Goat milk, Cow milk, or Formula for 12 month old?

[GuavaGirl]

My supply has tanked and Ds has a big appetite.  He already eats a lot of food.  (3 meals/day + one snack sometimes)

I'm still breastfeeding, but I want to supplement with something and I'm not sure which is the best.

...Whole goat milk, Whole organic cow milk, or some type of formula?  (and why?)

He's had:

goat milk and seems to like it.  

a little cow milk and cow cheese.  

& he's never had formula.

I know goat milk is supposed to be easier to digest and I need to add folic acid to it.  I also know it's pretty expensive.

Cow's milk is cheap and easy to find.

I've heard some say formula is the best because it's designed for humans, but whenever I read the ingredients I feel unsure.

[carmel23]

What about a cultured cow milk like yogurt, r kefir? If you are still nursing, then he probably only needs a little more milk. I think the conventional recommendation is16 oz, no more then 24 oz.  But if he is still nursing, I would only give one 8 oz cup (or 2 smaller, 4oz cups).  And you could do that with yogurt, etc. which is a food, and not just a drink. 

[fruitfulmomma]

I wouldn't give formula. At this point a doctor would be recommending switching from formula to whole cow's milk anyway and since you are still breastfeeding some he is still getting the benefits of that.

Unless he has shown dairy allergy signs any type of dairy should be fine at this point as long as it is whole/full-fat.

[cristeen]

If you're still nursing, and he's eating plenty of solids, theres not really a need for formula.

But it does depend on how much hes really eating at those meals (vs playing w his food).

I would not give him a liquid milk unless you're ready to wean. Offer him water and more solids and keep offering the breast. Make sure he's getting plenty of fat and protein in his solids. You can include dairy foods like yogurt, kefir, cheese though. And then do all the things you need to for your supply.

[Anna Phor]

I would not give him a liquid milk unless you're ready to wean. 

Why not? 

My 16 month old drinks 8-10oz of whole milk when I'm at work and then nurses nights and weekends--probably 6-8 times in a 24h period on days I work, more on weekends. We've been doing this since about 13 months. I don't have any supply issues (crosses fingers), and I do know lots of moms who do whole milk in the day time & nursing at night, so I'm curious about the relationship between cows milk & full weaning?

[sewaneecook]

If he's eating most of his calories from foods, I don't think a supplement is needed.  Aside from breastmilk, a child doesn't NEED milk.  If you feel he needs the nutrition from cow milk, goat milk, or formula, find food with those nutrients instead.  The formula industry and the diary industry are very persuasive at making parents feel these items are necessary for proper development, but there are more nutritionally dense ways of providing those nutrients. 

[GuavaGirl]

I just realized I didn't mention his age, but you probably saw my signature.  He'll be 13 months next week.

I'll also add that he's thin, so extra calories are good.  (92nd for height, 40th for weight)  

 [As for my supply, I got my period back at 5 months pp and my supply was never quite the same after that.  I've fought hard to keep my supply since then, but I'm really just losing steam for it, especially since all the moms I know in real life have chosen to be done by now.]

This is what we've been doing lately.

• Breastfeed before 1st nap.
• Bottle of goat's milk before 2nd nap (he'll drink 4-8 oz.)
• Bottle before bed is a mixture of however much milk I can pump and goats milk, to make 8 oz.
• He still usually wakes up once night and breastfeeds.

Why am I pumping at night?  He sleeps better when he gets more milk and he's too impatient to wait for a let down (it takes longer at night and sometimes I get 3 oz, sometimes I get 7).  Pumping once a day seems to help my supply also.

Carmel23:  I guess I could use yogurt, but the milk is primarily right before nap or bed time.  Am I doing something wrong?  Needing milk to fall asleep is probably not the best. ??? He doesn't fall asleep while drinking, but right after.

Fruitfulmomma:  I know it's okay for him to have cow's milk.  I'm just wondering if bothering with goat's milk is worth the benefit.  

Cristeen:  yeah, he eats a lot of food. He's a good eater.  Good fats, protein (meat), fruits, veggies.  Why do you think I shouldn't give him any milk?  He seems to need a good 8 oz bottle before bed to fall asleep?

Sewaneecook:  I thought they needed it until they are 2?  At this age, are little ones not usually nursing/drinking to sleep.  He seems to need a bottle before naps and bed to fall asleep.  

Edited by GuavaGirl - 3/14/11 at 8:12pm

[akind1]

We just do whole organic cow's milk. He rarely drinks all that I offer. I got my BFP the day he turned 14 months, and my supply tanked quickly. He is now fully weaned and will be 16 months in less than a week. I offer him milk at bedtime, and sometimes when we are out (like at Starbucks, they have little milkboxes of organic milk). otherwise he drinks OJ and water.

Also he gets yobaby or yotoddler yogurt most days. it is full fat yogurt which is very hard to find. (at least in our area). Whether or not we need dairy products is debatable, I suppose, however I know we find them delicious, so see no need to avoid them, esp since none of us have allergies. He also gets cheese and icecream on occasion.

