Giving Cow's Milk to Babies?

C.,
It is okay to give her cow's milk shes just shy of a month
from being one year old. This happened with a baby I was a
nanny for. She will like the cow's milk better than the for-
mula just knock the chill off on her first try, also it is filling. Good Luck!

I had the same issue with my daughter. She didn't really take to cow's milk either, but did great with soy milk. She took it from a cup with no problems.

Good luck!!!

This website has GREAT info on breastfeeding, infant sleep, etc. www.kellymom.com If you're still nursing her, (congratulations, by the way) that's the most important thing, even if you feel like your supply is dwindling. Keep it up, sometimes the supply fluctuates. You can try to increase your supply (there's info for that on the kellymom website).

Keep nursing because that's the only way to keep up any supply. After she empties mom, if she's still hungry, try a bottle of.. whatever she'll take, really. It wasn't *so* long ago that 10 months was the recommended age for switching from formula to cow's milk, (mid-90s). Some people also use goat's milk, although I think that's due to it being easier to digest than cow's milk. (And good luck finding *that* in organic.) Talk to your pediatrican or a lactation consultant about it. Keep trying the formula, because she could come around, but... it does taste pretty awful, so if she doesn't, give her what she'll take.

And if she keeps refusing formula, and you go with cow's or goat's milk, I would add Poly-Vi-Sol WITH IRON (vitamin drops) and a DHA supplement. The packages for regular Poly-Vi-Sol and the one with iron are nearly identical). For the DHA, I get Nordic Naturals strawberry flavored from the children's section of Whole Foods. It's basically flavored fish oil. My kids call it their "yummies". My pediatrician recommended both of those, even though we had no nursing problems. (Check with your pediatrician obviously.) DHA is being put in all kinds of things these days, including Horizon Organic milk. But, they charge a lot more for it, and if you just get a DHA supplement, it works out cheaper.

I don't recommend cow's milk for children until well after their 1st birthday. And for a girl, I prefer Soy Milk. But for the added calories I would give goat's milk a try.

Goat's milk is easily digestible, high in fat content (so it will give your little girl the extra calories she needs)and with a little barley malt to sweeten she should drink it right up.

My first two boys were big boys and transferred from my milk to goats milk without any problems.

A company named Meyenberg (or something like that) puts it out in quart size cartons. You can find it at Publix in the dairy section. I used Barley Malt (might have to look in a health food store or Whole Foods/Harry's Market) to sweeten it. Here is the how to put it all together:

Warm 1 cup of water and place a Tablespoon of Barley Malt in the water to dissolve. In a pitcher combine 1 qt of Goat's Milk, barley malt/water mixture, add another 1 cup of cold water. Shake or stir to combine.

It is a great alternative to the chalky formula and much more natural. Email me if you have any questions about it.

I am a SAHM of 3 wonderful children (6 yrs, 3 1/2 yrs, and almost 17 mos) Married for 16 yrs.

my husband and i started about 11 months with our oldest daughter (cow's milk). i also had production issues with her and supplemented with formula.
you can try to mix the formula with milk and see how she likes it. maybe it would taste a bit less chalky then.
thats how we did it. and we slowly decreased giving the formula and introducing regular milk. we just did it that way to run out the supply of formula. but basically, on her 1st birthday she was on 100% milk.
i know how difficult it can be, and no you are not helpless in any way shape of form. i had to stop nursing because of an auto accident. and i felt like i had lost that bond with her because i wasnt nursing anymore.
she is only 1 month away from turning 1. you did an awesome job!!!

Hey C., I give my son raw cow's milk. I was unable to breast feed after about a month. I began giving the raw milk then. He is now 10 months old and is thriving!! He weighs 23 lbs and is wanting to walk, pulling up on everything. The "raw" means it is unpasteurized. I use the milk as the base for the formula that I make for him. However I give it to my 3 year old daughter to drink and it has gotten rid of her constipation. And as long as I drink it occasionally, I stay regular as well. Because it is unpasteurized, it has all of the good bacteria in it that balances out your digestion. Please email me if you want more info. I can tell you were to get it. I know it sounds crazy, at least I thought so when I heard about it.

Because of the allergies so many children are developing, and so many antibiotics and pesticides in cow's milk, I would go with Rice milk, adding 1 tbsp cod liver oil (for extra fat and additional vit D and A). Rice milk is equal to milk in calcium, so there is really no down sides. My daughter has always drank either rice or almond milk. If for any reason, she has looser stools than you think ok, just back down to a tsp of cod liver oil as sometimes it moves the bowels at that level.

You have done a great job nursing! If you can get help from LeLeche League or a natural health food store for some supplements, great. If not, you should feel great about what you have done. Be proud, your baby got lots of good stuff.

J.

Goat milk can be hard on kidneys, so use it sparingly. Personally, since she's so close to one and with the new FDA panic about melamine in formula I'd avoid using that at all. Juice is mostly sugar, so try water first.

