Too Much Milk???

Yes, it there is such a thing as too much milk and it totally fills them up and they are not hungry for food. Is he a picky eater? Does he have good language? Cut back or eliminate the milk and see what happens? He may act up but you want him to have variety and not just get all his calories from milk

Looks like you've already found a number of other moms who have been through this. Both of my daughters would drink a ton of milk if I let them. For my older one, who is a picky eater, she was clearly using milk to replace food. Not good from a nutritional stand point.

What I have done is offer milk only with breakfast, lunch, and dinner (thought the little one also gets milk with her bedtime books while we are working on weaning from bf). I only put about 6 ounces of milk in their cups. Once it is gone, if they are still thirsty they need to drink their water (which I also put out at every meal)>

With snacks they get water (and as much water as they want throughout the day). Also, you can try putting ice cubes in the water to make it more fun (I serve drinks in straw cups with lids, so no need to worry about choking on the ice).

My son was addicted to milk as well. If kids/toddlers drink too much mild it becomes a meal replacement, so they become too full to want any solid food. Milk will also make him a bit constipated. When he asks for milk try giving him water instead to wean him off of so much mild. He may cry, but a little tough love is necessary if you want him to have room in his belly for solid food.

Hope this helps...
L.

Does he eat enough solids? If he gets most of his nutrition from solids, I wouldn't worry about drinking too much milk. If not, and he doesn't want water, try to dilute his milk slowly, just a bit of water initially and then more and more... As he gets less calories from milk, he might start eating more solids... and he might also start to love drinking water. Congratulations on your two!

K.,
My daughter couldn't get enough milk when she was 4. Recently I saw a warning to parents regarding drinking too much milk. (I truly can't remember the source, sorry). They said it could lead to Juvenille Diabetes. (there of course are many factors, but...) My daughter had an onset of Juvenille Diabetes shortly after that. I always wonder what triggered the onset. The internet has so much information available now, so you might check it out.

Yes, my brother was 14 and in the midst of a growth spurt, when in the course of one day he drank a gallon of milk and a quart of ice cream. Shortly after ingesting the ice cream he started to get large red blotches over his face and he had trouble breathing. We immediately took him to the hospital and he was having an acute allergic reaction to all the milk he had consumed that day. He needed epinephrin immediately and then was on steroids for a couple of days. It really scared us; he had a reaction of giant hives and bordered on anaphylactic shock. His whole face was swollen up twice its size by the time we got to the hospital. Needless to say he cut down on the amount of dairy products and never had another episode like that. He grew from five feet to six feet four over three years.
A small child doesn't need more that a pint of milk a day to get most of the protein he needs. There are a lot of milk allergies out there and I think that too much milk could set off the chain reaction we saw in my brother. Moderation in everything is my motto. If your child is thirsty he will drink water. If he isn't he won't. Remember the old adage:"You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink."? Applies to kids too. If you are really concerned, consult your doctor about the appropriate amount of milk for your child. Good luck.

Yes. Your child can become anemic from drinking too much milk if they are not eating enough iron due to lack of apetite from all the milk. My twins are 16 months and our pediatrician recomends only 18 oz per day. Maybe you could try 50/50 juice/water instead of milk... Good luck!

what my pediatrician worries about with over-consumption of milk is that they "fill up" on milk and don't eat enough iron-rich FOODS and thus become anemic. At that age we were told to limit it to approx 16oz a day.A little more wont hurt but 1/2 a gallon will surely cut into how much food he'll eat.

There is such a thing as too much milk. My cousin was hospitalized due to too much milk. Try taking a tiny bit of apple juice and diluting it with water. Good Luck.

