Is skim milk ok at 2 years? Is it too early?

[benandmichelle]

Hi all,

Ben still has 200 ml of milk before bed. I have 2 questions:

Could and should I switch to low fat and when did your LO's stop milk in a bottle altogether?

Looking forward to hearing you opinions.

Michelle

[MLK]

My Ds1 switched to a sippy of milk at 12 months. he's still on full fat milk at 5 years and no plans to switch. They need the fat soluble vitamins - the synthetic ones added to low fat milk aren't the same.

When I was a kid everyone just drank full fat milk (home delivered by the milkman!) and I don't recall a single obese kid - and hardly any adult ones either! And it's still too early to tell if drinking low fat milk as a child prevents heart disease - there's no evidence for it at all. As far as anyone knows drinking low fat milk could actually increase the risk of heart disease by causing calcification of soft tissue like arteries and heart muscle.

[Mashi]

I've always been under the impression that it was not until age 4 that you should be dropping down to semi-skimmed milk.   

Babies and toddlers NEED the fat that comes from dairy products and unless he is getting that fat elsewhere, then my own opinion is that yes, 2 is way to early to be dropping down to skimmed milk. In fat, I don't think that skimmed milk is appropriate for children of any age unless advised by a doctor.  If you need to reduce fat then semi-skimmed, but not skimmed.    BUT that's just my own opinion!!!

[benandmichelle]

Thanks for the advice ladies. I was a bit confused as I read in a cookbook that 2 is ok but I do recall it being later in other sources I have seen.

[aisling]

We switched to semi-skim (2%) at 2 yrs.  Please bear in mind these factors: DS has steadily been in the 95-100 percentile since birth. (BF'd until 19 months) He is also a fab eater with a balanced diet and we eat really well as a family with avoiding processing and preservatives, colour wherever possible.  We also buy organic as much as possible and grow our own veg and fruit. He eats loads of yogurt, cheese (this is his weakness LOL, he will choose cheese over crisps/chips any day) dark veg, avocado etc... doctor and I decided that he was not in need of full due to these factors and at 3 yrs he went to skim for same reasons. We also use coconut and olive oil for food preparation and for (healthy) fat.  We also give him a glass of skimmed milk (half) mixed with either hemp, rice or almond milk in chocolate for a treat (the other half).

DS could drink water from a sippy at 7 months (would not take a bottle as a baby ) and could drink from straw cups, cups, mugs you name it, very early on. He started taking a bottle of milk before bed after he self weaned BF'ing at 19 months,   crazy kid.  No matter for us, I thought it was a nice transition for him, and he still would only drink his bedtime milk out of a bottle until he was nearly 3 yrs! DH and I didn't bother worrying as he was obviously capable for a long time in using other methods for drinking, he wasn't walking around with a bottle and we always brushed teeth before bed.  It was comforting for him, so I don't see why so many Mums feel guilty about having a bottle at 2 yrs+ if it isn't a habit and they can't drink from other methods. We figured he felt his milk source only came from a breast or a bottle but water, milky tea and his treat choc milk only came from other cups etc...He stopped having bedtime milk after he didn't use the bottle anymore and we have always had a small snack at bed since he was 1 yr, like a bowl of cereal, toast and cheese or a hard boiled egg.

HTH, FWIW,

Aisling x

[Seona1973]

In the UK skimmed milk isnt recommended till the age of 5 as it lacks fat soluble vitamins that are removed when the fat is removed. Semi-skimmed is ok from the age of 2 though as long as your lo has a good varied diet.

[Fiona (Leah & Kians Mom)]

DD stopped all bottles at 8 months by herself. Ds had his reflux formula until about 14  months, that was his only remaining bottle. For the rest of the day he drank regular milk from a cup. As soon as I changed that last bottle to cows milk it was gone, he drank it the first day, half the second then that was it.
Both my kids drink full fat milk, they need to get good fats from somewhere and milk is such a healthy option. I use it myself as again I have to get my full fats from somewhere and I only use it in tea and in some cooking.
My kids love their milk, dd drank 500 ml of milk this afternoon, she prefers it to water and as its so hot at the moment I let her away with it, ds is pretty much the same, who could imagine stopping their kids drinking milk. My kids will only drink milk or water :-)

[MLK]

You could always research vitamin K2 if you'd like to know more about why skim milk isn't a good idea. If vitamin D and K aren't available, calcium ends up in soft tissue instead of bone. So if you give skim milk they need to be getting those vitamins from elsewhere.

[mommy2mason]

I'm glad I came across this thread. I'm in the US and DS just had his 2 year well check. His ped said we can switch from whole milk to skim milk now but now I'm going to look more into it.

[benandmichelle]

Thanks all...food for thought

Michelle

[LizzieN]

Hey Michelle,
I would always use full fat for kids, I don't think it does them any harm and I figure it's a "whole" food as it is, better left as close to natural as possible.  Also I think full fat tastes better....
...isn't it amazing how many different oppinions there are though   It's great to get such a wide perspective from so many clever mums all around the world
xx Lizzie

[Shdef]

They need the fat, or the brain won't develop properly. Only very rarely, when the child is very overweight is semi-skimmed (never skimmed) milk recommended, but your boy looks like a skinny fella