Daughter Turning 1, Need Help with Switching to Milk, and Food

Updated on March 11, 2010
R.A. asks from San Diego, CA
10 answers

My daughter is turning one, I could use some help in the switch to whole milk. Also, what should does the typical 1 yo diet look like, food, water, milk ect. If you could offer a suggestion or examples on what the eating habits of a one year old should look like.

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S.F.

answers from Los Angeles on

Get this book: "Super Baby Food." It was awesome! It talks about nutrition, has lots of recipes, and gives a month-by-month schedule for when to introduce new foods.

Good luck!

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D.W.

answers from Indianapolis on

Your pediatrician should provide you with the recommended guidelines of what your child should eat at 1 year old.

We chose to do a cold turkey switch from breastmilk (son) and formula (daughter) to whole milk on their first birthday. We had no issues with either child. Both had been on table food for quite a while.

Be cautious with advice that says you should limit certain kinds of food. The American Academy of Pediatrics changed their policy a few years ago stating that unless there is a choking hazard or a known family food allergy, you can introduce most foods to your child at any time.

Our kids did well with scrambled eggs, string cheese, lunch meat (shaven), cooked frozen vegetables, most fruits (fresh is always the best option - canned have lots of sugars in them), yogurt, oatmeal, etc.

Here's what the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends as a sample menu on their parenting website:
http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/f...

http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/toddle...

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K.H.

answers from Washington DC on

You can introduce whole milk gradually (by mixing it with half the normal amount of formula or breast milk , and then gradually decrease the formula/BM and increase the whole milk). Or just give her the whole milk instead and see how she does.

As for the food , is she having any food at all at the moment? If not then you will need to do this slowly aswell , as she needs to learn how to move food around in her mouth and chew/swallow. If she has started baby foods and you are ready to move on to more thicker/lumpier foods then start with basic foods that she cannot choke on and offer them. Sliced ripe bananas are good as they are soft and they can chew when they don't have many teeth , the same for strawberries , leave them big enough for her to hold so she can chew on it.

A typical day for a 1 yr old would be something like this.

Wake up have milk , then some breakfast ( rice cereal , cheerios w/milk are good).

Another milk around lunch time and then for lunch , maybe some toast , or veggies , cooked pasta maybe.

Milk again in the afternoon , then dinner (this is a good age to be introducing the foods that you are cooking for yourself , pasta & meat sauce is good.

She can have snacks during the day aswell , fruits (bananas , clementine slices , strawberries , cuccumber sticks , bread sticks (stella D'oro are good as they are thicker) , crackers such as Ritz with some hummus spread on or cream cheese. Some of the Gerber snacks are good , like puffs or stars.

Hope this helps

D.M.

answers from Kansas City on

my so loves macaroni and cheese. I started him off on milk by progressivly adding more and more to his bottle until he no longer noticed works like a charm. and as far as foods just try anything soft at first and just work your way through basic foods, chicken, veggies, fruit. My son loves them all.

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L.B.

answers from Los Angeles on

check out this great food site www.weelicious.com filled with lots of recipes and tips for feeding a toddler

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K.W.

answers from San Diego on

I use to puree (meat and veggies) a small portion of the food that we would eat for our meal and feed it to our little one. I prefer this to OTC baby foods because I know what is in it. I don't know that whole milk is necessary anymore unless she is under weight. Your Pediatrician should be able to help you too. By process of elimination , you will find out what kind of foods she will eat. Introduce them slowly...

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A.N.

answers from Los Angeles on

It is recommended that you slowly switch from from formula to whole milk. I know from experience with my second son, that it was better to do it gradually. This means that for a 6 oz bottle, we would give 4 oz formula and 2 oz milk for the first week, then increase to 4 oz of milk and 2 oz of formula, and then finally all milk for the 3rd week. As for food, he is 14 months old and we slowly introduced everything and eats 3 regular meals and two snacks. Here's what a typical day for him would look like-he's a pretty good eater:

Breakfast-oatmeal and fruit
Snack-yogurt
Lunch-sliced turkey and cheese, a few crackers, and fruit
Snack-nutri grain bar, puffs, crackers, fruit, yogurt(if didnt have it in the morning)
Dinner-pretty much anything-mac-n-cheese, grilled cheese sandwhich-cut up very small, whatever we have most of the time but in very small pieces

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C.R.

answers from Los Angeles on

1 is such a fun age! As a mom of 3 kids, ages 8, 6, and 4, I remember trying to figure all that stuff out too while enjoying this fun age of new discovery and ability.

First of all, wean her slowly. Mix what she is currently drinking with milk, increasing the milk gradually to 100%. If you can do this in a sippy cup, all the better, since 1 is the age most doctors want to see kids off the bottle.

