[Judegirl]

Dd is off of breast milk and our ped wants us to stop goat milk and do no milk at all. This seem radical to me, LOL -how will she get enough calcium? Calories? She doesn't drink anything except milk and water, so she'd have to make it up in solids, and she's just entering the picky stage. (She's not big on cheese right now...)

Anyone BTDT? Advice?

Thanks!
Jude

 

[ZachZ]

There are some green leafy veggies high in calcium, but I'm not sure how well she'd receive them. Yogurt? Goat milk yogurt? Beans (like pinto) are high in calcium, and I believe almond do also. Does she like (or even eat) sardines? Sardines are even higher in calcium than milk. Just throwing out some ideas.

and yes, I would like to know why such an extreme "no milk" from ped.

 

[PumpkinSeeds]

My son is extremely allergic to all kind of animal milk except mama's milk. He has never had any kind of yogurt, cheese, or milk in any form cross his lips including hidden milk products in all kinds of processed foods.

In the US there's calcium fortified orange juice and rice milk.

 

[Evergreen]

Yeah, most peds are milk happy.

I'm no help, though, mine still nurses.

 

[bobica]

that does seem strange for a ped to rx. dd gets very little milk. the occasional chocolate milk or vanilla/strawberry soy milk. she's not that into it since the bottle went away

she eats lots of cheese & yogurt & i keep hoping the veggies will kick in!

 

[crunchyconmomma]

sesame seeds (tahini) are high in calcium also and don't forget - the forms our bodies evolved on (food sources like dk green leafies, not the milk of other species sources) are much more readily usable by the body. RDA's are based on false info - to get sustainable healthy levels we need a lot more of the fortifying kind put into foods than the naturally occuring kind.

we never *gave* our son milk. he weaned somewhere around 16 months (started up again a long time after that, but that's another story!) he had some milk, but not because we bought it for him to get the nutrition. the same way he has juice - sometimes when we are in the mood we buy some.

does your child like soups with lots of stuff to make it thick? we make a veggie bean soup with chopped up greens like bok choy (SUPER high in calcium) and chard.

good luck!

 

[Mere]

I too think it's wierd that your ped told you to stop goat milk...if there's no compelling medical reason to stop goat milk, I'd keep giving it to him. Don't they say goat milk is the closest form of milk there is to breastmilk?

We don't worry about milk too much here. Dd weaned around 18-20 months, and pretty much just drinks water even to this day. She can have milk if she wants it (and does like it in cereal), but she's never cared for it too much. She eats a lot of cheese, but we do give her a calcium supplement just in case.

Ds is still nursing enough, but when he does wean I don't plan on offering him milk as a substitute.

 

[TiredX2]

How old is your child?

Children really do need a milk source until at least 2-2.5 years of age (the minimum age they are biologically ready to wean). After that, humans aren't actually designed to drink milk, but it is an easy source of calories & minerals so most people *do* continue to drink some form of milk.

What was the pediatricians reasoning? Has your DD been showing signs of allergy to milk? If so, could you relactate? Does your DD eat meat, eggs, avacado, etc... (high fat sources)? Toddlers really need a fairly high fat diet--- their brains are still growing quickly.

 

[anudi01]

I am still nursing my 20 month old, but since I he was around 16 months old, my milk dried up due to pregnancy. I debated and debated whether to start an alternate milk source, but like pp mentioned, humans aren't really meant to drink other animal milk source, IMO. My son actually eats pretty well, so I'm not worried. What I do, though, just to put my mind at ease about the calcium issue is I steam very gently (brocolli, kale, spinach, beet greens, carrots, or whatever other veggies I have on hand), then I puree them in the food processor. I freeze the puree in ice cube trays, and add it to whatever I'm serving him that day i.e. rice, pasta, soup, etc. You can also grind up nuts and seeds (if they are not into eating them) and hide them in all kinds of things. It takes a little more effort (I know) than pouring a glass of milk, but I think in the long run they will be much better off with the variety. And who knows, they might even develop the tastes for those greens, nuts, and seeds as they mature.

 

[Judegirl]

My pediatrician is crunchy - aromatherapy, homeopathy, nutritional healing.

 

[lisalou]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Judegirl My pediatrician is crunchy - aromatherapy, homeopathy, nutritional healing.

Did he then recommend other ways of getting calcium to you or tell you why goats milk isn't good for her? I would call the office and find out what he suggests. To me, regardless of if my ped is crunchy or old school any blanket statement to stop something that appears to be doing no harm or start something that I think might harm dd I'd want a reason why. There are lots of other sources for calcium and also calcium fortified juice if worse comes to worse. But I doubt a crunchy ped would recommend that.

 

[surf mama]

My dd only drinks rice milk. But she does eat yogurt. If you need to avoid dairy all together I would recommend putting a few greens in a smoothie-you can't really taste them that way. You can also puree greens or add ground nuts and seeds to muffins or pancakes...I know sesame seeds and almonds are especially good for calcium. With a little creativity I think toddlers can be very healthy without cows milk. I know people worry about missing out on the fat from milk...but I just add extra good fats to her diet like olive oil drizzled on her toast or veggies and nuts and seeds.

 

[ratlover]

We're vegan, so dd basically is too. I just weaned her and she's 26 months, so now she's really vegan. She's very tall (90th percentile), healthy, and really advanced when it comes to language, so cutting out dairy won't necessarily harm your dd. We do it for ethical reasons, so I don't think that veganism is automatically the healthiest way to go. Anyway, most soy milks, rice milks, and almond milks have just as much calcium as milk without the cholesterol and baby-cow growth hormones that milk does. And it can take around 12 times of introducing a food before your child will accept it, so just keep putting green veggies on the plate. Gisele will often eat the sauteed green I make and I think it's in part because I'm not afraid to salt them. It really makes them more appealing. And one thing she (and her cousins) love to snack on are seaweed sushi wrappers straight out of the package. I don't know if they're high in Ca, but they have to be healthy.
By the way, are you the same Judegirl who posts on BBB?
Janine

 

[amybw]

My chiro recommended i cut all dairy for myself and DS.
He suggested almond or soy milk.

Amy

 

[EMT-Mom]

Blue Dimond Almond milk rules!!! and kids love it