is for baby cows and you do not need to feel pressured to force it on your child. There are few countries who do this and unfortunately this is one of them. Do what's best for you AND your child and as long as his health is not at risk you will both benefit and be happy.

I second what others have already said--try it in a different cup and mix it with something else. My son did the same thing, so we mixed it with those yogurt smoothie drinks. He liked that, and we eventually weaned him off of that. It helped to be able to nurse the entire time, so I wasn't worried about his milk intake. It will get better! Good luck! E.

I think it is great that he will drink water. it was hard to get my kids to drink water and had the opposite problem. Honestly, kids are so fickle, next month (or week) he will probably want something else. As long as he is eating a balanced diet, I personally wouldn't get too worked up about what he drinks as long as he drinks. nothing wrong with water.
Soon he will want your glass and will try what ever is in it.
As far as the ped nurse goes, you know your child best so go with what feels right.
just a added note, when I was in Japan they only give their toddlers tea or water.

I think it's GREAT he will drink water keep that up. If you stay away from juice he will always like water.....

If he won't drink milk just offer lots of cheese,yogurt,orange juice, stuff like that. I've heard milk isn't really all that good for you anyways.Most people are somewhat allergic to it and don't know it. I always thought it was weird that we americans drink a cow's milk, isn't that for their young? If we were meant to drink milk than I think we are meant to drink breast milk.Human milk for humans, cow milk for cows, goat milk for goats etc. That is natural. Not that I would drink breast milk though. I just ask myself that question all the time like why a cow? My daughter won't touch milk at home but drinks it at school or in her cereal. I just have lot's of alternatives to offer her to get that calcium. I've been told by several doctors we DON'T NEED milk.

My son was/is the SAME WAY! He won't drink milk (soy, since he's allergic to cows) or juice out of a cup. Nothing but water. I just put a cup of soy milk into his cereal in the morning, and that's all he gets.

Weaning your son probably won't make him want to drink cows milk out of a cup either. You don't have to suddenly wean him either. Gradually cut down the number of feedings - much easier on you and the baby. I read somewhere that if you wean before 18 months, you won't wind up nursing till they're 5 (and you'll never have to nurse to 18!). I don't know if that's true, but I weaned my son completely at 17 months, and he didn't even seem to notice!

I really don't think its a power struggle. He's used to nursing and he's used to sippy cups with water in them. As long as he's getting a nursing or two, and maybe some soy milk hidden in his food, he'll get enough of what he needs.

You stated that milk upsets your system. So why is everyone trying to push milk on your son? He may know something that everyone else doesn't know, that maybe milk upsets his system too! Kids are often very instinctual about allergies and food sensitivities but as adults we just spend all our time trying to get them to like and eat everything that we ignore the signs. I wouldn't push the milk and I would seriously consider not weaning him yet. While my son wanted off the breast at 10 months (I made him stay until he was ready for cow's milk), many kids benefit greatly from breastfeeding for a full two years, especially if he is sensitive to cow's milk. As long as he has other sources of iron (lacking in breast milk), I wouldn't worry about pushing cow's milk.

And kudos on raising a water drinker. My son is a big water drinker too and it is great!

Good luck in whatever you decide.

K.

Have you tried cold breast milk in the cup?

Try making the milk, that you do try to give him, mix it with some chocolate or strawberry syrup. Maybe that will help thats how we got our son to drink it cold.

Hi J.

I really wouldn't worry if my child didn't drink milk at all, in fact I wish my kids would never drink milk. I've been attending nutrition seminars and learning that milk really isn't good for us. It causes a hyperglycemic state by increasing our blood sugar. Cheese, however does not. Researchers believe it's the whey in milk that causes hyperglycemia. I've also been told in the past that the proteins in milk are too large for our systems to digest.

Personally I'd keep up w/ the breast milk and water. There's calcium in fruits and veggies and they're much better for you anyway, so stick w/ that. You're doing it right by avoiding milk.

It took our son about a month to accept milk from a sippy. I kept offering it, he'd maybe have one sip if that. Finaly, he just started drinking it like he does water. I did not give in and try juice since I'd rather he have fruit and OJ is SO tough on the tummy.

Be patient, persistent and all will eventually work out. Don't worry too much about the nutrition yet as he makes this big transition. Toddlerhood and eating will be quite interesting and challenging for a while yet.

Good luck!

