Coconut milk instead of cow's milk?

[peainthepod]

Just wondering if anyone thinks it's okay to substitute fortified, all-natural coconut milk for cow's milk in a toddler's daily diet. It has Vitamins A and D in it, as well as added calcium, and is unsweetened. DS is almost 21 months and weaned himself recently because I'm 29 weeks pregnant and my supply is completely gone ( ).

I already give him yogurt twice a day, and cheese when I can get him to eat it (mostly I have to melt it into things like eggs and sandwiches) so he's used to dairy. But for some reason I'm hesitant to give him pasteurized grocery store milk. If I could find a raw dairy farm around here I'd do that, but in the meantime, do you think coconut milk is okay? He has no food allergies that we're aware of.

Thanks in advance!

[nelson]

totally fine in my opinion

[Momo123]

My DS drinks coconut milk (unsweetened SoDelicious brand) instead of cow's milk because of his allergy to dairy. My naturopath said it is a good substitute.

[PikkuMyy]

There's no reason a child who is almost 2 needs milk. If he's eating a balanced diet, coconut milk can be part of that. Many parents don't given any "milk" at all, just water.

[peainthepod]

That's the brand I've been drinking, Momo.

PikkuMyy, every toddler nutrition resource I've read suggests that once they wean, they need milk. So far DS only gets water and I'd be happy to keep it that way, but I've been concerned about his calcium and Vitamin A intake. We already supplement with D3 drops.

Thanks for the answers, ladies! It looks like this will be a good substitute then. That's really lucky, because I loooooove coconut milk and now have an excuse to buy it more often.

[babybirkel]

we do coconut milk and almond milk for my 18 month old son. he is sensitive to dairy, but things like cheese, yogurt, kefir, etc are okay. just straight-up milk gives him a tummyache.

i think coconut milk is a much better option for a kid who can't have cow's milk than say, soy milk.

[Jilian]

The only issue is that coconut milk has far more fat and calories. We used coconut milk with my DS2 as advised by our ped because DS2 is/was FTT. I found this handy chart that compares milk & milk substitutes: http://www.fitnessspotlight.com/2009...k-substitutes/

One 8 oz serving of coconut milk has 552 calories, 57 grams of fat with 51 grams of sat fat. It is a good choice, but should be used in moderation because of high fat & calories.

My DS1 has sensitivity to cow's milk and he gets vanilla flavored almond milk (almond breeze). We've used vanilla rice milk in the past (rice dream) with success too.

[allaiter]

We use Coconut milk and yougart, the ice cream sandwhisches are really good!!!
We have been using it since she was 12 months old with dinner. She likes Hemp milk too. We have tired all flavors and the plain and vainlla is the preferd. But she loves the plain hemp milk.

[LadyCatherine185]

My DS has been drinking Coconut milk since my milk dried up from pregnancy around 19/20 months old. He had a dairy sensitivity so that is what we used. He can now eat yogurt, though, as of a couple weeks ago. I think as long as your DS is getting the cheese and yogurt and eating a healthy diet you don't need to add milk, but if you want to Coconut milk is great! We also get the SoDelicious brand.

[heatherdeg]

Originally Posted by peainthepod

PikkuMyy, every toddler nutrition resource I've read suggests that once they wean, they need milk. So far DS only gets water and I'd be happy to keep it that way, but I've been concerned about his calcium and Vitamin A intake. We already supplement with D3 drops.

My son is now 6yo (I'm in here for my dd) and has seen every specialist in the book for various problems--all of them mainstream--and not a single one ever noted a need for dairy in his diet. He was slightly preemie and had a broad range of issues so we saw neurologists, gastros, pulmonologists, cardiologists, every therapist type under the sun. You name it, this kid saw it. He was dairy-free from 5mo onward and every one of them knew it and every one of them said it was totally fine. We didn't supplement with calcium and he had some feeding delays (among other things). He was bfed until 5yo and didn't eat solids till after he was 1yo.

