11 Months Old Too Soon for Cows Milk?

My daughter's doctor told me at her 9 month appointment that since she was doing so well that I could start her on cow's milk then. I waited until sometime in the 10th month though. I would also suggest that if you haven't already introduced a sippy cup, now's a good time. I also only breastfed my child. I'd say don't waste the money on formula it you don't have to.

I did the same thing with my daughter. I just started her on milk a little early, and tried it for a few days. She didn't have any reactions, so I just went with it. And this is the child that is allergic to almost everything.

I actually switched my little one to cows milk at 8 months, from formula. She has grown well and has not had any side affects. I know you are not supposed to do that until they're a year old, but truely you are the parent and you should do what you feel you need to, in order to keep her happy and healthy.

I say, each to their own. If you have a pediatrician you really trust- go with their opinion. I can tell you that both of my nephews went on cows milk way before their first birthdays and both are health boys that don't have any digestion problems (one is now 19 and the other is 12). I know that my mom breastfed me until about 11 months and then switched me over to cow milk and I am healthy, had no problems with milk as a child- I did develop lactose intolerance in my 20s but I really don't think it's related. As long as it's whole milk, I think it's fine.

Hello,
My son stopped nursing at about 10 1/2 months and he went straight from me to whole milk. He loved and now he is almost 4 and nothing bad happened. Go ahead and give it to her, she will probablly love it. You may at first have to warm it alittle but hey its not that hard.
Good luck

My doctor gave strict orders to wait until closer to a year old, it has to do with food allergies. I am in the same boat as you regarding nursing and pumping, no formula. However, when my daughter was 5 months old, we tried to give her formula and she refused. I couldn't blame her really, it smelled like rotten milk. We've tried again every few months, but, she still will not take it. She had her first birthday a few weeks ago, and we've tried to give her cow's milk, but, she still refuses. Her personal preference is mother's milk. Our doctor said this is normal because to her, it tastes better.

I have tried many things to keep my supply going, but, nothing really works for me. However, other women have had success by taking Fenugreek, a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast, or other herbal type remedys. The important thing is to stay hydrated and drink lots of water! One trick I was told about most commonly, was called More Milk Plus (alcohol free tastes better).

http://www.motherlove.com/product_more_milk_plus.php

It can be found at local health food stores (I bought it at Good Earth), or you can order it online.

Hope any of this helps, good luck!

Hi there,
I actually started transitioning my son at 11 months so that he could get used drinking cows milk. Hope that helps! Of course, he loves milk like me. He is now 2 years old and still can;t get enough of milk. Hope that helps!

I would say Vitiam D is fine at 11 months. My doctor told me to start giving it to my son here and there when he was 11 months, so that it isn't that big of a transition when he turns one. I also had a friend that breast feed until her son was 10 months old and then just went to cow's milk, and her son is very healthy!!!

Good luck.
B.

We've all heard of the kids who went to cows milk at 9 months and were just fine...I think that's too early, personally. At 11 months, I would keep pumping if you want, get that extra week and start adding the whole cows milk. My dr gave me the ok at 11 months, with basically the same situation.
You did an awesome job breastfeeding. Feel proud of your 11 months and your healthy baby!! You could start mixing with your breast milk now, plus, you probably won't wean cold turkey as she'll probably still nurse occasionally...she'll be getting some breastmilk that way too. Good luck!

C.....this is a little late - I just read your question - but I was a WIC director for 25 years and can tell you this: first of all, congrats on giving your son the best nutrition of all - breastmilk - for so long. ll months is great. I hope you skipped formula and went straight to cow's milk in a cup. Two things to remember: he only needs 12 oz. of milk - that can be in milk or 1/4 c. of yogurt (2 oz) or 1/2 oz. of cheese (4 oz)...portion sizes are very important. Use a cup & not a bottle. And try using a non-sippy cup - too many kids use sippy cups like a bottle for too long. It can cause baby bottle tooth decay & also affect their dental formation.
Remember w/solids that a serving for your child is 1 Tablespoon per year - if he eats more than that great, but not necessary. That way by age 4 he would be eating 1/4 c. as a serving - very appropriate.
If his solid intake drops below that, check his fluid intake. His tummy is only the size of his fist so there's not much room. And limit juice to only 2 oz. a day - preferably out of a cup.
Keep up the good work and continue to enjoy every day.

I breastfed my son until he was a year old and my pediatrician recommended slowly starting him on cow's milk when he was about 9 months. I would check with the dr. but it's probably fine as long as you do it slowly.

