Milk Requirements for 1 Year Old

Updated on November 07, 2008
M.S. asks from Sparks, NV
20 answers

We recently transferred our 1 year old from the bottle to a cup. He is drinking Vitamin D milk, yet since transferring to the cup, he only drinks 4-8oz a day (and that is pushing it). He doesn't cry for the bottle, but I am thinking I should give him a bottle at night to up the oz's. I did give him a bottle last night, and sure enough he drank 8 oz before bed. Any ideas? How much milk does a 1 year old need?

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C.A.

answers from Los Angeles on

I think it's 16-24 ozs or 2-3 glasses.

My daughter is now 20 mos, and it took her a while to finally drink milk. In the mean time she had yougart and cheese. Now, she drinks milk, and wont eat yougart or cheese.

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S.S.

answers from Los Angeles on

About 24 oz a day. Try the bottle in the morning so he doesn't get dependent on the night bottle to go to sleep.

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T.A.

answers from Los Angeles on

My daughter has never had milk, save one time when she got hold of a friend's sippy cup. She drinks keifer and eats yogurt.
Another good source of calcium is dark leafy greens. You can chop them up very finely and add them to other foods if your child won't eat them.
Vitamin D is something that can be absorbed naturally, outside, from the sunshine.
If he likes milk, then great, but if not, it is really a highly overrated source of nutrition so don't worry!

1 mom found this helpful
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K.K.

answers from Los Angeles on

According to my son's pediatrician, they should be getting 16-24 oz at this age. I had trouble getting him to drink that much at first, too. But remember, that's 16-24 oz of dairy. Not just milk. I make my son a yogurt smoothie everyday that he loves. I put in 4-6 oz of plain whole milk yogurt plus fruit (usually banana plus some berries or mangos). I blend it up and he drinks it out of his sippy cup. He usually has a little cheese everyday, too. Plus, I try to get him to drink around 10-12 oz of whole milk.

You may also want to try different types of sippy cups. My son didn't like the first kind I bought and wouldn't use it much. Then I tried the Nuby cups and he seemed to like those better.

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J.L.

answers from San Diego on

Hi Michele, Sweetie don't go back to the bottle, that's the worse thing you can do. at one year old they don't need as much milk as when they were smaller because they are getting nuetrients from foods now that they were not getting before. What I did from one year on was my kids had juice with breakfast, and milk with lunch, dinner and snacks, in bewtween drinks was usually water, but if they asked for juice or milk in during the day I gave it to them, the sippy cups hold 8oz. J. L.

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M.C.

answers from Los Angeles on

If I remember corrently, when I first transitioned my son, my pediatrician had me give him a bottle in the morning and one at night, but during the day try to give him a couple of ounces of milk in a sippy cup. She said he'd get used to it and drink more when he got hungry. Sure enough, after a few days he started to drink the milk. One thing to keep in mind is that if they are used to having a warmed up bottle, warming up the milk will help with the transition. My pediatrician also said that more than 20oz will risk him becoming constipated. We would give him 4 cups of milk a day with 5oz each. Other than that, he'd just drink water throughout the day.

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C.Y.

answers from Los Angeles on

my daughter hated milk period. I was lucky if she drank 4oz every couple of days. My ped dr said not to worry and that as long as she was eating a well balanced diet she was not missing a thing. My daughter is in the 80% in both weight and height. Don't worry if he's not drinking as much milk as before he'll probably be eating more table food. Good-luck.

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S.H.

answers from Los Angeles on

give him more yogurt if your concerned about the calcium... my daughter LOVED danimals... and still has a few everyday

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C.M.

answers from Los Angeles on

Because he is one year he is eating much more solid food and getting calories from it--therefore he doesn't need to drink as many calories. My twins certainly drank A LOT less milk than they did formula. Just make sure he is getting enough calcium: my kids ate yogurt just about everyday. Also, cheese, some veggies, ice cream as a treat. . .There is also calcium fortified oj. Honestly, try to not to worry about amount. The important thing is you got him off the bottle and you really really don't want to go back. The goal is to get him eating and drinking like a kid, not like a baby. Of course, if his weight starts dropping a bunch (which I really doubt) then talk to your ped., but really, he is fine.

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C.H.

answers from Los Angeles on

About 16 to 24 oz a day is what I heard. Personally I don't know if going cold turkey on the bottle is the best way to go ( and I know some moms will disagree with me:-)) With my son, I start by offering him the cups (both sippy and regular) during meals so he gets used to the idea first. Arrange for some playdates (if there aren't older siblings) who use cups and let him watch them and feel aspired! In the meantime offer him a bottle in the middle of the day so he gets the required calcium, D and such. If you work during the day, then have his caretaker do it.

