Introducing Milk

Everyone says that to start with whole milk....but they didn't say that you should ween them off of formula...mix it with the formula 1/4 milk 3/4 formula for a few days....
1/2 milk 1/2 formula for another few....3/4 milk 1/4 formula then 100% milk...that way her stomach will get used to the milk and not in a full force blast....

hope this helps

You start her on whole milk. They need all the fat and the vitamin D. Are you still giving her formula or breastmilk? Usually most people who are allergic to lactose are allergic to soy as well so giving her soy instead makes no sense to me. I worked with a pediactric specialist with all of my children b/c they has such bad reflux. I had to start them on whole milk at nine months as well as breastmilk until they were about 11 months. They I just started giving them whole milk. They have all gone from the breast to the straw sippy cup. Have you tried that? It might work out better. If you think she is waking in the night b/c she is hungry I would give her closer to 6 or 8 oz and if she still seems hungry then thicken it with oatmeal. That always worked for me. Hope this helps and good luck!

I found that my kids did the same thing and I always just chalked it up to the fact that milk was not as filling as formula and that I needed to make sure that they got something else to fill up their tummy's. Seemed to work cause they went right back to sleeping through the night.

I wouldn't stop the milk unless she develops some other sign that she is allergic or not tolerating it.

My daughter is also 11 months old, and I haven't started introducing her to milk yet, but I do know that you should give them whole milk, not 2%, until at least 2 years.

Hello there! I mixed a little milk with my son's formula when he was small. I started small and watched to see if he could handle it and slowly decreased the formula and increased the milk! Your baby's doctor should of gave ya info about it!! They usually recommend waiting til a year and they usually tell ya to start them on whole milk! Well at least thats what mine told me to do. Told me whole milk til he was 2! But good luck!

H., My pediatrician suggested first of all waiting until after a year to introduce milk, it can lead to an increase cancel of allergies. Also, as a baby until between 2 and 3 yrs (depending on who you ask) your daughter NEEDS to be on whole milk or a whole milk substitute, such as enriched rice or soy milk. The fat in this milk in necessary for proper brain development, your child will not get fat from whole milk before 2-3 yrs old, if your child does start to have a weight problem, cut out other fats, use leaner milk, limit junk food, etc. You can ask your pediatrician about the importance of whole milk or here is a website that discusses some of these points. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002448.ht...

Also, some children can be allergic to milk protein (whey) or they can be lactose intolerant, which could be causing your daughters problem, but most likely her digestive track isn't ready to tolerate the proteins in cow's milk or soy milk. If you want to start introducing dairy, try cheeses and especially yogurt, because that has enzymes that help break down the protein in your child's digestive track. Some information on cow milk or soy protein being hard to digest under a year is also in that above link. Introducing easier to digest dairy can help her system learn to break it down without discomfort. That's why formula's and breast milk are so good, the proteins are broken down for the child. Good luck and feel free to contact me if you want to talk further.

You never mention whether or not you breastfed.If your daughter was formula fed from birth,more than likely it was already a milk based formula unless she had difficulties early on and they changed her to a soy based formula.I found,like Renee said,the milk to be less filling and she just upped her solid intake.Also as far as the juice,my daughters ped and dentist said to dilute it,making it 50/50 because of the high sugar content in ALL juices!Oh and the big thing now is water,water,water,I found this easier said than done,but I try;) Also when they switch to the whole-VitaminD milk you are suppose to limit it to 15-20 ozs. a day,you should really ask your ped about this,because each one says something different,milk also contains sugar and lactose which eat away at the tooths enamel.Even though milk and juice are what your baby need,to much of a good thing,as always,can be bad,go figure!!!Again you might want to ask your ped,Hope this helps and Good Luck,R.

Whne it came time to give my son milk (he's now 20 months), his peds said to start him no sooner than 12 months, because children can delvelop an allergy to milk. Also, children under two should not have anything less than whole milk; they need the fat from the milk for vital development. I mixed milk with his formula and each week increased the amount of milk and decreased the formula. After about three weeks he was on whole milk. Maybe you daughters body is not ready to process milk, and it seems like it could be upsetting her stomach; esp. if you give it to her before she goes to bed and milk is so heavy it just sits on her tummy. I would hold off until she turns one and talk to her peds about it. ~Jenn

I didn't have a problem switching my daughter to whole milk at a year, i just warmed it up and she went right to it, she prefered all liquids to be warm. My sister on the other hand had to mix whole milk with formula like the other responces said because her son(one month younger) didnt do as well as my daughter although when my dad babysat them both one day he gave them whole milk warmed up because he was used to warming up my daughters and he drank it all no problem. have you tried warming it? Also i agree with the first responce about the waking in the middle of the night because of a developmental change, my daughter did it too, she started walking shortly after that. and that was what i heard at the time, that waking at that age meant they were gonna start walking soon... And i do want to reiterate the formula or breast milk till a year then whole milk till 2 yrs.

