When is the best time to drink milk after 1 year old? How to choose milk? Here is the most objective answer

One year old is like a watershed in a baby\’s diet. He can eat family meals, eat salt, and eat many foods that were not allowed before one year old. However, as the food ban here is lifted, the question of what kind of milk to drink comes again. . It stands to reason that in European and American countries, children drink fresh milk directly after one year old. Which milk to drink is not a parenting problem. However, in China, due to milk quality issues and different opinions on formula feeding time, mothers Growing more and more confused. So when should you start giving your baby milk? Is it better to eat milk powder or milk? Which milk product to choose? Today, I will help you clear up the fog, so that everyone can find the answer that meets their own conditions. Question 1: Some people say that you should start drinking milk when you are one year old, while others say that it is best to drink formula milk until you are two years old. When should you start drinking milk? Drink at one year old or drink at two years old. Both opinions have theoretical support. Let’s take a look at the following authoritative organizations: >>> American Academy of Pediatrics AAP When your baby is 1 year old, you can give him full-fat milk or low-fat (2%) milk. Milk, together with solid food (cereals, vegetables, fruits, meat) provides a balanced diet. But he drinks up to 1 quart (about 946 ml) of milk a day. More milk will provide excess calories and reduce his appetite for other foods. >>> World Health Organization WHO By 1 year old, most babies can eat the same foods as other family members. Whole milk is important in the first 2 years of life. Because it does not contain essential fatty acids, lacks fat-soluble vitamins, and has a high renal load, skim milk is not recommended as a primary food for children under 2 years of age. Low-fat milk can be added after 12 months. >>> One-year-old children of the Hong Kong District Health Department can already obtain the nutrients they need from a diverse diet. Parents should note that milk is only part of a balanced diet for children aged one year or above, and is also an easier source of calcium. …Parents can allow their children (after one year old *OK mother\’s note) to drink milk that is cheaper than formula milk (including fresh milk, refrigerated or fresh-packed UHT milk, or whole milk powder). Parents do not need to switch to growth-enhancing formula milk (i.e. “No. 3” and “No. 4”) for their children to obtain additional nutrients. >>> Chinese Nutrition Society The protein and mineral content of ordinary fresh milk, yogurt, cheese, etc. are much higher than breast milk, which increases the burden on the kidneys of infants and young children. For children aged 12-24 months, they can be gradually tried as part of food diversification. , but it is recommended to eat a small amount, and it cannot completely replace breast milk or formula milk. Interpretation: Except for the Chinese Nutrition Society, the recommendations of other organizations are to start drinking milk after one year old. The conclusions are drawn based on the context. AAP, WHO, first of all, the quality of milk sources in the countries where these institutions are located is reliable, and the issue of whether it is safe for babies to drink adult milk is completely outside the scope of discussion; secondly, there is lifestyle. European and American families have been accustomed to grabbing milk from huge refrigerators several generations ago. A bucket of fresh milk can be used as water. Since drinking fresh milk is much more convenient than making milk powder, of course it is more convenient to drink milk when the two are almost the same. Hong Kong GuardianPersonally, I feel that the Department of Health\’s suggestion is more from an economic perspective, and it also means choosing the best one under the same circumstances. One thing that is very clear is that no agency has said that you should not drink or cannot drink formula milk after one year old. Conclusion: The common view in the world is that it is okay for children to drink milk after 1 year old. This is indeed the case. However, I personally think that there is no hard and fast rule on this matter. We still have to consider the source of milk and the individual situation of our own children. It is perfectly fine to continue formula milk during the period of 1-2 years old. The above are suggestions given by major authoritative organizations around the world, but nutritional issues related to milk and formula milk still trouble mothers. Question 2: What is the nutritional difference between milk and formula milk? where? I have two friends who are at two extremes when it comes to feeding their babies milk. One of them thinks that milk powder is too nutritious and the baby won’t need it after he is 1 year old. Drinking too much will lead to overnutrition, so he decides to switch to milk. ; Another person thinks that the nutrition of fresh milk is much weaker than that of formula milk. If the baby likes to drink formula milk, let him drink it all the time, and the nutrition will be better. In fact, this issue should be looked at specifically based on your own baby’s situation. Generally speaking, most babies can eat family food after one year old, and the diet is almost as rich as that of adults. At this time, milk is no longer the main source of nutrition. Therefore, whether it is formula milk or fresh milk, they are only part of the baby\’s food. The main task is to provide nutrients such as protein and calcium. There is not much difference in the nutritional significance of the two. Of course, compared to fresh milk, formula milk does fortify various nutrients on the basis of milk, such as vitamin D, iron, etc. (this refers to formula milk after one year old), but since these can also be obtained from other foods, . Therefore, if the baby\’s diet is reasonable and the food is rich enough, there may be no need to additionally fortify these nutrients. On the other hand, if your baby is picky about food and doesn\’t like