When to move from whole milk to 2%?

I was goign to ask the pedi at our 18 mo. visit, but I forgot. At what age is it ok to move from whole milk down to 2% milk?

 

I was goign to ask the pedi at our 18 mo. visit, but I forgot. At what age is it ok to move from whole milk down to 2% milk?

 

My pedi waits until the kids are quite a bit older. My son, who is almost 9, still drinks whole milk. I would ask, but I bet it's not until later. Kids need the fat and stuff that's in whole milk.

 

I switched Kyle at age 2, Kayla still drinks whole.

 

We were encouraged to stay on whole until age 3 at the earliest, and around age 6 at the latest. I plan to switch when the kids all start Kindergarten. I think it has alot to do with where your child is at on the growth curve. Mine are all very petite so I think our Dr likes the little extra fat it offers...I would place a call to the Ped or ped nurse to see what they think would be best for your child. I would think the nurse could give you a recommendation over the phone. Mandy

Editted to add: Here is what drsears.com says:
Dr Sears

 

I switched my oldest at around 2, but with these two, I will wait to switch Lena since she doesnt drink as much anymore. Michael... he is already 32 pounds and a milk freak so he is going to be switched at 2 as well. Can't beleive they will be TWO!!!!

 

I plan on asking my pedi when we go for the girls 21 month check up next month.

 

I think the child's weight makes a difference, so it's best to ask your pedi. Our doc put Jackson on 2% at 12 months and Hayden and Brady at 9 months, and we switched to skim a little after they turned 1, since that's what DH and I drink. He didn't recommend whole milk for any of them.

 

We switched when they turned 2.

 

My pedi had us switch at 2.

 

I have to remember to ask at their next appt...

 

I think our pedi mentioned that we will switch at 2. I'll have to confirm when we go in for our 2 yr appt.

 

Our pedi said 12 months and I thought that was odd. He then told me to go to skim milk at their 18 month. I'm almost 40 and still drink whole milk and so will my kids. I like it better.

Angela

 

I just switched mine a couple weeks ago because the girls prefer 2% and it was such a pain buying 3 different kinds of milk because Dh and drink 1%.

 

Wow on whole milk until Kindergarten? My daughter is petite too on the 25% for weight and switched from whole to 1-2% at 2. My boys are around the same % so I imagine I will switch them after their 2 yr appt too. With childhood obesity on the rise, I am surprised some peds keep kids on whole milk longer

 

I am going to ask at their 2 year appt. My kids are both on the small side, so I imagine they may not make the switch yet (especially her).

 

Our ped recommend a change at age 2. She told us to switch to whatever Dh & I drink. We drink 1%. We bought 2% for a few weeks for the boys before giving them 1% exculsively.

 

I've heard 2, but mine are still drinking whole. Our pedi didn't say anything at their 2 year old appt., so I'm planning to ask her about it at our 2.5 year appt.

 

We just switched about a month ago. FWIW.

 

I think it would depend on the children's weight/growth. It never occured to me to ask the ped about this. My daughters have had 1% since they entered puberty and 2% for a few years before that. All three boys are still drinking whole milk because they are all tall and very skinny. They eat like horses, but no matter how much they eat, they seem to grow up much more quickly than they fill out!

 

We were also told that the switch should take place at about 2 years old.

 

my ped said this was actually somewhat controversial. I had no idea that it was such an issue.

his advice was wait until 2 1/2, closer to 3 since the girls were so early and skinny.

 

We switched to 2% at 2 years at our pedi's recommendation.

 

From what I was told it has to do with brain development. Babies need the Vit D or the whole fat or something bc it helps with brain development. I haven't researched it, was just told that by my oldests's ped and stuck with it. M&M are on soy though...so not getting any of those benefits..

 

2 years old.
Although, if we have been out and all they have is 2% or 1%, I give it to the boys...they aren't going to suffer from it.

 

Our ped said whole milk to at least two for the girls and then we'll discuss switching and make a decision based on their weight, which was aroudn the 20th percentile at the 12 mo wb.

 

I've had the girls on 2% since they turned one year back in April of last year. They also taken a daily multivitamin. I switched them from the Enfamil Poly Vi Sol to gummi multivitamin a month or so ago. Amber didn't like them so I bought the My First Flinstones for her.

 

Our pedi recommended STARTING them on 2% ... so 11 or 12 months old would be his answer.

 

we switched to skim for my dd at age 2... our ped was fine with this...dh and I do skim milk for us... except when I'm pg and have heartburn..lol...

 

Just saw the Pedi today, my boys are about 2.5.

he asked ME if they're on whole and I said yes. He said put them on 2%, they should've been off whole at 2.
He said it's about the same calories, just less fat. He said once they're eating all table food they don't need nearly the amount of fat whole milk contains, especially a few cups full a day.

I knew the most common recommendation was 2 yrs old, but Brandon is SO active and eats all day because his metabolism is CRAZY fast. . . . I was going to switch at 3, but looks like we're switching now!

 

Talk to your pedi and look at their overall diet to ensure that you are meeting their fat intake requirements for brain development (you should be able to calculate this yourself if you can get the requirements from your pedi). We actually just put Jamie on skim milk because she had all but stopped drinking milk, but would guzzle mine down at the dinner table (I drink Skim). I think she just didn't like the thickness of the 2% any more. They'll be 4 in May and have a good varied diet, so I don't think this is a problem. I think that switching at a certain age is just a guideline and you should go by their overall diet to come to a conclusion. Good luck!

 

ooops also want to add - important about vitamins.
DO NOT give the vitamin w/ breakfast or anytime they're drinking milk as the milk prohibits the iron in teh vitamin from absorbing.
They've seen such an anemia problem w/ this that they now test every kid at every well child check up for anemia.
My boys eat tons of fruits, veggies and meats and drink probably 16 ozs of whole milk/day and their iron levels were on teh brink of being too low.
I was honestly shocked.
The nurse asked when I give them the vitamin and I said at breakfast adn now we'll move it to lunch since I don't give milk at lunch.

 

My pedi recommends age 2.