Milk for young children. Good or bad?

[SizzlingBaby]

My friend told me that she attended a seminar some time back and the speaker (a doctor from Taiwan) recommend that for children who started on solid food should stop drinking (cow) milk.

The speaker said that there are too much protein and additives such as DHA (and god-knows-wat) in processed milk and a child's body would have difficulty to absorb them and clear away the residue acid. The child would be less healthy as his body will use its existing calcium to neutralise the body's acidic condition.

My friend commented that since she stopped her first and second child on milk, she realised that they are more resilience to flu.

What is you take on this? I am considering to cut down on milk for my son. He is two years old and he is very prone to flu. On one hand, I would like to try and see if stopping milk can make my boy stronger. On the other hand, I am worried that he might lose out on the critical nutrients.

Any advice?

[sundaymorningstaple]

I've drank milk since I was a toddler (fresh or pasteurized - no formula back then) till now. I've got extremely strong bones, good teeth and rarely if ever get sick. I've had the flu once in the past 30 years - felt bad for about 36 hours and that was it.

Aside from the lactose intolerance found among some Asians, I do know that there is a growing body of researchers who claim that it isn't good for you. Having said that, I don't see any anecdotal evidence to support it. Nor have I seen any long term double-blind studies to support it either.

My kids have drank milk since they were born as well. They rarely are sick either and the are now 18 & 24.

[road.not.taken]

Unless you plan on breast feeding him until he is 18, I'd keep dairy on the menu in one form or another. It doesn't have to be milk. My kids are not big milk drinkers, but the eat cheese & yogurt. They are rarely sick. How could your friend possible measure resilience to flu? Impossible.

SMS, we had a milk man who delivered to the house, of course. 5 gallon containers with taps. I think there were a lot less hormones in the milk back then.

[Matney]

When my children were toddlers, their GP told me not to worry about them not liking milk as milk was for cows. So I didn't. They appear to have grown into fine young adults. I didn't like milk as a child because it came straight from the cow into the house and the cream on top turned me off milk.

[durain]

the best is breast milk, period. feed them breast milk as long as you can (even up to 4 years old).

[viajera]

my take on this is that i a child has just STARTED on solids, it's not yet time to stop milk (breastmilk is ideal). when he's able to eat regular meals (which, at 2 yo, he should be), i think you can start weaning him off milk.

my son never had cow's milk due to milk allergies, and although he has already outgrown it, he now doesn't like the taste of milk. he does eat cheese, yoghurt and other dairy products, though. i think as long as your child has other calcium sources, he should be fine.

[road.not.taken]

the best is breast milk, period. feed them breast milk as long as you can (even up to 4 years old).

Four years old? Breast milk maybe best, but four years old? Ridiculous.

Lots of things are 'best' but we make concessions each and every day. It would be 'best' to never ride in a car. It would be 'best' to eat 100% organic. It would be 'best' to never eat sugar. Back to the OP's concern -- your friend may be well intentioned but they sound very one-sided to me. If the link between milk and flu was so direct, don't you think it would be accepted as common practice by now?

[PhoenixT]

I think every generation will have it's 'new research' to say something is good or bad for infants. In my parent's days, it was good to start adding oats in milk for infants at 6 weeks old.

As for milk, there is certainly truth about the digestive differences between humans and cows and most of cows milk we buy in shops today are highly processed. Goats milk is much more natural and easier for human baby's digestion.

My pediatrician says at 2 y.o. children doesn't need that much milk - 16 oz a day. Supplement this is yogurt, cheese, etc.

In terms of the link between milk and flu - I think it has to do with the enymes in milk and how it MAY contribute to congestions if a child is sick...but again I'm no medical professional. CHeck w/your pediatrician.

[sundaymorningstaple]

SMS, we had a milk man who delivered to the house, of course. 5 gallon containers with taps. I think there were a lot less hormones in the milk back then.

Boy that brings back memories! I always had warm milk for brekky and chilled for lunch & dinner. Would also have a 4th before bedtime as well but mixed with Hershey's chocolate (remember the brown tins). The warm for breakfast was because it was only about 100 yards between the milking shed and the kitchen at when you get up a 3:30 am to start milking 150 head of dairy cows you always have "fresh" milk!

Recognize these:

[familyof5]

people who have dairly allergies are just fine without milk. there are plenty of other calcium sources. its probably an easy source of calcium, my mother has osteoperosis (?) and i probably should drink more milk of the low fat calcium rich kind.

to say that milk makes you susceptable to flu would indicate that it compromises your immune system in some way. i know of no study that supportsthat theory, and thats really the only way that you can measure these things.

what i do know is that when you eat sources of calcium and iron together, then the calcium inhibits the absorbtion of iron. as a result i never give my toddler milk with meals. just water. and i try to give her something with vitamin c in it when she eats iron rich food. as vit c encourages absorbtion of iron. I believe organic food is better, especially for little bodies and i try to buy it for my kids, but its not so easy here.

i've read a number of times that in the UK and Australia there are more children being diagnosed with anemia, and this is because they are drinking too much milk, (but also not enough iron rich foods.)

I remember going to our local dairy and coming back with a bucket of warm milk straight from the cow. the though of that now makes my stomach churn!

like anything it probably makes no difference if taken in moderation, and as part of a balanced diet.

[durain]

the best is breast milk, period. feed them breast milk as long as you can (even up to 4 years old).

Four years old? Breast milk maybe best, but four years old? Ridiculous.

why ridiculous? care to expand on it?

[road.not.taken]

Sure. Just my opinion, but a child able to attend school, buckle themselves into a car seat, eat every manner of table food and speak in complete sentences is far too old to breast feed.

[sundaymorningstaple]

Unless they are dirty ole farmboys!

[Forks]

If the milk has BVG (Bovine Growth Hormone or whatever they put into cows) then that is a concern, of course no milk company is putting it on the label, and its hard to tell unless you know a bit about the country its coming from. NZ and OZ milk is useally ok, US milk Im not so sure.

Breast milk is definitely the best (I dont know anyone who was breast fed upto 4 years, mine were about a year) and the longer you breast fed the better it is for their kids in building up immunities to things.

To much cows milk can cause problems but unless your lactose intolerant its not really an issue