How Much Milk Should A Toddler Drink?

I guess this question should have appeared in every parent's mind sometime, so decided to do a post on this.  By the way, this post is for kids 1 year and above.

For some parents, they might feel that their child are still growing, and that they should drink plenty of milk still cause it has DHA, and blah blah whatever other stuff. Probably when the child don't eat as much, they feel that feeding the child more milk will solve the problem.

But in fact, they are wrong. 

Ever had this when you're feeling very hungry, and you drink a glass of milk and suddenly you no longer have the appetite anymore? 

That's how it is for kids too. Giving more milk than what they need is only going to make them cut back on their meals, which is also where their main nutrients are coming from.

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So how much should they be drinking?

Check online and you'll have studies telling you that kids above 1 years old should be having AT LEAST 350MLS of milk a day, and AT MOST 600MLS.

Giving them too much milk, may cause them to eat lesser, meaning lesser nutrients, and a higher risk of iron deficiency.

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Why is iron important?

Iron is essential for maintaining enough oxygen-carrying red blood cells. These red blood cells are necessary to fuel brain growth.

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What is iron deficiency?

If a child does not get enough iron for a prolonged time, he can develop iron deficiency, a condition that limits the ability of the blood to carry oxygen. This can interfere with brain development, affecting a child's motor skills and ability to learn.

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How to tell whether your child has iron deficiency?

• Have a decreased appetite.

• Be irritable, fussy and inattentive.

• Be slower to reach development milestones.

• Eat unusual things such as ice, dirt, clay and cornstarch.

**If you think that your child may have iron deficiency, consult your doctor. They would be able to do a test to determine that. 

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Meanwhile, to prevent all these, limit your child's milk intake, and have more iron rich food in his diet.

Foods that are a good source of iron include : 

• liver 

• lean red meats ( beef, pork, lamb )

• seafood ( oysters, clams, tuna, salmon, and shrimp )

• soy beans and lentils 

• iron fortified whole grains ( breads, rice, and pasta )

• greens ( mustard greens, spinach, and turnip greens )

• tofu 

• vegetable ( broccoli, asparagus, parsley, watercress, brussel sprouts) 

• chicken and turkey 

• egg yolks 

• dried fruits ( raisins, prunes, dates and apricots )

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Of course, maybe your child is drinking more milk and he is fine, growing well, eating well. But as parents, we all want the best for our kids, and preventing them from developing health problems is an important thing that we can do. Remember, your child is no longer a baby anymore, just like us, they need to get enough nutrients from the food they eat, not just from the milk they drink.

You may try to give them orange juice, or kiwi, foods with lots of vitamin C cause it'll aid them in better absorption of iron.

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Another reason I'm blogging about this is because the last few times I went over to my Grandma's place, my aunt has been saying that I should feed Tyler more milk, cause everytime Tyler sees my cousin's milk bottle he'll run away and try to drink from it. 

Up to the extend, she asked my Grandma to give Tyler a bottle of milk when he goes over (which she didn't do so) and also joke about buying milk powder for Tyler's birthday.

But the truth is, Tyler is interested in the milk bottle. Not the milk. Cause he's been drinking from straw for quite long, and seeing the milk bottle just seems so interesting for him. 

Tyler's schedule for meals:

10am - Drink 250mls of milk + a piece of bread

1pm - Lunch + Dessert

6pm - Dinner + Dessert

9pm - 250mls of milk

In between sometimes he'll have some bites of food we eat, or his biscuits or bread. And I find that its already sufficient for him. Because for him, at 19 months now, he's having almost an adult portion for his meal. And he's almost always having that big belly. 

For Tyler, he loves food. If possible, he would eat 24 hrs. But balanced meal is what I want for him. And he's not exactly a skinny boy too. 

So, no offence to my aunt, but thanks for your concern, Tyler is growing well and having enough food and I hope to maintain it that way. 

Any other enquiries about this topic, feel free to post in the tagboard and I'll try my best to help. Hope you guys find this post helpful!