to eat, it is OK to continue drinking formula milk after one year old. (Of course, the most important thing is for children to have balanced nutrition. The most important thing is for parents to step out of their comfort zones and cultivate good eating habits in their children.) Conclusion: After 1 year old, the baby’s main source of nutrition can be obtained from family food, and milk is no longer the main nutrition. Source, everyone should make flexible adjustments according to their children’s eating habits and structure. OK, we have figured out a few troublesome points. If we plan to give milk to our baby, then we will go to the next step. How to choose when there are so many kinds of milk? Question 3: There are so many types of milk, how to choose for your baby? As soon as I entered the supermarket and stood in front of the milk cabinet, I felt dizzy. There were so many milks, how to choose for my baby? I went to the supermarket to look at all kinds of milk. The simplest and most easy-to-identify suggestion for everyone is to look at their ingredient list. Generally, you can’t go wrong with the one that only has clean raw milk in the ingredient list. But there are two types here, one is pasteurized milk and the other is room temperature milk. Let’s talk about it in detail——>>> Pasteurized milk: Fresh milk that is sterilized at a lower temperature. Because it is not ultra-high temperature, all the bacteria in the milk are not killed, and generally have a shorter shelf life. Therefore, the pure milk in supermarkets that is placed in the freezer and has a shelf life of less than 8 days is pasteurized milk. >>> Normal temperature milk: It uses ultra-high temperature treatment (UHT), and it is basically impossible for bacteria to survive. Under sealed conditions, milk treated in this way can be stored for several months or even longer without refrigeration. The milk packaged in Tetra Pak bricks and placed on general shelves in supermarkets is room temperature milk. (Let’s take a look at the specific differences between the two below) From the above comparison, due to different processing techniques, there is still a gap in nutritional retention between room temperature milk and pasteurized milk. This is mainly because UHT is used in sterilization. At the same time, more vitamins are destroyed. However, vitamins are only a small part of the nutrients in milk. We give milk to our children mainly to obtain the protein and calcium in milk. I looked for pasteurized milk and room temperature milk of the same brand in the supermarket and made a comparison. As you can see, the protein and calcium content of the two milks are almost the same. So the conclusion is: from the perspective of nutritional retention, pasteurized milk is better. If there is a milk factory with reliable milk source nearby and the refrigeration conditions at home are OK, you can choose to drink pasteurized milk; otherwise, choose room temperature milk with reliable milk source. Milk is totally fine too, the difference is not big. Question 4: How to choose between whole milk, low-fat milk and skimmed milk for your baby? After distinguishing between pasteurized milk and room-temperature milk, another choice is put in front of us. How to choose between whole milk, low-fat milk and skimmed milk for the baby? As can be seen from the names, the main difference between these three types of milk is the fat content. The fat content of whole milk is 3.0%, the fat content of low-fat milk is about 1.5%, and the fat content of skim milk is as low as 0.5%. For young babies, physical development requires adequate fat intake, and in addition to fat, whole milk has a much higher content of fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamin A, than the other two types of milk, which are also very harmful to the baby. A good nutritional supplement, so babies under 2 years old must drink whole milk. After the age of 2, the child\’s need for fat will decrease. At this time, you can choose to drink full-fat or half-fat based on the child\’s physical condition. To put it simply, if the child is on the fat side, choose half-fat milk and reduce fat intake; if the child is on the thin side, continue to drink full-fat milk. When children reach the age of 5, their fat intake requirements will be less. At this time, obese children can choose to drink skim milk. Conclusion: Children before the age of 2 should choose whole milk. After the age of 2, choose full-fat or low-fat milk according to the child\’s own situation. Only after the age of 5 can they drink skim milk. Special reminder: Don’t buy children’s milk with complex ingredients, no matter how gimmicky it is. In addition to the serious pure milk, there are also all kinds of children’s milk advertised overwhelmingly in supermarkets, such as QQ Star, Future Star and so on. The packaging is beautiful and the taste is good. There are many, in addition to fruit flavor, there is also ice cream flavor. The ingredients of these children\’s milk are basically not 100% raw milk, most of them are prepared milk, so it is generally not recommended to give it to babies under the age of two. As I said before, the simplest and clearest criteria for choosing milk for babies are Yes: The selected ingredients are 100% raw milk. Of course, after 2 years old, it is not a big problem to give your baby some drinks occasionally, but you should also choose something with simple ingredients. The more complex it is, the less recommended it is for your baby to drink. For example, some kind of children\’s growth milk, various sugars, fruitsConcentrated juice, essence… the ingredient list has more than ten lines! That is obviously inappropriate! Another brand of children\’s milk has a very simple ingredient list. In addition to raw milk, the three additives are mainly used to supplement calcium, iron and zinc. Therefore, it is okay for children to eat this kind of milk occasionally. Conclusion: Don’t buy children’s milk with complex ingredients, no matter how gimmicky it is. It depends on the ingredients. If it only adds nutrients, you can drink it; if it adds extra sugar, juice and flavor, don’t drink it.