There is a lot of controversy about the "need" for milk in a child's diet. Sally Fallon's "Nourishing Traditions" talks about how this country "came" to that belief. I should note that now, at 6yo, my son is completely on target for his age if not ahead (he reads at a 4th grade level as of last year). So clearly, not a requirement.

[globe-trotter]

I was under the impression that you don't NEED cow's milk at all, but you do need calcium and you can get that other ways. I see no issue with that swap! We don't drink cow's milk at our house either....we travel all the time and its actually hard to find fresh drinkable cows milk since the USA seems to be the biggest group of drinkers of it.

[MamieCole]

Where, in the grocery store, is coconut milk usually found? I have been wanting to try it with my oldest DS and when DH went to the store he could not find it. Is it kept cold or not?

[AllyRae]

Originally Posted by Momo123

My DS drinks coconut milk (unsweetened SoDelicious brand) instead of cow's milk because of his allergy to dairy..

Ditto. All three of my kids do coconut milk instead of cow's milk for the same reason.

[heatherdeg]

Originally Posted by MamieCole

Where, in the grocery store, is coconut milk usually found? I have been wanting to try it with my oldest DS and when DH went to the store he could not find it. Is it kept cold or not?

We find it right with the milk. Usually nearer to the creamers, but with soy and nut milks if the store sells them.

[MamieCole]

Originally Posted by heatherdeg

We find it right with the milk. Usually nearer to the creamers, but with soy and nut milks if the store sells them.

Thank you! Our local store must not carry it. DH said he looked in the entire milk case. Will have to check at Whole Foods I guess.

[peainthepod]

Originally Posted by heatherdeg

He was bfed until 5yo and didn't eat solids till after he was 1yo.

But if he was breastfed until five, wasn't he getting milk in his diet? I'm not just talking about cow's milk.

I had to wean my son at 20 months and he's not getting milk of any kind at all. So I'm a little nervous about his calcium and vitamin intake. Good to know that it's not strictly necessary though.

[Blessed_Mom]

Originally Posted by Jilian

The only issue is that coconut milk has far more fat and calories. We used coconut milk with my DS2 as advised by our ped because DS2 is/was FTT. I found this handy chart that compares milk & milk substitutes: http://www.fitnessspotlight.com/2009...k-substitutes/

One 8 oz serving of coconut milk has 552 calories, 57 grams of fat with 51 grams of sat fat. It is a good choice, but should be used in moderation because of high fat & calories.

.

I am a bit wary of the cocomilk numbers. i have the 14 oz can of full fat cocomilk (thai) and it only has 150 calories total.

[tbone_kneegrabber]

People are talking about two different kinds of coconut milk on this thread, btw. Some folks are talking about "coconut milk beverage" for instance SoDelcious brand (which really is so delicious) and others are talking about cans of coconut milk, like Thai Kitchen coconut milk.

The "beverage" is more for drinking, while the stuff in a can is more of an ingredient, although you could drink it or add it to drinks etc (I love it in coffee)

SoDelicious coconut milk beverage unsweetened 8oz serving has 50 calories and 5g of fat

Thai Kitchen canned coconut milk 2oz serving has 120 calories and 8 oz of fat

[MoonStarFalling]

I never encouraged my kids to drink milk but they did nurse until well after 3. I used a combination of milks for recipes and drinking. I think hemp, coconut and organic cow's milk is sufficient if you can't find great grass fed raw cow or goat milk.

[rvamommy]

From what I understand, coconut milk is good in moderation, but probably shouldn't be a major part of a toddler's diet. I understand your hang up on pasteurized dairy, but anything you buy on a shelf in a grocery store is going to have also gone through it's fair share of processing in order to be shelf-stable.

I also didn't want to start my DD on cow's milk - we're still nursing a few times a day and she has a bit of a sensitivity. But I know that toddlers between the age of one and three need a diet where fat accounts for 30 to 40% of their total calories, so, we opted for goat's milk. You can find it in most major grocery stores. DD really loves it and I don't have to worry that her picky-toddler eating days are going to have too negative an affect on her.

Good luck!