One thing that happens often is they are too busy playing, learning to walk and explore, or talking to want to eat, so sometimes they try to fill up on only milk. But, milk is not a perfect food, and cannot meet their full nutritional needs, and in fact too much milk keeps them from getting what they do need. So to be sure she gets enough iron, limit milk intake to 16 to 24 full ounces (480-720 milliliters) a day; increase iron-rich foods like iron-fortified snacks, meat, poultry, fish, beans, and tofu; and continue serving iron-fortified cereal until your child is 18 to 24 months old (many cereals like Cheerios have iron, if she doesn't like baby cereal any more).

Yogurt is a great food in my opinion, and I found it regulates their gi tracts well. But, if you feed her yogurt, factor that in as a serving or half serving of milk.

My kids loved fresh mango, black beans (cooked but not mushy), cooked green beans, cut up chicken or fish or steak (in small bites), slightly cooked carrots, whole grain bread with apple butter or another non-sugar spread, banana, pretzels, Rice Krispies, and other fresh fruit.

Since they are so busy, I found it best to feed them while you eat, and also offer small snacks they can eat quickly, or on the go (like pretzels, graham crackers, or fruit). I only let mine eat at the table, but always had a sippy cup of fresh water available for any time. I did not give my kids juice at all, and avoided all fast food. What they don't know about they won't miss.

Hope you enjoy this wonderful time!

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A.S.

answers from New York on

well I usually put my 12 month old on the floor with her food and let her play in it and also I purchased some toddler cups that really almost look the same just no nipple and buy apple slices and fruits she will gradually stop wanting bottles but she will accept the cup buy a real cool bowl and let her eat out of it u have to turn every thing into a game babys love games and also dont be afraid that she didnt eat much cause believe me they are the healthiest of us sweety u will be find if u can cook there will be a short time for the transition good luck

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D.D.

answers from Denver on

If you haven't started her on any food then you should start with purees. Start with orange colored foods, carrots, squash, sweet potatoes. Then the reds and yellows, and introduce green stuff last.

If you've already gotten this far, then start giving her things like chunks of soft fruits like peaches, watermelon, bananas, avocados, apple sauce (save apples for a bit later, as they are a choking hazard). Add some whole wheat pasta with olive oil, whole wheat bread and toast. Oatmeal is also good at this point, and it is fairly easy on the digestive system, not many people are allergic to oats. You can give egg yolks, but hold off on the whites until she is a bit older. Soft cooked vegetables, cut into small chunks that she can pick up easily. Plain, whole milk yogurt with mashed bananas and blue berries. Stay away from tomatoes, pineapple, citrus of all kinds, and maybe strawberries for a while. A lot of children are sensitive to these, and the acid in these food can make their poop quite acidic, leading to diaper rash. When you try these foods, try serving them with something that is alkaline, like a piece of pineapple with some blue berries. Also, give her tastes of what you are eating. The sooner you introduce her to the flavors you like, the sooner she will enjoy eating those foods. My son absolutely loves Indian food, and had his first curry when he was only 11 months old.

If goat's milk is easily accessible for you (like at Whole Foods) then you might consider switching to that. Everything I've read (unfortunately after my son is already on cow's milk) says that goat's milk is much closer to human milk than cow's milk is, and easier to digest. It doesn't matter if she's been on breast or formula, the switch should be done gradually. First switch is to 75% bm or formula to 25% whole milk. Do this for about 5 days, then go to 50-50 for five days, then go to 25-75 for five days, and then the switch is done.

This is a fantastic time to introduce water. Offer water to her every time you think to drink it. She'll learn that it is a good habit.

Stay away from juice as much as you possibly can. Juice is sweet, and children tend to fill up on it and then not eat solid food. Juice is sort of empty calories... yes there is good stuff in it, but she'll be MUCH better off by eating the whole fruit.

Now is the time to establish good eating habits. Since starting solids, my boy has always eaten while sitting at the table. At first, a small breakfast around 7 am, snack around 9ish, lunch at 11:30, two hour nap, snack around 2 pm, dinner around 5. If needed, another snack can be added. I don't know how much or what time, because my boy nursed to sleep until he was 18 months.

A serving of fruit or vegetables is about two tablespoons to start. Pretty much the same for pastas, breads, grains. Remember, her stomach is only about the size of your thumb, if that big!

I don't really have any suggestions about meat, because my boy refused, and basically still refuses to eat it. He likes sausage, salami, pepperoni, which is typical because little ones like the salt and fat.

Okay, last thing I suggest. Use real plates, cups, silverware. My boy was drinking water from a tiny, 3 ounce silver cup (it was his grandpa's) when he was nine months old. He never has a sippy cup at home. He has them at school, but we have no problem with him wanting a sippy cup at home. We do not even own any. Are they convenient for the parent? Yes. Are they just another transition you'll have to go through? Yes. Are spills annoying? Yes. Do sippy cups teach children to always have something to drink, everywhere they go, at all times? YES. Think about your grandparents and parents (BTW, I'm an "older" mom, being 44 and my son is 3). Did they use sippy cups, safety silverware, plastic dishes? Likely not, and they learned how to eat just fine.

Okay, I'll stop now. I hope this helps!

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