Starting Cow's Milk

When we started giving our daughter cows milk it gave her diarrhea and subsequently a rash. She was transitioning from breastfeeding and there is no way to do that slowly. We just had to give her a glass of milk one day. When she reacted that way we switched to goat milk which is easier to digest. After a few weeks on goat we gave the cow another try and everything came out fine. I think it just takes some time for their system to adjust. She is now a regular milk drinker and has not had any problems with it other than it filling her up. We only give milk after she has had dinner because she will not eat with a belly full of whole milk. I hope this helps and good luck.

My son is 5 so it's been a while since I've done this. You can make the transition fairly fast (within a few weeks), cut back on the amount of formula in the bottles and see if the bm condition changes more. She is probably eating more fruit at this time of year which could explain the frequency too. Milk, cheese, is more constipating so I would think it would have the opposite effect. If you get to a higher concentration of milk and the problem gets worse try a soy or rice milk instead. For the red tushy I've heard that the product "Butt Paste" is great or let her run around naked and let the area breathe a little. Keep an eye on the other foods she's eating for clues too. Anything "new" could be a culprit and at that age they are trying new things all the time. The more food, the more poop. You won't know until you've made the transition more completely whether it's a dietary reaction to the cow's milk. Good luck!

My son, who is now 14mo old... never really had a problem. At least until it started getting warmer out. Now, he seems to go a lot more, and more than once a day. Before the consistancy was more firm. Now, it is a more loose stool. The whole milk did not take on this effect until it started getting really warm outside. We didnt really notice anything tho, that we thought was bad.
We just decided one day after his one year appointment, that we were going to switch him over. We had considered transitioning... but the doctor said try some out, if there isnt a bad reaction, just switch. I was concerned, my husband was not. So we jumped in, feet first. Really.. aside from the occasional tender rump for more than one bowel movement a day... we havent noticed anything bad.
Good Luck!
~H.

Formula is constipating from all the Iron. A breast fed baby has a bm each time they eat. which is normal. It is actually better for your body to have a bm about 30 min after a meal. So, having bm's more frequently is normal. However I do agree with other poster with the goats milk, much easier to digest, and better for your baby. If you think about cows milk, it is really for making a tiny cow grow really big really fast!
I started my daughter out on goats milk at a year with no problems. She now is my biggest cheese fan, with no problems. Milk however she only likes with chocolate, so I don't push it. since I don't believe it is that good for her body, and when I do give it to her as a treat I make sure it is organic, I figure she doesn't need any more hormones, antibiotics than necessary.

I've had the sam problem. My daughter is 12 months 3 weeks old. She started the loose bowels right after she got her 1 year shots. I am wondering if it isn't her shots that is doing it rather then the milk. My daughter has been on cow's milk since she was 10.5 months old as she absolutely refuse her foemula, rice cereal or bottles from this age. She has also, just today broke out in a rash and has had a mild fever for the past week or so. Her Ped. said to expect these two things but said nothing about the loose bowels.

Hi there,
A couple friends of mine have had good luck with switching first to goats milk. it's supposed to be the closest thing to human's milk. seems like kiddos tummies are still so sensitive and take a little time to adjust to anything new. i think that's normal, and the loose bowels are probably no big deal as long as she's staying well hydrated. Anyhooo..... maybe the goats milk would be easier on her belly to begin with. Good luck!