H., It sounds more like your 11 month old is getting ready to do something developmentally and not so much that the milk intro is a problem. Most pediatricians recommend introducing milk at 12 mos. once formula and/or breast feeding has ceased. However, they do say that yougurt is a good way to intorduce dairy. I doubt 2 oz. of milk one time per day is doing anything to your daughter if you aren't seeing any other allergic signs like stomach cramps, diareahhea, gas, hives, eczema, vommiting, etc. Babies sometimes begin to wake during the night when they are getting ready to do something developmentally or they can be teething? If you give the milk give the 2 oz. in the a.m. so you can watch the baby all day for signs of allergy. Also, if babies nap schedule has been changed or disrupted lately baby may be experiencing sleep difficulties. Good luck!

There are no "procedures" when it comes to the individuality of your little one but the common practice is formula until 12 mos then whole milk until 2 yrs. After that, pediatricians prefer 2%.
Me personally, if I my daughter showed difficulty with whole milk, I might start out by adding a percentage of milk to her formula and gradually work her up to nothing but whole milk.

You really should wait the one more month until she's 1. Also for the first year on milk, you should give whole milk, not 2%. I started by making a bottle with 1/4 milk and 3/4 formula or breastmilk, and after about a week went to 1/2 and 1/2, then 3/4 milk, until she was just drinking milk. I also gave her juice and water, and make sure she has plenty of solid food because mild in not as filling as formula or breast milk. Good luck

HI - Babies need the fat in whole milk so make sure that she gets that. I started by mixing it with formula and gradually increasing the amount of milk v. formula. Good Luck!

Hi I have a 4 y.o. When I introduced milk I was told to introduce whole milk. Infants still need the nutrition provided by the whole milk. Typically you do not introduce 2% until after 2 y.o. The 2% may not be heavy enough to keep her sleeping through the night. In addition, make sure she has a good meal, ie cereal, fruit, veggies at her late day meal. Combining that and the whole milk should do the trick. Hope it works.

God bless you, your husband and family for their service to this country!

H.,
You might look for other signs of intolerance other than waking up in the middle of the night. At 11 months old, waking up in the middle of the night could be caused by a hundred different things, from teeth to learning a new skill like walking. You should consult your pediatrician, but I think one of the most significant signs of milk intolerance is diarrhea.

Good luck to you,
~E.

if your daughter is not reacting to the milk, then she's okay with it. you need to give her more milk to sustain her appetite throughout the night.

Hey H.,

Ditto on the breastmilk or formula til 1 year. I found this on Dr. Sears (attachment parenting) website about soy in case your baby does need to be on soy at one year old.

"Soy contains substances called isoflavones (specifically genistein and daidzein) that are similar to the hormone called estrogen. These “phyto-estrogens” (meaning “plant-based estrogens”) are much weaker than the actual hormone – in fact, they have only about 0.1% the activity. Soy has been used for years as an alternative therapy for menopausal hot flashes – so there does seem to be a mild hormonal effect in people that already have an estrogen imbalance. But in babies taking soy, I rarely ever see any signs of hormonal imbalance. For older children and adults, I believe the health benefits (decreased risk of certain cancers, heart disease, etc.) of soy far outweigh the potential risks. I use soy myself and for my kids. Populations that eat a lot of soy seem to be healthier than Americans. The only time I don’t like to use soy is in young babies as their only source of protein, unless they have a documented milk allergy. Many babies are on soy formulas that probably don’t need to be."

When we introduced our son to milk, we put him on 2% milk, but I would mix it with water so it wouldn't be too harsh on him, and at night I would warm it up first and then give it to him, he drank it perfectly, and even slept better. I guess that tale of a warm cup of milk at night istrue. Hopefully this will work for you, if not, she my be lactose intolerant, and then you'll have to switch everything all together. Also, try carnation milk, my niece couldn't drink milk at all, when we put her on that, she did just fine.

