Greek yogurt vs homo milk

@dallila The main reason cows milk is recommended starting at 12 months is because that is the “typical” age at which babies are weaned off of breastmilk or formula. Milk is an excellent source of calcium and vitamin D, as well as fat and protein. Calcium, however, is the one most relevant to dairy/milk consumption. Toddlers need approx. 700 mg of calcium per day. (https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Calcium-Consumer/#h2)

If you are still breastfeeding, your toddler will still be getting calcium from your breast milk. It’s difficult to know exactly how much but I’ve seen ranges between 60-80 mg of calcium per 8 fl oz of breast milk. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10233556/)

Give your toddler is consuming solids and other sources of dairy, they can reach that recommended amount by consuming cows milk or other calcium rich foods like yogurt, cheese, leafy greens, etc. it is also important to ensure they are consuming enough protein and fats from their diet. In particular, it is recommended to serve baby full fat (instead of skim or reduced fat) dairy in order to ensure they are consuming these fats and proteins at the greatest quantity available from the food. In particular, fats are super important for brain health and development especially within the first 1000 days of life, which is why full fat dairy is an important component of the diet.

TLDR; if your child is breastfeeding (or honestly just refusing cows milk) there is nothing wrong with reaching calcium, fat, protein, and vitamin d requirements through other dietary sources. Yogurt is a great option among many other foods.
 
@cfarmcity I would add to this that if the baby is eating a lot of dairy (like Greek yogurt) to make sure that they eat iron rich foods alongside foods with vitamin C. Like spinach puree with lemon, or beans with tomatoes, or beef with tomato sauce. The reason is that dairy foods can block iron absorption, and breastfed babies often are at risk for low iron or anemia since breastmilk (kind of like a dairy product lol) doesn’t allow for good transfer of iron to the baby.

My baby was slightly iron deficient at 12 months and also preferred yogurt to cow milk. We gave her as much yogurt as she wanted as a bed time snack to help her sleep with a full tummy but made sure to give spinach, eggs, meat throughout the day and pair them with vitamin C rich foods for maximum absorption, and her iron was good within a month.
 
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