This is just what we do; but I think whichever route you go will be fine. FWIW DS is in like the 90th percentile for height and 15th for weight, and always has been. I try to up his calories when I can.

though I do agree, despite all the marketing for "toddler" formula, that it is largely unnecessary. I wouldn't buy into that.

[fruitfulmomma]

The goat's milk is supposed to be easier to digest and I found it to be that way when I had a good local supply, but now the only stuff in the stores is ultra-pasteurized and I won't drink it because heating it that high ruins pretty much everything in it. (It is so dead you can not make cheese out of it.) So I would say it depends on your supply of it and whether or not you've noticed any difference in the way he acts between the two. Personally I've given all of mine cow's milk with no issues, but as a baby myself, mom could not bf and I could not tolerate formula so I was fed a homemade goat's milk formula.

I am of the opinion that a 1yo needs something, whether it is breastmilk, formula, or straight up milk, because yes, they should still be nursing at this point and many of them are still nursing through the night. (My 27 mo is still nursing through the night.) WHO recommends at least 2yo of bf'ing as optimal. If bf'ing is not possible for whatever reason, then it seems reasonable to me to offer a substitute.

[carmel23]

No mama, you are not doing something wrong at all! I think milk does help us feel relaxed and sleepy. My lo still nurses a ton and nurses to sleep. I've never had one of those magical babies that just goes to sleep. 

I think if a baby can tolerate cow milk, it is perfectly fine.  My DD was milk protein intolerant, so we had to substitute with other milks, and I nursed her past 24 months.  (she is now 4).

My 15 month old son has no problem with cow milk, so I get a little for him and he has it in a sippy cup on occasion.  But he nurses to sleep. 

I think I would try cow milk. We get good organic, local milk that is not ultra pasteurized...

Quote:

Originally Posted by GuavaGirl 

I just realized I didn't mention his age, but you probably saw my signature.  He'll be 13 months next week.

I'll also add that he's thin, so extra calories are good.  (92nd for height, 40th for weight)  

 [As for my supply, I got my period back at 5 months pp and my supply was never quite the same after that.  I've fought hard to keep my supply since then, but I'm really just losing steam for it, especially since all the moms I know in real life have chosen to be done by now.]

This is what we've been doing lately.

• Breastfeed before 1st nap.
• Bottle of goat's milk before 2nd nap (he'll drink 4-8 oz.)
• Bottle before bed is a mixture of however much milk I can pump and goats milk, to make 8 oz.
• He still usually wakes up once night and breastfeeds.

Why am I pumping at night?  He sleeps better when he gets more milk and he's too impatient to wait for a let down (it takes longer at night and sometimes I get 3 oz, sometimes I get 7).  Pumping once a day seems to help my supply also.

Carmel23:  I guess I could use yogurt, but the milk is primarily right before nap or bed time.  Am I doing something wrong?  Needing milk to fall asleep is probably not the best. ??? He doesn't fall asleep while drinking, but right after.

Fruitfulmomma:  I know it's okay for him to have cow's milk.  I'm just wondering if bothering with goat's milk is worth the benefit.  

Cristeen:  yeah, he eats a lot of food. He's a good eater.  Good fats, protein (meat), fruits, veggies.  Why do you think I shouldn't give him any milk?  He seems to need a good 8 oz bottle before bed to fall asleep?

Sewaneecook:  I thought they needed it until they are 2?  At this age, are little ones not usually nursing/drinking to sleep.  He seems to need a bottle before naps and bed to fall asleep.  

[JudiAU]

I would choose the best quality organic whole milk you can find. There is nothing special about goat's milk. If you were really concerned about nutrtition (low weight, poor quality solids diet) you could consider toddler formula but that doesn't seem to be the case.

[janaavison]

We are going through such a similar thing right now.  Long story, I've had supply issues since the beginning because I got bullied into giving him formula in the hospital (don't get me started).  I was lucky to have friends donate b-milk until he was six months and then I went back to work, hardly responded to the pump at all, so we started giving him 4-6 ounces a day of formula.  We got into the habit, even when I was with him, of giving him 2 ounces of formula before naps and bed while we change his diaper and then he gets a nice long nurse off to sleep.  It's been working wonderfully.  Now, however, he is a year and I don't want him getting the formula anymore, so I started by ditching the bottle and put the formula in the sippy cup.  I wanted to do goat's milk, but he will have nothing to do with it.  Even when I mixed it with the formula, he wouldn't touch it.  Just today I bought some organic whole milk and he seemed to be okay with it.  I'm going to leave it out for him while we play and see if he sips on it.  What I'm trying to figure out now is if I need to heat it up or can leave it cold. We don't have any milk allergies in the family and he hasn't had any problem with cheese or yogurt, so I think it'll be okay.  I'm continuing to nurse (4-6 times a day now that he is sleeping though the night) so I figure he's probably getting close to what he needs of milk there, plus all the food he eats.  I think your LO sounds like he'll be okay.  Just try out some different things until you find out what he likes.