Whole Milk - Phoenix,AZ

P., you are in PHX and with the summer months approaching, it is not a good idea to leave milk sitting out. Milk can already be tainted with bacteria, and then to leave it sitting out with a bit of saliva in it, I can't imagine it would be good.

I don't know if it is okay or not, but I would follow the food handling guidelines that say no food out for more than 2 hours. I don't give my son a whole lot of milk, just 2 cups a day, and I always put them immediately back in the fridge if he doesn't drink it. I have forgotten before and had milk that smelled fine when I poured it, but after about 4 hours at room temp it smelled sour. That's when I started refrigerating it right away.

My daughter is 15 months and on occasion she still asks for milk in the middle of the night. This is not abnormal as all 4 of my children got up for drinks almost every night until they were 4 years old.

I wouldn't leave the cup of milk out all night, especially now that the weather is getting warm. When my little one sleeps with me (yes on occasion we do co-sleep) she does sip on her milk before falling asleep. As she getts really tired she asks for her pacifier. As soon as she passes out, I stick her cup in the fridge. If you prefer not to have to get out of bed, keep a lunch bag by your bed with an ice pack in it. It works for school lunches, so it will work until the mid night feeding.

I have to agree with it not being ok..dairy products in general form a really bad bacteria and it could cause your baby to get very sick...for instance lets say one night she doesnt wake up till 2 and you give her the rest of it and it was just sitting out 5 min to long how horrible would that be :( just to be on the safe side I would at least put it back in the fridge or to be really safe make her a new one

Hi there. Do yourself a favor and call the airlines and see how much powder and liquid you can take with you. I had my 5 month old on a plane and we got stuck for over FOUR HOURS on the runway. I was breastfeeding so I did not run out of milk, but you never know what can happen with plane delays!
Good luck!

www.bebettertoyourself.blogspot.com

I only put about an ounce at a time in the cups or bottles for night-time babies, keep the light off when I change a diaper and they usually take a few sips and fall back to sleep. This way, I don't waste much. I'd rather get up in the middle of the night and have to go get more and a clean cup or bottle than risk a child getting sick.

Taht said, I'm sure we've all forgotten to put a bottle away one time or another and then been horrified to find a toddler drinking it and knew instantly they had something they shouldn't. I've never seen one of them actually get sick by this. But YUCK. :) It's not wise. I try to never let this happen.

if it's easier for you to keep it by you, then I would get a small cooler and an ice pack. so then after she is done, you can place in the cooler with the ice pack and it will keep it cold until she wants the rest.

Giving her whole millk, she is around a year old, and she shouldn't be needing to have anything at 1 in the morning. By now she should be able to go the entire night without eating. You might try one night, not giving it to her and see if she falls back asleep. But if she is in a growth spurt, she may need it.

I try not to leave milk out very long, just becuase i don't want it to go bad or sour tasting. I figure it's expensive as it is, and so i really watch it so it doesn't get wasted

This is really not okay. Milk will spoil not to long after being out. Probably sooner that formula. Plus, allowing something to drink in the crib allows the milk/formula to sit of her gums, which will later increase risks of tooth decay and cavities.

Formula only expires after an hour if you have rewarmed it , otherwise it's good for 24 hrs if kept in the fridge. Whole milk does not do so well out of the fridge. As your child is taking whole milk I am assuming she is 12 months or older? There is not really any need for her to be waking at 1am to drink milk , and is doing this more so out of habit , yes they like milk before they go to bed , my kids still do but I don't think she should wake for a "feed" in the early hours....my opinion would be to stop this as soon as possible.

I would refrigerate whatever she doesn't drink. If the milk is fresh it can be kept out of refrigeration for a couple of hours but unless you just bought milk the first day it was put on the shelf and you have had it less than a couple of days, I wouldn't risk it.

How old is your daughter? If she just takes a few sips she doesn't need the milk. If she's over a year you could give her water. But better yet, you could wean her off the 10 pm feeding.

I have one of those hand coolers that i put a couple of ice packs in so the bottle will stay chilled through out the night.