Hello H.....this was an issue for us too, but only the tummy troubles. Infants and toddlers are simply going to wake up in the middle of the night, it's just their nature. Our son started off on milk based formula and it gave him the worst runniest diapers you have ever seen and horrible pootin' like an 80 year old man gas. That was my first clue, something was up. Our pediatrician said to try lactose free next, he still had it but the gas wasn't so bad. (The gas was also one of the reasons he was waking up at night so much, and may be factor for your little one.) Still had really bad diapers, so next in line was the soy. He was a completely different baby...not gassy anymore and his stools were much better. Your baby might have an allergy to the proteins in cow based milk. Our ped. suggested to keep him on the soy but keep dairy in his diet by giving him cheese and a little bit of yogurt. Even that though still has an affect on him in little amounts. Also, two ounces really isn't that much. Most one year olds will take anywhere from 6 to 10 ounces. I give my son about 8 oz of warm soy milk right before bed and he (no pun intended) sleeps like a baby! If you try to go soy, give her tummy about a week to adjust. Good luck!

Hi H.,

You want to stick with whole milk. And you should start introducing 3-4 oz. a day. If she didn't get sick from the milk- she's fine with it and you can stick with it, but she will certainly need more than 2 oz. My daughter has her dinner around 6:30 and then gets 6 oz before bed time. If you don't feel comfortable doing an entire 6 oz. at this point- give her formula before bed. She is probably waking up because she's still hungry.

Progressively increase the amount of milk until she is receiving around 14-20 oz. a day- and be done with the formula. By the time she is one- she should be completely on whole milk.

When she is 2 or 3 you can switch her to 2%, but the fat in the whole milk helps with her brain development for now.

i have 3 kids and do not think she is ready for milk she is not going to digest properly until 1 year old you keep giving formula and change doctor my father inlaw is doctor and he told me no eggs and milk ,icecream until 1 cause you dont know about baby allergys myson igave him milk before and he a pain and did not slept good and he is allergic to soy milk, penuts and eggs good luck

H.,

You should not be giving milk until she is 12 months old. Until babies are 1 year old, they cant properly digest cow's milk. When she does turn 1, she should be on whole milk. Babies under 2 years need the fat in the whole milk for brain development.

My pediatrician instructed me to not just start out giving my son milk by itself, but to mix it with breast milk or formula first. For examply if the baby normally drinks an 8oz bottle before bed, mix it 2 oz regular milk and 6 oz formula or breast milk for about a week and then increase the regular milk to 4 oz for a week and then to 6 and eventually she will be drinking regular milk. She is probably waking up at night because the regular milk is giving her a tummy ache. If you do find out that she needs to be on soy milk try the same strategy with the mixing. That gets their stomachs used to the new type of milk gradually.

Hi H. -

My pediatrician and all the baby books I read said not to give an infant milk until they are at least 1 year old, and when you do give them milk, make it whole milk, not 2% or skim. Their brains are still developing and they need the fat in the milk for that. You can start with easier to digest dairy products first, before milk to help the transition. In my own case, I started with yogurt (whole milk), which my son LOVES. Cheese is also easier to digest than milk.

Also, soy can be dangerous for your baby (and you). It can interfere with hormones in your body because it produces so much estrogen, and it can harm your thyroid. A good web site on that is: www.thyroid-info.com/articles/soydangers.htm. A brief site about that is: thyroid-about.com/cs/soydownsides/. I tell you this just so that you can make an informed decision. There are lots of websites out there about this - just do a search on the topic. I know people say that "oriental peoples have lived on soy for thousands of years without problems," but the truth is that the oriental peoples don't (and didn't) eat soy the way we do. They ate it fermented, which alleviates many of the problems we have with the kind we take in today. (You can find it that way now, but I don't think in baby formula).

I hope this is helpful. God bless you!

I let my daughter have the formula for as long as she would take it. My father in law is a pharmacist and he said to keep giving it to her if she will take it which was only at bed time. SHe took herself off of it, but I never introduced milk into her diet you don't have to. You get a better supply of calcium through cheese. I have heard that cows milk is not great for kids try goats milk that may work also. I wouldn't stress over it.

To be honest, really consider if there are lactose issues in the family. I had to stay completely away from cows milk for my two sons. It caused terrible gas and cramps as well as excessive mucous secretions. I DEFINITELY would not introduce the milk earlier than 12 months. If that. Try soy, if there seems to be a problem. Sometimes, cheese is better tolerated.