Mother of a MILK-AHOLIC

Yes, my last child was until I slowly started diluting her milk with water. It got to the point that she was drinking straight water with a splash of milk just enough to color the water white is all. Then, finally as I was able to swap her sippy cup out for one that wasn't clear, I only put water in it and she's never caught on:)

I don't see the problem of getting to drink milk...it's healthy for kids. If you do get her to eat to get it then you have leverage to get her to eat what you serve. I let the kids have as much milk as they want. They are in the 50% height and weight and are very active and healthy.

My son was a milk-aholic when he was young. He basically lived from milk and an occasional PB&J. It was frustrating and I was worried that somehow this would be bad for him. However, my pediatrician always told me that I shouldn't worry about it as long as he is healthy and happy. He was and still is a very healthy boy. He hardly ever gets sick.

He is 9 now. He outgrew the milk phase when he was around 5 or 6. He still has cereal with milk in the morning and a cup of milk before going to bed. He did turn into a very good eater. He eats veggies and fruit and loves to try new foods.

Don't worry about it too much as long as your daughter is healthy. She'll grow out of it eventually.

My oldest was this way, and now at age six, she still drinks two large (12 ounce) glasses of milk a day...one with lunch, and one with dinner. That's three servings of milk a day, added up, and I don't think that's too much.

However, when she was 2.5, she was JUST like yours. Now, I could get her to eat, but it never seemed like she ate much...and she'd want refills on her milk. If we went out to eat, she'd drink all the milk before the meal came, and then want more.

It will adjust on it's own. Keep offering a nice meal and a glass of milk (definitely cut her down to skim, if you haven't already) and she'll figure it out on her own. I promise.

My guy is almost 2.5, and when he was turning 2 his pediatrician said to switch him to the 2% and just 2 cups of milk a day, otherwise he might not eat food as he should. She also told me that too much milk can cause an iron deficiency, something I had never known. BTW, I give him the milk in a sippy and measured it out, he actually gets 9 oz, so he gets 2 oz more a day than she said, I'm not inflexible, lol.

He had a cold about 2 weeks ago, and went through a rough 3 or 4 days where he couldn't or wouldn't eat, just wanted milk or juice. Naturally I didn't want him to dehydrate so I did let him have 3 cups of milk each day and juice 2 or 3 times. Lo and behold when he felt better he kept trying to demand milk and juice, for over a week. I just had to keep telling him, "You get milk in the morning and at night, juice once a day," (because of the sugar content.) He finally got over the "extras" a couple of days ago, and is eating much better again.

Like our ped said, if he eats yogurt or cheese he should actually drink less milk that day, so you can cut your daughter's intake to 2 cups a day or less if she eats dairy foods, and her appetite and willingness to eat food should increase. Milk isn't bad, there's just other things that are good for her, too, and you want to develop those good eating habits while you can. Like our ped said, I'm in charge of what he eats, he can't get it himself : )

Here's some ideas on getting her to eat, one of them is to not negotiate, meaning don't tell her she has to eat to get her milk:
http://kidshealth.org/parent/nutrition_center/healthy_eat...

Hang in there, she'll get better at eating!

Welcome to my world. My son would rather drink his calories than eat them. He seems perfectly healthy so I'm just going to go with the flow. At least he'll drink ANY milk so if I run out, he's fine with skim--he loves milk THAT much!

My child used to be this way. We literally had to give her milk after she ate. It was a battle, but she would give in. I would ask your pediatrician how much she should have and literally not go beyond that in a day.

No offense but what's wrong w/wanting milk?? She should be getting as much protein & Vitamins that the milk provides, not to mention the calcium. This is their growing years...time to build strong healthy bones & be healthy...it could be worse...she might be asking for Coke or some other soda or KoolAid which is NOT the best thing for anyone to drink really. I'd say be happy she wants something healthy. If you're concerned about weight (not saying that you are, just saying 'if' you are) try reduced fat or fat free milk. Maybe she's just not hungry...milk does fill a body up. If she's technically healthy, I wouldn't worry so much about it at this time. She's only 2.5 yrs old so they tend to be picky at this stage. I was the same way w/some foods but grew out of it. I'm sure she'll grow out of it but if you're truly concerned ask the doctor. My mother's husband got onto us kids for drinking ANY milk...wasn't allowed unless it was for cereal & I truly think we suffered for it. I'm certainly not as strong as I should be & definitly not strong as a child/adolescent & I think that had a lot to do w/it. He was so fixated on 'not getting fat' that we suffered greatly. Again, I'd just be happy she wants milk & not soda or other sugary drink. Good luck.

