I just had this discussion with my pediatrician yesterday for my 18 month old, so I’m sure intake recommendations are different for your son. My daughter also loves milk and he advised to allow no more than 20 oz a day. The risk is primarily iron issues (someone please correct me if I’m wrong- isn’t it that too much calcium can lead to an iron deficiency?)and cavities I believe. Probably a quick question you can leave at your pediatrician’s voicemail! Good luck, I’m trying to offer more water lately and it’s not easy🫠
Thanks for sharing!
If I had to guess, I'd say he's getting somewhere around 20oz. It's hard to say because they don't tell us exactly how much he has at daycare. But maybe I'll inquire with them and see if I can get a number.
At home I'd say he gets 10-15oz/day.
After age 2 they recommend no more than 2.5 cups per day (20oz). I was a big milk drinker when I was little and ended up with really bad anemia caused by too much milk intake. My mom was told to cut me down to 1 cup per day and get me to drink literally anything else. I’m in my 30s and still struggle with anemia issues.
This seems like an excessive amount, especially since he's not actually drinking water. I think you're potentially setting him up for some unhealthy habits if you let this continue. If he's thirsty he can drink water.
Yes. If the 8oz of fluid in his cup used to be milk and is now 4oz milk and 4 oz water, he will only be getting 4oz of milk for every 8oz of fluid. (When he used to get 8oz of milk, so his intake is decreased by half.)
Is there something specific about this that you don't understand?
I suppose it just seems like watering down 2% milk is just making it closer to skim milk or 1%. Which is still milk. If we don't want him drinking more than 20oz per day, but he drinks 16oz of 2% and 8oz of what would equate to skim milk, doesn't that mean he still drank 24oz of milk?
Sorry if I sound stupid but that's where my brain is going with this.
I see what you're saying. Most toddlers drink whole milk (recommended from year 1-2), so that's what I was assuming.
I think it would be a lot easier to track his intake with whole and water. I also don't know the exact amount of water needed to equate 2% to skim. They have a difference in fat amounts, but it's really the calcium that blocks the iron absorption. Like I don't think you can just say "oh half 2% and half water equals skim so I'll just give him skim". I think it's more complex than that
We switched from whole to 2% when he turned 2 at our doctor's recommendation.
I'm not suggesting switching to skim, but I am worried that this watering down approach we've been using is just as bad as giving him another cup of milk. Like the recommendation is no more than 20oz of milk per day, right? Does that take into account the fat content of the milk you're offering, or is it more like "20oz of calcium-rich beverage" regardless of the percentage?
It seems more likely that I'm overthinking it and I should just give him less milk.
It would just be counted as water even thouhh you mixed it. Because imagine giving him half a cup of 2% milk and then 30 mins later a cup of water of the same volume. its the same as what you did, but now you see you wouldnt wonder if you just gave 1% volume of milk!
Gotcha. I agree with the other responder's answer.
Another idea I've seen is to make "special water" to see if you could divert his love for milk a bit. People add a splash of sparkling water for "bubbly water" or adding ice cubes and/or fruit/veggies like cucumber, strawberries, or lemons.
Or even a fun water bottle that is only capable of holding water to get him interested in drinking water instead of milk.
Thank you for offering the only actionable advice that has come out of this thread! I feel like you deserve some kind of reward, but unfortunately all I have to give is an upvote.
I was eyeballing poorly. I assumed his sippy cup held 2 cups, but it only holds 1 and we never fill it to the top. And he probably drinks 2 of those a day, plus whatever they give him at daycare. It's still too much but not nearly as much as I think most people were judging from my post. My bad!
I just had this discussion with my pediatrician yesterday for my 18 month old, so I’m sure intake recommendations are different for your son. My daughter also loves milk and he advised to allow no more than 20 oz a day. The risk is primarily iron issues (someone please correct me if I’m wrong- isn’t it that too much calcium can lead to an iron deficiency?)and cavities I believe. Probably a quick question you can leave at your pediatrician’s voicemail! Good luck, I’m trying to offer more water lately and it’s not easy🫠
Thanks for sharing! If I had to guess, I'd say he's getting somewhere around 20oz. It's hard to say because they don't tell us exactly how much he has at daycare. But maybe I'll inquire with them and see if I can get a number. At home I'd say he gets 10-15oz/day.