J.,
Kids are so funny, aren't they? I would try to sweeten the milk a bit, as previously said. Only use a tiny bit. Remember your breast milk is sweet milk isn't really. You could also try to warm it up just a little that may work. My daughter went though this a bit also she only ever wanted water. We did sweeten cows milk a bit with a little sugar and warmed it up just a little. Keep trying it, eventually he will take to it. It is frustrating and discouraging, but it will come with time. Good Luck!
B.
SAHM Hannah age 6 Sam age 1 1/2

We also had this problem. Trust me it gets better. My son was a great milk drinker until we took the bottle away. Once the bottle was gone it was like we stole his love for milk. The ped. told me that it was fine just to make sure that he was eating other dairy products...(i.e. cottage cheese, cheese, etc. - also adding a little more milk to the mac 'n cheese).

It only lasted a few months and now he's back to his happy loving milk self. There are still days that he won't drink much, but other days he loves it.

Hope this helps.

I wouldn't worry aobut it. As long as he is nursing at least once a day he is getting all the fat and calories he needs, the milk he needs. Just keep offering. we aren't big milk drinkers here, my boys have cereal for breakfast and a small glass with dinner, thats it.

As long as he is still nursing, having cheese, yogurt, other dairy, just keep offering the milk, he'll drink it eventually. Make it a meal thing, milk with meals and water the rest of hte day. Don't stress about it, he'll be fine!

**edited to add** If your son eats greens and veggies, then he is getting all the calcium he needs. As for the healthy fats, flaxseed can be added to anything to add good fats, and most kids LOVE avocado, so push that too. Soy milk isn't all that healthy, look it up online, it has lots of hormones and its so overprocessed that its like sugar water with hormones in it. Almond milk is a good alternative for a dairy drink. We drink that alot here.
And he wont nurse until he is 18, the average weaning age worldwide is 3-4, and that includes the US whos average weaning age is 4 months, or not breastfed at all. Almost every toher country breastfeeds thier child until 2 or longer. Just let him set the pace, its not good for you or him to cut off nursing cold turkey, that nurse gave you very bad advice, I would disregard it if I were you. ITs not a power struggle, he is 13 months old for goodness sakes, he's not fighting your or being naughty on purpose! My youngest jsut weaned at 17 months with little help from me. I cut out his daytime nursing (before nap) at 13 months and he nursed morning and night until he was 15 months old, and then stopped in the morning by himself, and then kept the bedtime one until 17 months. It'll happen, cutting out the daytime ones isa good way to start but keep ti slow, one nursing at a time, and cut it out and wait a week or two before cutting out another one.
Good luck and remember that a healthy balanced diet is way more important that pushing cows milk, and breastmilk is the most important drink for your little guy!

I wouldn't characterize your son as stubborn :-) - he is just a person learning about the world like you and me. I seem to recall my daughter wasn't too excited about water at first, and wouldn't take it from a bottle - she probably was so used to formula coming out from it, she wasn't even open minded about water being in there instead and that being tasty as well. What about trying a totally different cup or time of day to offer the milk? If you have a choice about when to wean or not, maybe your son isn't ready to wean yet - my daughter decided that 17 months was the time for her. I wouldn't get too worried about "making" him try/like milk - it may become a battle of wills, and he may indeed be "stubborn" about not taking it if he feels it is being pushed.

Good luck, and I'm sure it will all work out in it's own time!
T.

We're in a pretty similar situation. My daughter is 13 mo. and has only been breastfed from birth and we're working on weaning slowly now. We're down to just in the middle of the night.
My daughter will only drink soymilk if its warmed up a little and she gets to use a straw. And then its only in the afternoons at the beginning of her snack when she's really hungry. She likes the soymilk better than cow's. I don't have a problem with cow's milk, but I'm guessing the soy is better for her anyway. Plus it lasts longer in the fridge since she doesn't drink it too quickly. I don't push it too much. I make sure she gets calcium from other sources like cheese and vegetables. I wouldn't worry too much about it. If you want to push the cheese, you could try different kinds of cheese. We discovered by accident that my daughter LOVES munster (sp?) cheese. And she likes regular string cheese. They really all have different textures and flavors.
I've also made up a snack for her that is made from cream cheese, natural peanut butter (no sugar added), dry milk powder, wheat germ, flax seed meal, and honey. Its full of protein and calcium and she LOVES it!
good luck!
J.

When I introduced whole milk to my son he didn't want anything to do with it either. I couldn't really blame him- he was used to breast milk and nursed until he was about 17 months old. A friend recommended rice milk and that helped with the transition. It does not have much for nutritional value, but it has a thin texture and a sweeter taste- more like breast milk. So, we mixed rice milk with whole milk until eventually he was only drinking whole milk. This took awhile (a month?), but I am not a fan of pulling a "cold turkey" routine on a baby. Things like this take time. By that time he was finished nursing all has been right with the dairy world :) Now he will drink whole milk, soy milk, yogurt, whatever.
Hope that might help you out a bit!!