Sunny D's suggestion is perfect. Poor some of the milk out of the carton into a pitcher that isn't clear. Then add water to the carton, so she always sees you pouring her milk out of the milk carton. The rest of the family can drink the milk from the other pitcher. You can keep watering down the milk until she is drinking the right amount everyday.

You don't want to battle with eating and drinking. Act like it is all normal and it won't become a battle of wills or a control thing on her part.

I have two of them! What % milk are you giving her? If you're not already I'd switch to skim. I always give my kids a glass at meal times and sometimes another glass or two in between. I think that between 24-36 oz is still recommended but over that amount can actually start to inhibit the absorption of protein from milk and other foods. My daughter just turned 4 and just within the last month or two I've noticed that she has decreased her intake of milk. I think maybe she's just "getting over it" a little bit. We bascially only drink milk and water in our house, juice is a treat. My son drinks tons of it, but he just turned 2 yesterday so I'm done with the whole milk and moving onto skim for him as well and I'm guessing that may decrease his intake as well.

At 2.5 I would basically just tell my daughter that she could have this glass (that I was presenting her at the time) and if she finished it she could have water if she was still thirsty. At first there were a few tears b/c she wanted more, but honestly, it didn't take long and she was fine with it.

My daughter was also like that when she was a toddler. When I talked to the pedi about it, she said she could have as much as she wanted as long as she ate a normal amount of food. So, our challenge was getting her to eat food. I had to learn not to give her milk at the beginning of any meal, and sometimes it meant not giving her milk during a meal (just water). Her milk could come after she ate. If she stopped eating, we held back on the milk until she started eating again.

Then a strange thing happened. When she was about 3 1/2 or so, she decided she hated milk. I never figured it out. She refused it for 2 months. Then, like nothing happened, she started drinking it again, now in more normal amounts. She's almost 7 now. Now she will drink her one cup of milk with her dinner (she's still not a big eater unless it's snack food...) and she will want milk if she's really thirsty or needs comfort. She is also mildly lactose intolerant. The switch to Lactaid milk was no big deal. She likes it the same as regular milk.

Good luck!

Oh my kid is also a milk a holic....he is 6 and could drink a gallon of milk a day every other day if left to his own devices. Yes...not hungry...because he can drink milk all day long. Why he is like this don't know. But here is what we have done to deal with it. 1) Get a proper portion size glass for her age for milk - check with peditrician for what the daily amount should be. 2) Then portion it out....I'd make a visual chart, or we put out 3 portion size cups each day...different colors. When there are no more glasses sitting out on the counter....the "milk store is closed". Now there was crying whinning carrying on for the first day or two...but because I stuck to my guns....kid came around.

Now that he is older. Milk (1 glass) allowed with breakfast, lunch and dinner. Water is served with snacks or when he is "thirsty". There still is occasional griping and whinning.

Good luck.

She could have Sensory issues. Look up SPD and picky eating.

My daughter drank undiluted whole milk like a calf when she was little, and at 21, still loves the stuff. It doesn't seem to have done her any harm.

One problem you may want to keep in mind is that pasteurized milk doesn't have much nutrition. You may want to switch to raw milk if this is comprising so much of her diet. At least that way you know she is getting great nutrients. We have had our baby on it since he stopped breastfeeding at 15 mos. He does great on it and it is not true that is isn't safe. Pasteurization kills the important enzymes needed to break down the proteins in milk. This is one of the reasons may people cannot tolerate it well. Please see this website to read all of the great benefits of raw milk.
http://www.raw-milk-facts.com