So, what's the deal with dairy?

[Heaven]

I've read no cows milk til over 12 months but then you can give them yoghurt and cheese before this??
Is that right??
When can DD have yoghurt then? Should we wait a bit?

[Olive]

you can start dairy at 6 months! just small amounds, id get yogurt such as jalna and not the babies yogurts as there full of sugar

[Inanna]

I would be very very careful with introducing dairy that early... My children's father has asthma and his family have a long history of asthma, eczema & other allergies. There is a very strong connection between the early introduction of dairy and allergies...

Yoghurt is a little different in structure to cheese, milk etc so therefore is safer to introduce earlier.

Remember that baby humans are best with human milk and baby cows with cows milk. So it's harder work on their little bodies to digest something that comes from a different source...

[sas85]

I think when it says no cows milk till over 12 months it just means as their main milk source (so people don't start giving their kids cows milk instead of BB or Formula as their 'milk'), you can still use it in small amounts in cooking solids or in their cereal if you want but look out for a intolerance as obviously dairy is a common one. But it's a pretty obvious one too so you'll know from their poo if it's a problem. I was on the lookout cause DH was sesitive as a kid but DD is fine.

I've given my baby dairy since 6 months - yoghurt, butter, cheese & little bit milk if no formula left in the bottle for her porridge. We use Jalna here too - it's DD's favourite food - if I can't get her o eat anything else there's always yoghurt. The Jalna has no thickeners, gelatine, or cane sugar like the others. (Just don't accidentally buy the low fat one like I did once - it's so gross, guess the low fat ones need all the artificial stuff to make them taste good )

[Inanna]

No cows milk is no cows milk - but of course its up to individuals. Intolerance doesn't always show up in their poo I am afraid. Also it's not necessarily what it does immediately. Have a little google of children/babies and processed milk versus raw milk and it explains it really well.

Yoghurt is a different kettle of fish to cheese and milk &I too only choose brands that have no [processed sugar such as Jalna..

[LimeSlice]

I LOVE Jalna!! Milk and fruit puree and cultures - REAL yoghurt! lol

Charlotte has had yoghurt since she started solids...for a while it was almost all she would eat lol
Cows milk contains proteins that are hard for young guts to digest, giving them tummy aches etc so little is a good thing.
Goats milk works really well though, tastes better too
You can also now get the a2 milk which has some of the proteins taken out...Lactose free milk Zymil we found really good for Charlotte when she started drinking it watered down at about 10 months or so.

[Heaven]

Oh well we have the Jalna yoghurt here at least!

[Olive]

in the ABA solids booklet they say that small amounts can be introduced at 6 months as it is now thought that small amounts given from 6 months can help reduce allergies rather than causing them

[Junglemum]

No cows milk is no cows milk - but of course its up to individuals. Intolerance doesn't always show up in their poo I am afraid.

:yeahthat: No it does not, took a blood test here to find out. i wont be giving DD2 cows milk for a long time, but we have asthma and food intolerances in the family.

[sas85]

That's interesting AJP - I don't have the ABA book but my encyclopaedia on infant nutrition says similar - I'm hoping it's the case, DH was fully BF so no dairy till older but a lot of the later research into allergies by immunologists has been suggesting what you mention - but researchers and officials seem to change their mind every decade or so anyway just to confuse all of us. As a side point if kids or adults are just lactose intolerant as opposed to a full-on allergy than cheese is fine too (hard cheese contains almost no lactose interestingly) and yoghurt's good bacteria help to digest the lactose already. Now I'm hungry for cheese and yoghurt - ah to be a baby and not have to diet - I swear I am jealous of DD's food sometimes Congrats Heaven on 6 months breastfeeding and reaching solids age too, I'll get you in this thread instead (lazy I know)

[Olive]

i have to admit sarah i personally wouldnt give dairy at 6 months, will probably wait til closer to 10 months for yogurt etc.. it really is personal choice! its very confusing though!

[Inanna]

Moo () too Falguni!!!!

AJP: I know, Iknow a lot of sources say it's all wackity dooo - but I have to say from the mountains of research I have done and the colloquial evidence cows milk is for cows babies not humans and it really can do nasty long term stuff...

Have a little google about the process of homogenisation and pasteuration and RAW milk and see what I mean... Hve a crying bub so scuse the rush...

[Heaven]

Wish my ABA solids booklet was here, still hasn't arrived!!

Thanks everyone, might wait a bit longer I think!! But I was only thinking yoghurt anyway.

[Junglemum]

[MantaRay]

Much of the confusion with dairy is that there are different issues - there is the issue of allergy, intolerance, and also the unsuitability of dairy due to it's completely different composition to human milk. WRT to allergy, the guidelines have recently changed and it is now recommended that foods that are linked to allergies be introduced earlier - at around 6 months - rather than later. So in terms of allergy, this does apply to dairy too, although certainly not cows' milk at that age - rather the more processed versions, especially yoghurt. However, this is complicated by the other issues which might suggest a delayed introduction. It's pretty confusing, and not something that even highly qualified dieticians all agree on.

I guess at the end of the day all you can do is to trust your instincts!

[SamiH]

We have a host of allergies, hayfever, eczema, anaphylaxis etc in our family histories - the info the MCHN's and nutritionists gave us with my kids was yoghurt around 8 months. Not saying it is right or wrong - just what is given out.

As always Heaven, take it all in and make up your own mind

[[M]umma[M]ia]

all dairy is fine. Cow's milk is fine, just not a main milk (which it wont be coz i know ur BFing). Cheese is good, tho DD didnt like cheese till about 4 weeks ago. Jalna is great too. any dairy is fine, just in small amounts till her tummy gets used to it. So a little grated cheese in her mashed potatoe etc.

[belfie]

yeah there's so much information out there, and as someone said, there seems to be a new recommendation every 10 years which doesn't help (particularly when all and sundry have conflicting advice for you!).

We're in the situation that DS has eczema, dermagraphia and occasional outbreaks of hives. DH is sensitive to milk protein and just does not tolerate dairy well at all. We've just had the skinpr!ck tests done for DS, and he came up fine for dairy. And I also have a condition called fructose malabsorption - so both parents with gut/dietary issues.

The two major bits of advice we've had:

1. from a dietician at the Royal Childrens - give him as much variety as possible (within the normal age guidelines) while he is getting breastmilk. Apparently studies are showing that for things like coeliac's, having BM while being challenged with some of the so-called "allergy" foods is showing up as quite protective. So with that in mind, we've given him full range of fruit, veggies, wheat etc.
2. from the allergy doc at the Royal Children's - start him on cow's milk at about 1 year (we'll have to just before)... but keep an eye on his skin, as a clear result on a skinpr!ck test does not rule out different types of irritation/sensitivity. (which makes sense, because my DH's reaction is not an allergy per se).

So obviously depends on your situation, family history, bub's health etc as to what you decide to do. But I thought you might be interested to see what advice we'd received. We gave DS bits of cheese, yoghurt etc from about 8-9 months (mainly cos I was a bit nervous to do so before that) but I've held off on large amounts of cow's milk. He's had traces of it in things.

GL with your decisions.