My daughter who is almost 5 has always been a milk drinker from the beginning. I always had to limit her consumption. I was not only concerned about the calories, but also constant sugar containing liquid on her teeth. I am a dental hygienist, so I am a little anal about the sugar. I stuck with the recommended amout of four 1/2 cup servings per day. Our rule of thumb is only to drink a sugar containing beverage with a meal (breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner). Water has never been a problem with my kids...started really early and never gave them another choice. Some kids are lucky, but when we see tooth decay at a young age (under 5), it is usually associated from sugar containing drinks throughout the day. Each sip of a sugar containing beverage lowers the mouth pH to a demineralizing level. If the bacteria that causes tooth decay is present in the mouth, decay can happen on the teeth. When kids are constantly drinking throughout the day, it'a a constant enviroment for tooth decay with each sip. So when we eat, our pH is altered in the mouth. So by only allowing milk to be given at meal times, I am limiting the amounts of time throughout the day that the mouth is in a tooth demlinerlizing environment. Water keeps the mouth at a normal pH. I hope that makes sense. Good luck!!

Yeah, that would be too much milk for your little guy. My pediatrician says that my son should have no more than 3-8oz servings of milk a day. When he drinks more than that he doesn't eat enough food. Of course, you should talk with your pediatrician who may have something else in mind for your son based on his specific nutritional needs.

Yes, it is possible for children to drink too much milk. If your son is drinking a gallon of milk a day, that's a lot of calories for him to be taking in from just one food source. And water is so important to our overall vitality and health that it really should be everyone's drink of choice. Anyway, I can't remember how much a 1 and 2-1/2 should be drinking of milk but you may want to check with your doctor to see what he recommends. To get your children to transition to drinking more water, I would suggest one of two things:

#1: Slowly but surely start watering down your sons' milk so that eventually their taste preference for milk vs. water will change.

#2: Start giving them water that has a squeeze of fresh orange in it for flavoring or, if you want to add a splash of fruit juice to the water, keep an eye on how much juice you are actually giving them and check the ingredients label to makes sure that it is 100% fruit juice.

Good luck on your transition.

My son is a big milk drinker as well. He is almost 5 and has always loved milk. When he was 2 he would want nothing but milk so I had to get him drinking other things. The answer to your question is yes he can drink too much. I had a friend babysit him when he was 2 and she gave him milk every time he asked for it. He was pretty sick when he got home. I would give my son a limited amount, primarily in the morning and the evening. During the day I would give him diluted juice and water. He was not a big fan of the water and that is why I gave him the diluted juice. As he gets older let him decide when he wants to drink it. Let him know that if he drinks milk now then he gets water with dinner. I also fill 2 sippy cups 1 with milk and 1 with juice or water and he decides. He can go in the fridge now and get what he wants. When he drinks both cups then he gets water. Hope this helps a little. Good luck. The bright side is at least your son is getting the calcium he needs.

Milk is not going to hurt him. And a two year old that actually likes water is rare. He's getting his liquid, so I wouldn't worry too much.

Try pushing more water or diluted juice in between meals and limiting milk only to meal times.
You could also try what Laurie D suggested. Start watering down the milk. Not only will it change the taste but you 2.5 year old will be getting some water intake.

It is possible to have too much milk as calcium blocks he absorbtion of iron (and leads to anemia). Ask your ped. how much your child should be drinking daily and try to follow it. The iron supplements are just gross!!

Hi K.,
LOL...no there is nothing wrong with that :) My boys were doing the same thing too from the same age to now at their high school ages and still doing the same thing. We too had a hard time trying to substitute the milk with water but they were emptying the gallons of milk like there is no tomorrow. Worse of all, there's three of them :) We just successfully able to push the water for them to drink or there will be no more milk in the house...lol...because we were worried about their constipation problem so we had to do what we had to do and to eat a lot of vegetables and nutrious food because they started playing football and to help soften the milk in their system from having that problem :) Drinking milk is not always about making the bones and body strong as everyone and television says...lol..we did some serious research about it and in surprised to find out a whole different aspect of milk...lol...Your child is fine :) I'm sure there will be a time that he will start substituting milk with water. I don't know if it will work if you try and stop buying milk for at least a week, after the last gallon and see if he will start drinking water even when he is very thirsty, and he has no choice but to drink water :) I don't know if that will work. Then start buying half a gallon and when he starts drinking milk without water in between, then try skip milk for a week again. Or you could let him know that when the gallon of milk is gone, there will be no milk for a week. He might be very well start slowing on the milk and start off with water in between :) It might or not work but it's worth a try...some children may have problems with drinking too much milk and some don't. Every person has different body system. Some children may lilke eating vegetables and some don't. Some may be allergic to some things that other children don't. Some children have sensitive body system to almost anything that some don't. Some children heal faster than some depending on the body system...with that in mind, some children's body may re-act to drinking too much milk and some grow up as healthy and strong. Try that technique if it works keeping in mind that your son may not have any problem with it but if it concerns you, then try giving him water in between. Also, ensure that he is well with other nutrition meal and don't forget to brush his teeth before and after bed time. Sugar can be an easy target to creating cavities...

