Transition to Whole Milk - Garden Grove,CA

I would mix more milk gradually every day. (Over like 2 weeks time) til it's all milk. Try organic whole milk. I'd keep it in the bottle til she's on all milk. Then a sippy. Call it "moo" or something different. Mix a TINY but of flavoring (strawberry, vanilla, etc.) if necessary.

I am on baby #3 and coming up on the year mark on my 3rd as well... sadly there is no exact science to it. I have always however started right at 1 with adding 1 part milk to 3 parts formula then a week later 2 parts milk to 2 parts formula if they do well with that and are good with it then after a week or two I pretty much take all formula out of the equation. With my oldest however she was still missing the sweet taste so I took all the little old ladies advice and but a little drop of vanilla extract in her milk for a few months and she was fine with it and gradually quit doing that she is 3 now and drinks milk just fine. As far as the sippy vs. bottle... I have always just rolled with what they are ok with just to get over the hump of getting them off formula then dealt with switching. Good luck!

You can use the sippy by going gradual put 75% formula and 25 whole milk for about 3 or 4 days then 50%/50% for 4 or 5 days then 72%/25% for 4 or 5 days then 100% milk it will take a little the longer then you may like but it will be easier on your child. Good Luck!
J.

i did 75% formula /25% whole reg. milk... for 2 weeks.. then 50 - 50 for two weeks.. then 75% milk and 25% formula for 2 weeks.. then finally i switched all together.. it worked for me.. but i waited until they were about 15 months old.. just because formula is so good for them.

I saw one response that I can relate to which is not giving your child milk. There are many ways to get your child the calcium and nutrients they need with out giving them milk. Once milk is pasteurized it looses most of it's nutritional value anyway. Yogurt and hard cheeses are great sources of calcium and you can get the other vitamins from dark vegetables.

Milk can really mess with your tummy so if you can get the same nutrients from other foods you might be better off. My 4 year old has never had milk and he's perfectly fine and healthy. My daughter just turned 13 months and isn't having milk either.

Well, my daughter just drank whole milk with no problem. I just switched and she drank it. Straight.

My son, I had to transition him, because he refused. So, I started with 2 ounces breastmilk or formula, with the rest whole milk. In a bottle. I did this until he got used to it. Then, once he got used to that, for awhile... then I gradually increased the whole milk proportions.

There is no one single way of doing it... you need to go by YOUR child's cues and transitioning.

For my son, the whole transition to 100% whole milk... took more than a couple of months.
But as I said, my daughter just drank whole milk with NO problems. And I didn't have to transition her.

Both my kids were breastfed.

I... gave my kids whole milk, on demand. In other words, I did not 'schedule' it nor only feed it to them at meals. They could drink it whenever... .and they drank as much as they drank.

Babies/kids... 'like' drinking milk from a 'bottle'.... because it has a 'nipple'on it. A 'nipple' is where milk comes from... it is instinct. Thus, they will often refuse, to drink milk, from a cup or sippy.

"Whole Milk" is important and recommended for 1-2 years old. Because, the "milk fats" in it is an important nutrient for brain development.

all the best,
Susan

My son was formula fed after the first three months of life and he started not liking formula at around 8 months though I still try to get him to drink it. I was hoping he will love whole milk once I started transitioning him to whole milk at 11 months. He hated it and won't have anything to do with it. I still try everyday or once in a while to give him some but he will only take one sip if he feels like it and that's it.

My son is 13 months now and I told my ped at his 12 months well check that he didn't like milk. He wasn't concerned because my son loves yogurt and eats three servings of it a day total of about 12 oz. a day. It is made with whole milk and has almost the same nutrient as milk and it's easier to digest. (I feed him the Yo Baby yogurt). My ped also told me to give my son 1 ml of polyvisol daily as a supplement. Polyvisol is a liquid multivitamin for toddlers. I add it to his oatmeal for his breakfast.

I found other ways to have him drink some milk. One is adding a little bit to his oatmeal in the morning. The other is when I cook him pasta, I add milk to make the sauce. Of course it's not as good as drinking it straight down but better than nothing.

In your case since your daughter will still take formula, it would be a good idea to do mostly formula first and adding a little milk and gradually lessen the amount of formula. In my case i didn't even do the half formula half whole milk thing because he was so happy to not have to drink formula anymore.

Good luck .

I introduced the sippy cup to my son at about 9 months, with juice in it or water. So when it came time to wean from the breast, I'd replace a feeding with a sippy cup of milk. Not sure if that really works for you, but give it a try - giving her the sippy cup with juice in it so she can get used to the cup. I wouldn't continue with a bottle. She doesn't need it anymore.

