Formula with milk. Are you thinking about mixing your infant’s formula with milk? If your child is a year old and you’re weaning off formula and starting to give them milk, you may want to mix it to help with the transition. Here’s what you need to know.
Can you mix formula with milk ?
Usually, no – it’s not wise to mix formula for your baby with whole cow’s milk. Formula is designed to perfectly meet your baby’s nutritional needs, so it’s best to only feed them baby formula or breast milk – not cow’s milk or homemade baby formula.
But though it isn’t typically recommended, you can, under specific circumstances, mix infant formula with whole milk. There are several things to keep in mind, however, and it’s best to check in with your child’s doctor before you give your baby formula mixed with milk.
Experts say it’s best to wait to give your child cow’s milk until they’re a year old. One reason for this is that cow’s milk contains a higher amount of protein and minerals than breast milk or formula, which can tax a baby’s kidneys and could make them sick. Cow’s milk also doesn’t have enough iron and other nutrients your baby needs, so drinking too much cow’s milk can lead your baby to become anemic.
Experts say that if necessary, babies over 6 months old can have cow’s milk for a short time when there are no other options. If you don’t have formula for your baby because of a formula recall or shortage, it’s okay to give them cow’s milk – but experts advise only giving them milk for no more than a week before going back to formula.
Talk to your child’s doctor before resorting to whole milk if your baby is under a year old – they may be able to help you find formula. If you do give your baby cow’s milk, also give them solid foods that contain iron, such as meat or iron-fortified baby cereal.
If your baby is over a year old, you can safely mix cow’s milk with formula. However, it isn’t necessary to do so and you can just completely switch them over to cow’s milk. If they’re having a hard time switching from formula to cow’s milk because they aren’t too keen on the taste of milk, you could mix a little bit of it with formula to help them get used to it.
Gradually mix more milk into less formula as time goes on, but if you’re using powder formula, always remember first to prepare the formula with the correct ratio of water to powder formula, according to the label on the formula, before mixing the prepared formula with cow’s milk.
Whole milk and water are the best drinks for toddlers – there’s no need to give them toddler milk, toddler formula or juice.
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