Hi C.,
I waited until a year like they say with my first, but my second child I started her on milk (D) right around 11 months, I think just a little before. She had no problems and took right to it. I had planned on doing the same with my twins, but since 1 had colic and was on soy, I waited until they were 1, but with my last I will prolly do the same. As long as you make sure she is still getting enough milk, I wouldn't see what the problem would be. Just eaiser on you is all :o) Good Luck.

i moved my daughter to milk at ten months. you just have to watch her with it. they say that the child body doesn't have everything in their tummy's to break down cows milk. my daughter did fine with it. good luck!

Hi~
I, too, have a baby who was born in December 2006. The other day I tried him on milk to see if he liked it. He LOVED it! But when I asked the doc if I could switch, she said NO WAY! She has seen too many allergies, digestion problems, etc. pop up right before a year, to recommend starting early. Apparently there IS something 'special' about them being a year old. I do trust her opinion...or else why would I go to her?! Just my experience with it!
~L.

C.,
Reading this was like reading my own story! Our daughter is now 23 months old and I had the exact same problem- we breastfed for much longer than I expected and getting to that one year mark was going to be tough. I did start to give her cow's milk at 11 months and she was and has been completely fine- she's never had formula in her life ever. I say go for it.

I say give her the milk. I know they say that their stomachs are't well equipped for it yet, but a month is not going to make a different--especially since every baby develops differently. I was in the same boat as you--I breastfed my daughter until she was 10 months old, and wanted to go a full year. I had lost too much weight though to sustain myself and my milk, so it dried up. My daughter is very petite and had always been in the 15% for both height and weight (but I think she just takes after her dad and I), but the doctor suggested I put her on formula until she is 1 and then give her whole milk. I did give her formula half the time and then cows milk the other half. She didn't seem to notice the difference and we never had any issues. My doctor was hoping that the formula would "fatten her up" but she stayed the same--personally, I feel like she was a healthy little baby--just very short and petite. ANyway, I gave her the milk, and she did very well on it!

i babysit a 11 almost 12 month who has been on cow's milk for aa month a half now. and he is doing fine.

I was pretty much in the same boat with pumping BM. We switch our son to cows milk at 11 months with no problems.

We had extra gas drops on hand just in case, but we didn't need it.

Good Luck!

I think its just fine. I switched my son to whole milk at about 11mo after breastfeeding. I think its a good idea to mix with your own milk while you can. Also, plain whole milk organic yogurt is a good food if he's not drinking enough milk right away. My kids loved it.

Hi C.,

My son is 11 months on the 5th of November. I just moved, so we waited to get settled into the new town to go to the new doctor for his 9 month checkup (at 10 1/2 months). This way he wouldn't have shots his first visit with the new doctor.

That being said, I was at the doctors just last week and he gave me the go-ahead for cows milk. He said as long as Alex is doing well for weight gain (he is in the 78th percentile) and height (98th), then he said, go ahead with transitioning him to cow's milk. We were formula feeding and for three days I mixed 2/3 milk, 1/3 formula. Well, he's been on 100% cow's milk for three days now and he's doing great!

Another thing I asked the doc was 2% versus Whole. We drink skim or 2%, so I asked what the difference was. He asid the AA of Peds says whole milk, but he thought it was bunk. He said as long as your baby is proper weight and height and eats some solid foods too, 2% is fine. So that's what we have been doing.

So, I would say you are just fine to move to the cow's milk. Just make sure you add fruits/veggies/protein to her diet, if you already don't, to make sure she gets a well rounded nutrient base.

On a side note, my hubby was going to give Alex a small bit of his honey the other day (day after the doctor) and I said "No, not until he's a year old". My husband raised a good question, "What is the magic number? 365 days exactly?" It's ust a guide for development. Not necessarily every kid is the same.

I hope that helps!

You could probably do regular whole milk, I know people who have at 11 mos. Definitely call your dr. first, but they will most likely tell you that it should be no problem. I would mix whatever breast milk you can pump with the whole milk till she gets used to the taste. Good luck.

11 months is fine to start introducing her to cows milk. It's best to start before your breast milk supply goes down, incase she doesn't like it at first. Most kids do, tho. Give it to her in a sippy cup or a regular cup, depending on what she prefers to drink out of, and not a bottle. If you want to keep breatfeeding too, tho, I would try Mother's Milk tea. It's a tea that helps with milk production. It works really well. It's usually in the natrual foods section of your grocery store. But it's fine to introduce whole milk to your daughter now.

My Dr. told me they are telling parents at 9 months they can start using Whole cows milk. My daughter was in the 5% for weight so she said I needed to continue with formula but that most babies are now switching at 9 months. So you will be fine to switch a few weeks early. They is nothing magical that happens on there 12 month birthday that makes them ready for cows milk. So go for it girl. I would start by milking in one bottle a day to get your little one ready for the switch. My daughter just turned one two and a half weeks ago.