I did the gradual switch too. You might find warming it helps?

If she is already off bottles, do not go back. The issue is the milk, not the sippy, so stay strong on that one! ;)

I also did the 25% milk 75% formula ratio. My goal was to do it a wee and then slowly increase the milk. With my daughter, she was just as happy with milk and I really could just give it to her and she drank it. With my son, he wasn't as easy. He did not like it at first. SLowly he warmed up to the first step (25/75) but I think it lasted for more than a week. When I increased it he totally noticed and it took a while then too. But after it was abot half and half he didn't notice it too much when I added more milk, so I kind of sped up the last half of the process! I'd say do it for as long as you need to...as little time as possible really! If it takes longer than you expected, just roll with it! She'll get it soon!

The other thing to think about is temperature. Was her formula always room temperature or warm or was it cold. If she isn't used to cold drinks that could be part of the problem too. She'll get used to it, though, don't worry! Milk is so nice...so much more freedom!

Not sure I understand your statement of whole milk and lactose free? Have you tried it? does it have a funny taste? My son drank raw whole milk from the time he was about 5 months old- if I hadn't pumped enough for while I was at work. I do not recommend the raw- unless you personally know the cow, and the milking process. Milk from a dairy that sits in a large milk vat for a few days usually is better off being pasturized! (thought I should add that before the uprour started) But we made a 'formula' for him adding small amounts of brewers yeast and blackstrap molassas and vit. d. His iron levels at all well child checks were 14- so something was done right. Now, he still drinks about 1 1/2 qts a day. It is his main beverage. I wouls have to agree with comment below that he prefers it out of a bottle-like a comfort thing before bed and naps, but also will drink it out of a cup. He is now 2 1/2 and a very solid little boy! :)

I started transitioning my daughter from breastmilk to whole milk at 11 months. I did it gradually, replacing a few ounces per meal and then waited 3 days before increasing it. For example, if taking a 8 ounce bottle per feeding, then what I did was this...7 ounces breastmilk/formula and 1 ounce whole milk per bottle. Waited 3 days to make sure everything was fine. Then 6 ounces breastmilk/formula and 2 ounce whole milk per bottle and waited 3 days again. Then 5 ounces breastmilk/formula and 3 ounce whole milk per bottle and waited 3 days again. And so on until you have completely transitioned to whole milk. If not all the time on a sippy, I would recommend that by the time you get to 4 & 4, start using a sippy cup with the soft tops that way you are also on your way to cutting out the bottle. My daughter took to this transition fine without any reactions to the milk and was on whole milk right around 12 months and also on a sippy. She stopped using a bottle mid way thru the transition mentioned above which was great. I also mentioned this process to her pediatrician at her 12 month check-up and he was completely fine with it and mentioned that it was good that we did it gradually as well as that we had started when we did so she was off the bottle. If your family & baby have shown no problems with allergies to this point, I would go for it.
Good luck to you!

I put a little chocolate syrup in her milk (in a sippy), and that helped. We also had to use skim milk cause she wouldn't touch anything else, even with the syrup. Keep the milk in the sippy, though. That way she gets stuff she likes in the non bottles and is easier to transition...
Formula is still better for her than regular milk, for a couple more months at least... Maybe transition her off the bottles, then onto the milk?
Good luck!
R.

i agree to mix it with formula a little at a time. put it in a sippy cup if you are wanting to get away from the bottle. make a big deal about the sippy cup so she likes to use it. just keep trying she'll eventually like it, just like any other food you are giving her.

good luck.

Milk is NOT what is used to be.

I am a family wellness coach and here are two of the sources that I trust:

http://www.formerfatguy.com/articles/dont-drink-milk.asp

http://search.mercola.com/Results.aspx?q=milk&k=milk

Do your due diligence. My children are 14 and 11 and there is no milk, cows, goats NOTHING in this house, hasn't been for years.

PLEASE EDUCATE YOURSELF. Things are not as they seem.

B.
Family Success Coach

She made the face because the milk isn't as sweet tasting as the formula. Mix the milk with formula, adding another ounce every two to three days until she's completly on milk. This will give her time to get accustomed to it.

I didn't have any trouble switching my kids to milk. I started off adding a small amount of milk to formula then about 2 days later added a little more milk. I would say to add another ounce every 2 or 3 days and it shouldn't be a problem. So if you have a 6 oz bottle you might have the switch complete in 2 weeks! :) Hope this helps!