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S.H.

answers from Los Angeles on

What kind of cup are you using. I find that my son will drink more out of a straw cup, than a sippy (too much work I suppose). Sometimes, when I don't think my son is getting enough nutrition - milk or food - I will give him a cup with "chocolate" milk I use 1/2 a package of Carnation breakfast to add to the milk. He Loves it and it has a lot of added nutrition. That might prompt your son to drink a little more too.

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E.N.

answers from San Diego on

Neither of my two boys drank very much milk when I first transitioned them to milk in the cup at 1 year. It was an adjustment, especially with my first. He wouldn't drink hardly any milk, and neither of my boys have ever had as much milk in one sitting as they used to drink in formula from the bottle. I think it is just getting used to a different way to get liquids. Instead of 6-8 oz at one time, it is more spread out throughout the day. I try to be sure they always have a water cup close-by. If you are concerned about his calcium intake, offer him cheese, or cottage cheese, or there are other non-dairy sources of calcium, too. If it is simply the liquids that you are concerned about, be sure he always has a cup of water (or occassionally some diluted juice) and he will get what he needs.

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E.C.

answers from Los Angeles on

I had a hard time getting my son to drink a lot of milk at first too from the cup, but he gradually started taking more and more.

I think that as long as he is getting enough food, and plenty of water, you are doing OK with 24 oz. a day.

I don't remember what the doctor told me was the right amount, but I have a feeling you are close actually with food and water in there too.

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J.B.

answers from Los Angeles on

my daughters pediatrician says that they need no more then 16 ounces a day. most babies dont like to drink milk out of a cup at first. maybe try a soft spout cup for his milk so hes not eventaully only wanting milk from a bottle. try giving him milk at different times this is what i do with my daughter whos 19 months now. she gets 8-10ounces right when she wakes up in the morning then about 6-8ounces after lunch and then 2 ounces before bed. we started giving her milk after lunch because we are cutting her off of her bedtime cup at 20 months we have worked from 10 ounces to 2 and at 20 months no more. i hope this is helpful to you! good luck!!

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J.D.

answers from San Diego on

That is okay. My ped told me that I should limit his milk and juice to no more than 8 oz. per day. milk I can give more but then he doesn't want to eat. It will work out.

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E.F.

answers from Los Angeles on

A 1 year old needs 500 mg of calcium/day. 8 ounces of milk provides 300mg, so he should be getting ~16 ounces/day. I have a really hard time getting my 15 month old to drink enough milk too. I can usually get 8 ounces into him during the day, then I always give him a yogurt (provides 200mg - Yobaby) and some cheese. A lot of products are also fortified with calcium; I don't think you should go back to the bottle, just try other calcium rich food.

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S.G.

answers from Los Angeles on

You might want to check with your ped, it prob depends upon weight. But I was told to not switch to milk at one year. They carry older baby formulas at the store. We switched to that until she was 2. He's old enough to not have a bottle anymore. If you give him 4oz at all 3 meals and right before nap and bed, that would be 20oz. That should be a reasonable goal and enough.

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D.M.

answers from Los Angeles on

M.,

I would follow your instincts. My son was drinking formula up until he was 18 months old, and we didn't completely wean from the bottle until around that time either. But, I am a follower of the 'let it happen naturally' theory.

My suggestion after some thought is you could do what I do now, before bed we get a cup of milk (NUBY), and we sit in our rocking chair and read a book, and drink our cup of milk before brushing our teeth and face. My son drinks soy milk (lactose intolerant) with breakfast, and sometimes dinner but in our weaning process we just replaced the before bed bottle with a cup of milk and it's worked great for us.

I believe the max amount is 24 oz., but I can't find the link...try looking at mypyramid.gov for information about diet and guidelines for foods/calorie intake.

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G.S.

answers from San Diego on

I too have a 14 mo. old (daughter). My ped said that the milk consumption will drop and that is okay becuase they get all the same value from cheese and yougurt. They only need 8-16 oz. of milk. For my daughter she won't drink milk from a cup AT ALL, so I started to give her "smoothies" with milk, plain yougurt, fruit, flax seed. She loves them and I can slip in other stuff she won't eat too and she doesn't even notice (ie spinach!). Anyway, smoothies have been a god-send to me. :)

GOod luck!

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L.A.

answers from Los Angeles on

If he eats dairy foods like unsweeted plain yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese... he doesn't need milk, just water.

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