I recently was at my ped's office with my 16 months old daughter (check up), the doc. mentioned not to give my daughter too much milk - 16oz max per day, as it will take away her appetite for other food and that that could cause an iron deficiency due to lack of nutrients from actual food (meats and veggies etc). I should mention that my daughter sounds like your son when it comes to milk - she could drink a 1/2 gallon herself as well.
Here's my 'milk schedule' (the drinks are with meals) - some days she does get more milk than planned - it all depends on what kind of day it is :o) So, only approximately.

Morning: 6-8 oz
morning snack: water
Lunch: water
afternoon snack: Milk 4-6 oz
Dinner:water
before bed: 6 oz

My pedi said that they can, it can constipate them, make sure he isnt replacing food with milk and maybe only offer milk at meal times and in the evening, anything in between is water, or something. I would double check with your childs dr.

My daughter did the same thing, and yes it can be a problem is they are replacing milk for food. I diluted her milk with water, half and half. She grew out of this stage but it was tough.

I heard that it can make it difficult for them to absorb Iron... I don't know if that's true or not. Rule of thumb is that they should drink 16 oz a day. Say no. He's the kid, you're the Mom. They are going to starve. Say no, no more milk until tonight. YOu can have x or Y. If he says no, say ok. Don't give him anything. Next time he asks say no, you can have x or y. I dealt with this with my 2.5 yr old with yogurt. I always made sure he could have a cup at night when he was tired so I would tell him you can have a cup before bed. Right now you can have this or this.

If you are concerned about his iron intake per anemia, which too much milk can sometimes affect, you can just ask your Pediatrician for "Polyvitamins- WITH iron" which are vitamin drops. This is what both my children had as babies through toddler-hood. My son, still takes it. And he is an avid milk drinker... and picky eater... and he will NOT eat any other kinds of dairy... although I try. The only dairy he will "eat" is milk. And he has had no problems with lack of iron intake. But my son does drink and loves water.

All the best,
Susan

Hi K.:
Looks like you received some good tips.I think the main concern here,is making sure your son doesn't fill up on milk,limiting the nourishment he needs from eating solids.As long as he's eating good,I wouldn't worry about the amount of milk he drinks.However,you should have him on 2 percent fat milk.He doesn't need the fat and the 2% carries the SAME nutrients as whole milk. You don't want him fat,simply healthy. Its A good idea to introduce him to different juices,or foods,at this age. He may be more apt to try new items you introduce to him in the future.Children who don't experience some variety,have a tendency to be afraid to try new things. I wish you and your boys the best. J. M

Hi K.,
I was tolled that yes too much milk is not good. My little girl would ask for milk all the time, and if she had just milk all day she did not want to eat much food. What I did was fed her food first and then if she still ask for milk I just give her a little at a time. It’s not easy but offers him other things like apple juice or water. When my daughter asks me for milk I say back oh you want juice or water? Ones or twice I say ok you want milk. Hope this helps, I also just give her 2% milk.

i dont think there's such a thing as too much milk. your child will have very strong bones!! My daugther (will be 3 in 3 weeks) drinks 6-8 cups of milk a day. I think that's almost a 1/2 gallon. Happy to say, she's healthy!