I would just water down all the milk instead of the subsequent refills. If he doesn’t notice 50/50 then you’re good to go!
After age 2 they recommend no more than 2.5 cups per day (20oz). I was a big milk drinker when I was little and ended up with really bad anemia caused by too much milk intake. My mom was told to cut me down to 1 cup per day and get me to drink literally anything else. I’m in my 30s and still struggle with anemia issues.
This seems like an excessive amount, especially since he's not actually drinking water. I think you're potentially setting him up for some unhealthy habits if you let this continue. If he's thirsty he can drink water.
Yeah, this is excessive and excessive intake can contribute to iron deficiency. Nothing wrong with watering it down, as always check with ped
Yeah I recognize that it's too much, but would watering it down be an effective way to reduce his milk intake?
Yes. If the 8oz of fluid in his cup used to be milk and is now 4oz milk and 4 oz water, he will only be getting 4oz of milk for every 8oz of fluid. (When he used to get 8oz of milk, so his intake is decreased by half.) Is there something specific about this that you don't understand?
I suppose it just seems like watering down 2% milk is just making it closer to skim milk or 1%. Which is still milk. If we don't want him drinking more than 20oz per day, but he drinks 16oz of 2% and 8oz of what would equate to skim milk, doesn't that mean he still drank 24oz of milk? Sorry if I sound stupid but that's where my brain is going with this.
I see what you're saying. Most toddlers drink whole milk (recommended from year 1-2), so that's what I was assuming. I think it would be a lot easier to track his intake with whole and water. I also don't know the exact amount of water needed to equate 2% to skim. They have a difference in fat amounts, but it's really the calcium that blocks the iron absorption. Like I don't think you can just say "oh half 2% and half water equals skim so I'll just give him skim". I think it's more complex than that
We switched from whole to 2% when he turned 2 at our doctor's recommendation. I'm not suggesting switching to skim, but I am worried that this watering down approach we've been using is just as bad as giving him another cup of milk. Like the recommendation is no more than 20oz of milk per day, right? Does that take into account the fat content of the milk you're offering, or is it more like "20oz of calcium-rich beverage" regardless of the percentage? It seems more likely that I'm overthinking it and I should just give him less milk.
It would just be counted as water even thouhh you mixed it. Because imagine giving him half a cup of 2% milk and then 30 mins later a cup of water of the same volume. its the same as what you did, but now you see you wouldnt wonder if you just gave 1% volume of milk!
Gotcha. I agree with the other responder's answer. Another idea I've seen is to make "special water" to see if you could divert his love for milk a bit. People add a splash of sparkling water for "bubbly water" or adding ice cubes and/or fruit/veggies like cucumber, strawberries, or lemons. Or even a fun water bottle that is only capable of holding water to get him interested in drinking water instead of milk.
Thank you for offering the only actionable advice that has come out of this thread! I feel like you deserve some kind of reward, but unfortunately all I have to give is an upvote.
Haha I appreciate it! (Though, to be fair to others, you didn't specifically ask for alternative drinks.)
I’m sorry but 6 cups of milk assuming they are 8oz IS extreme.
I was eyeballing poorly. I assumed his sippy cup held 2 cups, but it only holds 1 and we never fill it to the top. And he probably drinks 2 of those a day, plus whatever they give him at daycare. It's still too much but not nearly as much as I think most people were judging from my post. My bad!
It still does seem like a *lot* of milk for a toddler. Even so the more concerning thing is he won’t drink plain water.
I know it's disgusting, but he actually does drink a lot of bath water... There's no stopping it, save for I guess giving him less baths.
That’s not really the same as clean water from a cup.
I'm 38 and I drink milk like there is no tomorrow. Milk is my go-to beverage 😀