I'm posting this message on behalf of a friend who would like to transition her 12 month old daughter from soy-based formula to milk. She doesn't want to continue giving her soy-based products and is not a fan of cow's milk. Any of you knowledgeable moms tried goat's milk? What other alternatives to cow's milk have you used? Any suggestions or comments will be greatly appreciated.
Rice milk is a great alternative. It is not in the refigrated area is usually near the boxed soymilk or the making area. If you ask someone at the store they can take you to it. It taste similar to skim milk
Both my kids drink Rice Milk. We have tried Almond Milk, which I really liked. The kids really like the rice milk, and it has Vit D and B12 and A and calcium and is Gluten free. They have plain, vanilla and chocolate
She could try rice milk. or just give her baby other foods that are high in calcium. Some juices are fortified with calcium as well.
We use almond milk in my family. I had breast cancer 2 1/2 years ago and I am unable to use soy products as a result of the type of tumor that I had. My kids love the almond milk. We get the Blue Diamond brand and it is the least expensive at Trader Joe's!
In my family we are not fan's of cow's milk either. We do eat cheese and some other dairy products but I have given my son since he was very little Almond milk. If it is vitamins and minerals she is concerned about we eat many variety's of green leafy vegetables also and a lot of cantaloupe. Almonds and all of the other foods mentioned are filled with the bone building vitamin calcium and other minerals important in a healthy diet.
Other options are rice milk or almond milk.
My son, daughter and husband cannot digest lactose in milk. He lives on Lactose free whole milk. My daughter loves soy choco milk and was never a fan of milk when she was one anyways, so I put two and two together and now she is fine and without stomach aches. I don't want to give my son the soy choco milk as it has too much sugar and caffeine in it! My daughter has the choco soy milk about once a day.
you may also want to look at almond milk. don't know the nutritional content is relative to cow's milk, but another nice alternative. also, sold at whole foods and possibly other major chains.
Has she considered Rice Milk or Goats Milk? I would think those are the only other options.
We don't drink milk...it's not necessary as long as you're getting vitamins from other sources...yogurt, cheese, dark green veggies.
J.,
Goat's milk is a wonderful alternative to cow's milk. Its composition is similar to human breastmilk and most moms I know who have tried it would tell you it seems to be easier for the babies to digest. It is very thick and creamy and has a shorter shelf life than cow's milk and you can find it at Whole Foods. Rice milk is also very tasty but I don't know what the nutritional content is like in relation to the needs of an infant. My son just turned 1 and he is still breastfed but I will start some goat's milk in the next month or so and see how it goes!
Good luck!
T.
My 8 year old son is allergic to both cow's milk and soy--he has been severely allergic since he was an infant. At twelve months, we tried rice milk which he is not a huge fan of but uses on his cereal, and orange juice with calcium. The OJ w/calcium is great because many of the brands have started fortifying it with Vitamin D, which is usually found in milk.
I wish I would have never started my daughter on milk. I am vegan and it's hard to get her off the stuff; it's not healthy and it's purpose is to feed a baby cow. I would go with almond milk. It has a nice taste and good nutritional value.
There are lots of other milk options besides soy. She can try almond milk (which has loads of nutrition), rice milk, hazelnut and the all powerful hemp milk.
Almond milk is really yummy. Try the plain one though as the flavored ones have lots of sugar (vanilla is insanely delish though I must admit).
Goat's milk is easier to digest and healthier than cow's milk.
Rice milk is yummy, but does not have much fat and tends to be high in sugar.
My daughter is 2 and does get some cow's milk once in a while, but not really any significant amount.
They "need" milk mainly for the fats that are in the whole milk. If your friend offers other healthy fats like avocado, nuts/nut butters and olive oil (on everything instead of butter) she should be able to meet her child's fat needs in a healthy way.
At 12 months it is a great time to introduce a variety of healthy veggies, whole grains (quinoa is great for protein) and legumes (most any bean or lentil paired with a whole grain makes a complete protein.
If she can get her daughter eating a wide variety of healthy whole foods she should meet all her nutritional needs.
Good luck to her :)
Greetings!! Some brands of goat's milk has an unusual flavor that a lot of kids don't care for. It is also really expensive compared to some of the alternatives. If she doesn't want to use soy or cow's milk, has she tried rice milk? My daughter drinks soy milk and sometimes we give her rice milk as an alternative (mainly to get her used to different tastes). She really likes it. It has a similar bland taste to skim milk so if and when mom does want to transition her to cows milk it may be easier. Good luck!
