Toddler milk feeds Post Reply

[Wfm]

Please can someone explain the downside of giving toddlers too much milk? My daughter is 19 months and has three milk feeds a day, three meals and one snack. Why is it not advisable to give so much milk? She loves it so much. (There is no chance of her getting obese, she is on the small side).
Thanks

[Raspberry-Sorbet]

Has someone said that is too much? My two daughters are 4 and 1 and between them they drink, just under 24 pints a week. We buy 6 cartons, 4 pints each carton, every week. A little of that is used on cereal and in tea. My fridge is full of the stuff. If it was alcoholic, I would be embarrassed to open the fridge door in front of anyone! They are both slim and eat normally and healthily.

[klo]

I would say if you're daughter wasnt eating much food then maybe would be too much milk suppressing her appetite, same as when weaning and you start cutting down milk feeds after a while but sh's over a year and if she is eating fine and a healthy weight then i dont see the problem?? although im no medical expert ofcourse.

cows milk right??

When everything these days seems to be "added calcium" milk would be the best thing right?? healthy teeth and bones etc??

I think sometimes (again just my opinion) some follow on milks can be quite sweet so maybe not great for teeth on a long term basis as regularly as three times a day but cows milk i dont see an issue myself.

[Wfm]

Thanks, that makes me feel so much better. I've often heard that by this age, they should be on one milk a day, and from a beaker ( mine still drinks from a bottle). When we are out and about in a group, I am the only one that brings out milk in the afternoon and get lots of funny looks! My daughter just gulps it down!

[NurseryMum]

Each to their own I say! I wouldn't worry, plenty of grown-ups drink milk through out the day, and both my children (19months & 3) drink gallons!

[susiep23]

I used to work in the 1 to 2 age room at nursery and many of the childen still had milk in the morn and the eve and then we gave them milk in the day after thier nap time as an afternoon snack in a beaker. some drank all some just a little but the option was there. this would be three times a day they would have had milk for many of them.

Then i looked after twins after that job and they at 16mths still had milk before bed and in the morning when got up as did their older sister at 3 (from a beaker but they all drank all most times, dont think really matters beaker or bottle till get bit older, though beaker preferable when they start going to nursery). They had water in the day but milk if they wanted milk was not a prob.

[schoolgatesmum]

The reason for stopping a bottle and moving onto a beaker or a cup is because of tooth decay I think. Sucking on a bottle gives a build up of milk behind the teeth (and milk is quite sugary).