She may have lost weight because of a sudden increase in activity, although you're right to be a little concerned because it's normal to plateau, but not necessarily to LOSE weight. You can mix about six drops of olive or coconut oil into her foods to add calories (recommended by the GI doc when my son was extremely small). She can also have whole milk yogurt now, by spoon or the drinkable kind. Let her nurse as much as she wants to boost your supply, and eat oatmeal (preferably not instant). Flaxseed, fenugreek, and brewer's yeast (not any other kind of yeast) can also increase your supply. You can do it! Only one more month and you can add in (preferably hormone-free) cow milk if you want.

Absolutely not! Read about milk allergies and giving it to young children before you do this and have ear infections, sicknesses and allergies to deal with. Have you contacted or learned about La Leche League? They help so much with production problems, and have great info on how breastfeeding helps your child be healthier, smarter and helps you lose the baby fat!
They helped me so much with my 3 children, each breastfed until he/she was ready to stop and helped tremendously with my daughter who did have such milk issues that I couldn't even have milk. She's now 18 and basically has not had to go to the dr. since we stopped the milk! The dr. is like "We've never seen you!"

Some of my family and friends made snide remarks about the kids nursing till they were 18 but they managed to give it up, and really cut back and cut back until it's more of a quickie before bedtime. It's such a short time in your life, and such an important time in theirs. It's not just about nutrition either. I know you will do the best you can for her.
S.

I have nursed all 11 of my children from 11 up to two years so I understand how you feel. Goats milk is the best choice in that is the closest to human milk. You may be able to find a local dairy or get it at whole foods. Also...have you tried mothers milk tea or really increased your intake of water? Both of those things can make a huge difference. You might try putting breast milk into a cup or bottle too to help the transition if you haven't tried that already. Best of luck in this challenge!

Sincerely,
K. B

C.,

My son went on a nursing strike at ten months and I, naively, thought he was weaning himself. At any rate, after talking to my pediatrician, he thought I should put him on soy milk rather than cow milk because of food allergies in our family. He did not recommend formula at that point. My son had a terrible time with the soy milk (diarrhea and abdominal cramping) so then we were told to switch to rice milk immediately. He didn't like the rice milk so not only was he not drinking enough, he wasn't getting enough fats, either (since rice milk is so low in fats). I was so worried about him not getting enough fats for his developing brain that I put him on whole cow's milk. He thought it was great and we had no problems after that. He drank it out of a sippy cup. Breast milk is best, goat milk might be the next best (but it is very expensive [$3.50 for 1 quart]...I have to buy it for my husband), but in the end you have to find what works best for YOUR baby. I would buy organic if you can afford it. Good luck.

You can give her cow's milk cut with water. Or you could try the same with goat's milk (easier on the digestive system for babies). If she doesn't go for that you could try blending a little fruit with it to make a "smoothie" --maybe she will go for the different taste that way.

Don't worry about production issues, you got so close to her first birthday you should simply feel proud of yourself for doing something so great for your daughter!

It should be fine. My daughter wouldn't take a bottle when I went back to work at 8 months. We started her on whole milk yogurt with the ok from ped and lactation nurse. Stonyfield Farms make an organic whole milk yogurt. you can either get it fortified with DHA/RHA or iron. She loved it!

I really don't think that it will be a problem to start letting her have milk just make sure it is whole milk. At 11 months she is probably eating a good amount of baby/table food. Plus if you have tried formula over and over again (which isn't cheap)then if she takes milk than I would give it to her. You can also try mixing half formula half milk if you really want her to have formula. But really when finally get her to take formula (if she ever does) she will be 12 months and not even need it, lol. So good luck and I really doubt it would be a problem

If she still wants to nurse but you are worried about supply there are ways to increase that. Besides nursing more often there are herbs that increase milk procuction. fenugreek is the most commonly used and is easy to find. Take 2 tablets three times a day, yes that's 6 each day, for a week or two and see if it doesn't increase. Also Blessed thistle can have a similar effect. My midwife highly recommends the "more Milk" from mother love herbals. A quick web search should turn that up. She's had a alot of people have great effects from that. But honestly I think a lot of people go through a low period around the one year ,mark and if you and her want to keep going a little boost may be all you need to get your production up again.

That being said, I would totally give regular milk at 11 months if I were weaning, not formula. My oldest self-weaned around 11 1/2 months and we went straight to milk. He was a good cup drinker though, so it wasn't too hard. My youngest is 11 months now and barely drinks anything from a cup so we'll be nursing for a while yet. If I were having supply issues right now I would be going straight to the herbs, not to the formula can. Just my 2 cents.

HI C.. I have a son who is two years old and we had the same problem when he was 10-11 months. We tried formula but as you have learned babies do not like it after they've had sweet momma's milk since birth! Our pediatrician told us we could introduce cows milk at that age so right at 11 months I started dropping breast feedings and gave him cows milk instead. I'm sure it would have been the pediatricians preference to wait but desperate times call for bending the rules. Our son adjusted great and has no known allergies. I do have other friends also who started around 10-11 months just because they wanted to and didn't think 12 months had to be the magic number. Their kids are allergy free too. Hope this helps. I normally stick to the peds. rules but again you have to do what you have to do. God Bless you and your family.
K. D.

