Milk Consumption in 2 1/2 Yr Old

milk is easy-

cut back the milk to a max of 16oz a day.

offer food on a schedule.

if the issue is "play play play", set up a snack station in the kitchen.
he will eventually get hungry.

kids have a hard time telling the difference between hunger and thirst and they all start out on liquid diets. it's hard to force the transition to solids- but it's important.

also- sometimes all a kid knows to ask for is milk.

offer a plate with a variety of things- cheese, soft veggies, boiled egg, crackers, fruit pieces etc.. if he picks at it or barely eats- don't sweat it. kids in America seldom starve by choice. I feed my kids on a schedule and they know when to expect food - so they're hungry at meal and snack times. Remember when he starts school he'll have to eat on a schedule. also- maybe try giving him choices about his food for meals like lunch or dinner. it helps!

Good luck!

My ped told me that the max is supposed to be three 8 ounce servings a day. The concerns are that the child can either get constipated from all that milk, or that they will be so satisfied from the milk that they really will not eat much else.

Is he drinking all that? My 2 year old gets offered about 3, 8 oz servings of milk but doesn't always finish them. Some days she picks at her food and others she eats a fair amount. You can try a vitamin for toddlers, pushing the fruits and veggies and offering high iron foods if you are concerned.

I have read and heard from my daughters pedi that they should only have 20 -24 oz. a day. I found that the more milk she drank the less "real" food she ate.

For awhile we had a problem where she would only want milk, but after a little while if all she had was water she would drink it. Now she actually asks for water (especially after gymnastics, or any active play).

Good luck!

my daughter, now 7, drinks a ton of milk.. her doctor told me as long as she is eating enough food too that it was ok. When she was younger, i did have to cut back so she would eat. she is way off the charts in height. not in weight. so she is growing right. thats what i would worry about.

My boys (5 & 2.5) are the same way. My 5 year old gets juice in his lunch at school--but will often buy a milk. My 2.5 year old doesn't like juice. They both drink a little water each day. I don't care that they don't drink juice, but I do like to push the water.

You can go to web sites like babycenter.com, parentcenter.com, or even google the food pyramid for preschoolers and get advice from professional nutritionist on any of those sites.

Every mom will have different advice for you. Every one has their own choices but most are so different in what they do. I let the kids have whatever milk they want. Sometimes the 3 of us drink a gallon a day. When they are hungry for milk they want milk. When I want milk I might drink 3 glasses a day, plus use it on cereal for breakfast.

I think if he is drinking enough water that he is not dehydrated, constipated, or gassy then he should have what ever amount of milk you are comfortable with. I tend to watch Colby cheese intake more than 2% milk.

My son is almost 4 and he drinks ALOT of milk. I would say about 4-5 sippies worth of milk.

That sounds a bit too much. I think the recommended amount is 18-24 oz.

He will be too full to eat other foods and he may become constipated. The other concern is that milk interferes with iron absorption.

Your pedi will tell you more on this I am sure.

Around 20 oz max. 30-40 is way too much! Is he even eating when he's getting that much milk?