C., a few years ago we were on a family vacation in disneyland. My milk supply was already getting low and it was unreasonable to try to pump myself dry so my 10 1/2 month old wouldn't starve so i nursed and nursed as much as i could and i could tell she was still hungry. My husband and i started thinking about all the stuff she had ate made of cows milk. She had definately ate ice cream more than once tried little chunks of cheese and no reactions. We really didnt want to go buy formula for the last 5 weeks before she turned one so there we were in disneyland feeding my daughter cow's milk. We just warmed it up a little and it took a few tries but she drank it. I am happy to say that she is a happy and healthy 3 year old and had no problems with cows milk. I would also suggest if you have a frozen supply of breastmilk to mix it with the cow's milk so your daughter slowly gets used to the taste. When we came home from our trip I had about two weeks worth of frozen milk so that is what i did since she had already been drinking cow's milk it was like a bonus for her to have the last of the breastmilk. I hope that this suggestion helps you decide. good luck :)

I have tried to breat feed my kids for as long as I possibly could, then switched to formula. I think it is best to do this because I have been told by different sources that giving a baby cows milk too early can lead to many allergies as the child grows up. I think if your child can tolerate it. Good luck! P.

I had this same exact issue, and my doctor told me not to give my son cow's milk until he was at least 12 months old. I didn't think it was that big of a deal, but apparently it is. I supplemented formula (doctor gave me samples, which helped a lot) for that last month or so as my milk supply started to dwindle.

I would check with the doc but one month either way shouldn't matter. Just be on the look out for allergies. Good luck and don't feel guilty. I couldn't breast feed either of my boys and both are fairly healthy. They are 11 and 8 right now.

We started my son at 11 months on cow's milk for the same reasons. We did end up having to go 50% cows milk 50% formula on his night time bottle. He was still doing about 10 ounces before bed and it was too much cow's milk for his body and he became really constipated. By 13 months we slowly transitioned to 5-6 ounces in a sippy cup and got rid of the formula all together.

I gave my little guy cows milk at 11 months. I started him on whole milk and I watched for all of the signs that something might be off, like a rash or his tummy hurting or his throat closing, and we did just fine. I continued to breastfeed in the morning and at night and in the afternonn before nap, but he pretty much had cows milk at breakfast lunch and dinner. I say try it and watch for rash or tummy hurting and if nothing happens you will be fine!

Go ahead and give the cows milk, I never had a problem with any of my children, and I have 7, The reason they say no to cows milk is because the babies have a hard time with digestion, but not in the way we think it has been known to lead to kidney stones, My know 3 year old was born with only one functioning kidney, and I really debated giving her cows milk early, unlike my other ones, but I went ahead and gave it to her, there were no issues she transitioned well, I would say to mix the milk with what is left of your BM, so she can become accustomed to the flavor, And whole milk versus 2% is up to you i always use 2% because my babies tend to run chunky and have had no ill effects.

My daughter started drinking cow's milk-Vitamin D at 9 months. This was with our pediatrican's advice. Our pediatrican checked to be sure our daughter was not anemic and it came back ok so she was cleared for cow's milk. I know many people who have started their child on cow's milk before they were truly 12 months. I say consult with your pediatrican and go from there.

I had a similar situation with my daughter right before she turned 1yr old. The doctor told me it was fine for her to go to whole milk. I mixed breast milk and whole milk in her bottles while she was in childcare to get her used to the different taste and texture. I still nursed her in the morning and evenings as usual while she was adjusting to whole milk in her cup. I started with 1 ounce of whole milk added to her cup. Then I added an additional ounce of whole milk a day until it was all whole milk, so it was a slow change. I was afraid that she would resist the whole milk but she did great with the slow change.

She was already doing very well using a cup so we also used this time to move her off the bottle, but if your daughter does not use a cup very often I would just put it her bottle, so that she does not start to refuse it because it is in a cup.

I would not use formula then whole milk becuase it seems like it would be too much for her to adjust to in a month.

What a fine job you have done already! I would slowly switch over, still breastfeed AM and PM, and if you can mix whatever you may have frozen with whole milk, about 50/50. That way both of you can become accustomed to the change slowly.11 months and 12 months, not a big deal. Good luck to you. M.

I got pregnant with my 2nd daughter when my first was only 8 months old. My milk supply went down fast also. My pediatrician said that I can switch to cows milk at 9 months as long as she was getting just as much breast milk. So I just put as many ounces of whole milk in as I had breast milk. I think then finally around 11 months I just switched completely over. The only reason that they say 12 months is because usually babies can handle it by then. So, if she does fine on the half/half I would say just switch her completely.

it shouldnt be a problem to switch her to milk. try alternating between breastmilk and real milk for a few days just to make sure she isnt allergic. my doctor switched my daughter over at 11 months old.