Hello C.....my little girl weened herslf from me at 10 1/2 months and the doctors told me to supplement to with formula but I didn't want to because the cost and the smell and taste of the formula. However pediasure was what the doctor suggested and she liked it. It comes in vanilla, strawberry, and chocolate. You can get the walmart brand which is cheaper. There is nutripals also. You can try whole milk and see if she has any reactions. This is what I did with my little girl. Hope my suggestions help you out a bit.
R.

I'm surprised that your doctor didn't tell you to supplement the breastmilk with cow's milk......kinda weird the he/she suggested formula. Most breastfed babies (that old)don't want anything to do with formula. Can you blame them? Babies can react badly to formula just as they could react badly to cow's milk. It's all trial and error (that's why they make so many different types of formula). Most people I know have used cow's milk to begin the weaning process starting at 11 months. I personally used vanilla soy milk for my son because we are vegetarians. He had been drinking water from a sippy cup since he was about 5 months though. He loved the soy milk and weaning was complete in about 3 weeks with no issues. Ultimately, it's your decision. Take all the advice with a grain of salt and you do what you think is best for your baby:)

Good Luck & God Bless!
~J.

Hi C.!
My youngest daughter quit nursing cold turkey around 10 months. She was a nursing champ and one day she just wouldn't nurse anymore. I pumped for over a month and used up frozen breastmilk that I had. I did supplement with formula towards the end, but it was expensive. I decided to start my daughter on whole milk about a month before her first birthday. I started by just putting a little whole milk in with the breastmilk and gradually added more whole milk and less breastmilk into her cup. My daughter did well with this gradual introduction of cow's milk. I never talked to my pediatrician specifically about this issue. They will just tell you what the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends. For me, I just didn't think that there was a magical reason that cow's milk automatically becomes acceptable at 12 months. Is it not OK at 11 months and 29 days but then normal at 12 months? Obviously, you need to do what is best for your baby and you know your baby best! Good Luck.
A.

since you are a SAHM and she's not on strike you could try nursing her more often to help with your milk production. you could also take an herb called fenugreek to help you produce more. i encourage anyone who is nursing to nurse as long as you can past 1 year. by 1 they haven't even gotten half of your antibodies. my second child is 2 and still nursing and my doctor says that is great and to let her keep nursing. i'm ok with it although i would really like her to be done some days but i know it's best for her health. do what you feel is right for your baby, mommy always knows best. i believe our gut instincts are right on. good luck.

Hi C.,
I pumped (latch issues) for about 10-1/2 months and had enough extra to last until our daughter was about 11-1/2 months. Starting around 11 months we introduced cow's milk (we used organic) slowly. It took about three weeks. First week, mix 3/4 breast milk with 1/4 cow's milk. Second week, half and half. Third week 1/4 breast milk and 3/4 cow's milk. Fourth week -- all cow's milk. Worked great for us, and that's actually what our pediatrician recommended.
Good luck!
Karen

I have 2 boys ages 4 and 18 months. I nursed my 1st son until 7 months, gave him formula and then put him on Soy Milk. My 18 month nursed until 13 months, but we gave him Soy milk from 11 months on in order to supplement with nursing. He did great and had no problems. He never took a bottle or formula. I started giving him soy milk at 11 months in a nubi sippy cup and he did great. Go with your instinct about your daughter. You can always try it for a few days, see how she does and stop if the results are not good. Best wishes!

I had similar issues with milk production and its funny how pediatricians change over the years. My son's pediatrician recommended giving whole cows milk or goats milk to supplement. She also told me to expect some protest as it would taste very different from breast milk. There is no problem giving her cow's milk as a supplement if she''ll drink it. My son has been drinking cows milk since he was 10 months old and has not suffered for it.

Raw Cows and Goats Milk from pastured Animals is the next best thing you can give to a baby.

I strongly reccommend the Weston A Price Homemade Formula, my little one is thriving off of it, totally healthy never gets sick and has the best disposition of any baby I have ever seen.

http://westonaprice.org/children/recipes.html

Do NOT give your child Rice, Soy or Almond Milk they are processed garbage. Go here they will explain.

http://www.westonaprice.org/soy/ploy.html

I would try and give her milk.Eveery Dr is different on when to give milk to babys.My daughter was on formula till she was a year old and then 3 yrs later when my on was born todl he can have milkat 6 months.If you do decide to give her milk make sure its whole milk not 1% or 2%

Hi C.,

I agree 1000% with Karen B. Every point is right on! If you do decide to try cow's milk, buy organic. Some of the issues with cow's milk can be traced back to the processing and the chemicals that the cows actually consume. Publix is usually the cheapest if you decide to go that route and it's certainly cheaper than formula...

God bless!

M.