I'm just curious about those who don't give their children cow's milk, what is your source of Calcium? And do your children get vitamin suppliments on a regular basis?
Both my girls were unable to digest dairy protein as babies/toddlers. We give both enriched soy milk. We have tried many over the years but they much prefer WestSoy Plus Vanilla to all others. The youngest will also drink Silk in a pinch. My kids all love their daily Flinstones vitamin.
My son had an allergy to cow's milk (which he has thankfully outgrown at age 2). We gave him Silk, which has the same calcium content as most cow's milk. We had to add fat in other ways, like real butter and olive oil added to his food.
Like someone already mentioned, calcium can come from better sources than cow's milk. Yes, you'll want to give your child a nutritional supplement just like we need them if we don't eat right (SAD - Standard American Diet). If you eat right, then no you don't need them, but it definitely couldn't hurt to give it to them.
There are plenty of veggies, yogurt, cheese, etc., you name it that can provide a better source without taxing the digestive system. We use soy milk for my 2yo, my 10yo doesn't drink either kind of milk, but gets it from other sources. My 9yo drinks cow's milk, and I actually have to give him, my cow milk drinker, an extra calcium supplement due to leg pain, etc. He is fine as long as he takes his extra calcium supplement. You can't rely on cow's milk for that one vitamin.
Hope this helps!
Keep in mind that calcium levels are only around 30% in cows milk. You can get the same if not more than that from brocolli, spinach, cheese, etc. There are many veggies that pack a lot of calcium. My daugher doesnt get a lot of cow's milk but she does love chocolate soy milk. It is loaded with ca, b vits, protein, potassium and even good on iron. I NEVER let her have more than one glass/day of this. Soy is great when used in moderation but you never want it to be there main source of anything. If you do, the hormone levels can disrupt them:( It works the same way in adults too. When used in moderation, it is great for us though:) My daugther also eats a lot of raw carrots, sqush, zuccinni(?) and loves spinach salads with cheese so I dont worry about her calcium levels. If your child doesnt eat the other stuff mentioned, you could supplement with a vit, but I would go for a multi and not just calcium. Keep in mind you want a good one, whole food vit. are great and our bodies absorb them. You cant find any good ones at Walmart, Walgreens, or the alike. Watch for things like mineral saying they are from 'complexs' That means its not natural and is now showed in studies to actually damage the cell wall. Some whole food vit even have this so you really have to shop around! It makes more sense for me to try to cover this area with food. Best of luck to you guys!
My 20-month old doesn't really care for milk, so I give him calcium fortified orange juice - it has the same calcium content as milk. Also cheese, yogurt, etc.
my son only drank soymilk, but his doctor said it had to be fortified soy milk, like Silk. He also loved his veggies, especially broccolli and salads so it never was a problem, all his tests were great and he is a very smart boy now (5)!!
I had the same question for my son and asked a pediatric nutritionist that my pediatrician refers too. She stated that soy milk is an okay alternative and that you can also try enriched hemp milk. One of the reasons that docotors want children on whole cow's milk is not necesarily for the calcium but for the fat to help with brain development. So if you are not doing cow's milk, you want to make sure you feed your child good omega-3 fatty acids. (like from fish and i think avocados are good fats too) As far as getting more calcium, broccoli and oranges are good sources. I think kale and cabbage are good sources as well. It is always better to get the vitamins from a whole food source rather than a supplement.
A M,
When my daughter couldn't have cow's milk, we used goat's milk, but not the stuff in the store (I've only seen one brand in the store that didn't taste nasty). We got it from a goat farmer.
We also made sure that the leafy green vegies were available every day and offered nuts (especially almonds which are high in calcium). We avoided soy products because of our concerns with soy's effect on the health, though.
We made alfalfa/nettles tea for her to drink instead of regular black tea, too.
Hope this helps,
D. S (mom to 5, CLC)
Calcium from dark leafy greens and fatty acids from fish oil. Calson's and Coromega make some very kid friendly versions, check vitacost.com for some of the best prices. I am sure they have kids calcium too, but if you feed enough raw greens they should be okay.
my son is on a plant based diet and we give him enriched rice milk , and silk yogurt and whole soy yogurt, (yo baby! does not have calcium). lots of veggies. Animal dairy is not a good source of calcium anyway, it is not absorbed into the system like the plant based is.
We do not give our children supplements but if we did it would be a calcium/magnesium combination.
My son is two, and while he does drink cow's milk, we can't get him to drink very much. So we give him orange juice that is fortified with calcium and vitamin D. We dilute it with water so it is not too acidic on his stomach. He loves it and drinks it all day long. He is rarely ill and is very tall for his age, so I don't think he suffers from any deficiencies. We do not give him vitamin supplements.
The first thing that comes to mind is broccoli. If it is eaten raw, more beneficial.
We used goat's milk, which is available in Publix and Kroger. It's not cheap as cow's milk (but that's not cheap at almost $4 gallon is it?) but it's worth it. Much easier on their stomachs, too. Very high in calcium.
These are all really good suggestions so I am not going to repeat them but when my daughter needed a calcium supplement, we just gave her TUMS. They sell them with and without magnesium and the nutritionist I saw said that was a fine supplement, and with store brands, they are exceptionally cheap.
Your pedi should be able to give you a very detailed list of what foods provide calcium and how much. Also don't let your child drink soda as it blocks calcium absorption.
For my son who is allergic to dairy, I give him the gummy vitamins and a separte calcium supplement. I find all of these at Costco. It's a line called L'il Critters. They are vegan I think!
And, calcium from vegetable sources are better absorbed than from animal sources. Animal calcium basically just runs right through your body.
Both my children drink 8th Continent soy milk, which has 30% Daily values of calcium, same as regular cow's milk. They also take a daily multivitamin, which they would do no matter their milk source. There are other sources of calcium in addition to milk: greens, legumes, fish, fortified juices, etc.
I do give cow's milk, but we also give Floradix liquid calcium-magnesium supplement. It's the one our naturopath recommends. Most health food stores carry it.