HECK NO! My oldest was 9 months when he went to cow milk! And he was a big baby and very healthy! My middle one was 11 months and my youngest was 11 months. I think I moved my oldest because I was a single mom and money was tight! I also didn't wait for them to turn 6 months to eat baby food either. They all got cereal at two or three weeks old and baby food at one month.

Hi C.,

Our Ped. told us as long as neither of us (my husband and I) had a history of any milk or dairy allergies it was ok to offer cows milk at 11 months (I was already pregnant again with #2). I did without any trouble. It took a couple of weeks for her to like the taste, so I added vanilla ice cream (breyers all natural) until she would take it (she'd never had formula or a bottle of pumped milk but did drink water from a sippy cup) and then eventually stopped adding the ice cream. She's never had any trouble with it. My second daughter also started cows milk around 11 1/2 months and she hasn't had any problem either.

Good luck to you!

I had the same problem! I actually took medicine to help my milk production but it had terrible side effects! At 11 months I decided I had enough. I started to give Katie 1/2 breast milk and 1/2 Vit D. She tolerated it very well and actually liked the cow's milk better! Throughout the month I gradually decreased the breast milk and increased the milk. It worked well for us....Let me know if you have any questions!

she's close enough to a year that there shouldn't be a problem. Remember, when every milked their own cows, babies had whole a lot sooner.

When transitioning to cows milk, it's always a good idea to start slowly. Mix a little with your breast milk to start with, gradually mixing more milk in until she's on just milk. That also gives you time to slow down in your own milk production, basically weaning yourself off of breastfeeding/pumping. It's much less mess, and less painful also. Good luck!

Nothing magical is going to happen to your daughter the night before her first birthday that all of the sudden makes it okay for her to drink cow's milk. I think you're close enough to safely try offering her cow's milk to see how she handles it. If she doesn't like the taste, try mixing it with the expressed milk you still have so you can gradually switch her over.

Cows milk was invented for baby cows. Calves have 2 stomaches in order to digest it. They don't drink it past one year because it's not good for them. Cows get plenty of calcium for strong teeth and bones from the greens they eat.
My son quit nursing before one year. I tried just putting him on milk. He got diarreah and a very sore bottom from the runny diapers. I tried again a month later. Same results. I finally took the whole family off milk and we all became a lot healthier, not so many lung infections, less colds, no ear infections.. etc. The pediatritian said lots of mothers were having the same results. From the time I took them off milk I didn't have to take them to the Doctor again for anything until their Kindergarten check up.
You have to learn what foods have more digestable calcium and other vitamins. We still use cheese, and milk on cereal, and ice cream, but we stopped drinking it. Think about it. Would you wrap your mouth around a cows tit and suck? An adult or full grown child drinking out of a tit is unthinkable, yet we drink it by the gallon from the store! I haven't had a drink of milk for years and I still haven't had a cavity or brittle bones. The dairy association is who promotes milk, just like the tobacco industry promotes cigarettes. They are both farmers and they both need the money from their products. neither is very healthy. (Unless you are a calf!!)
Put something else healthy in the bottle and give him very little yogurt and cheese once in a while. Feed him lots of spinach for the calcium. Another thing, cows milk adds a lot to the obesity problem in children, too much of the wrong kind of fat.

I gave my daughter regular milk right before she turned 11 months and she is now 3 and has suffered no "ill effects" from it. Given the fact that your child is in the 99% of height and weight, (mine was in the 90%), I don't think you'll have any problems with it. I also quit giving her a bottle at this time and put her milk in a tippy cup. It took her a couple of days to get used to it, but after that she was bottle free before the pediatricians recommended age of one!!!

I agree with everyone else, going to cows milk should be fine. I know lots of parents who switched their kids at 9 months without any issues.

I'm in the exact same situation. My son turns 11 months old in 4 days, and I've been pumping this whole time because he never latched on successfully. I finally quit pumping a few days ago, and have him on formula, but I'm wondering if I should just put him on cow's milk. I tried one ounce about a week ago, and he had diarreah, so I'm kind of afraid to try again. I have a friend who puts all her kids on whole milk at 10 months with no bad side effects, so it probably just depends on the child. I look forward to seeing other's responses as well. Good luck!

no you can go a head a go for whole milk now great job on making it 11 mo

Do it very slowly, like one once of milk to 8 oz formula/breast milk. Then slowly increase it. By one year she should be on whole milk. Babies need whole milk not 2%, there brains need the fats to help them develop.