Toddler Feeding What’s on the Plate: Dairy

Dairy Provides Many Key Nutrients:

• Protein. A vital nutrient.  

• Fat. Very important for brain development. Use Full-Fat Dairy until at least age 2

• Calcium. Dairy products are an excellent source of calcium. Calcium is vital for bones.

• Vitamin D (milk only). Cow’s milk is nearly always fortified with vitamin D. Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium and promotes bone growth as well as supports the immune system.

• Some B vitamins 

• Zinc

• Dairy is very low in iron.

Toddlers Need:

• Full-Fat Dairy

• About 16-24 ounces of milk per day. But not more than 24 ounces.

• 600 mg of Calcium per day for ages 1 to 3 

• 600 IU of Vitamin D per day for ages 1 to 3

• 16 ounces provides the right amount of calcium intake and a little more than half the recommended Vitamin D

• Milk should be served in a cup with or without a straw

NOTES:

• Check the milk label to ensure it’s fortified with Vitamin D. 

• Continue to Use Full-Fat milk, yogurt, and cheese at least until the age of 2, as the brain needs a lot of fat for its rapid development. Around age 2, check with your healthcare provider about switching to lower fat versions. We want to make sure that your child’s growth is sufficient enough to do so. 

• Note: When you make the switch to lower fat milk or dairy options, you may need to do so gradually, as your child may have now become very accustomed to whole milk and whole fat diary items, so for example, slowly add more lower-fat milk to their whole milk until the changeover is made.

Dairy Alternatives

Goat’s milk and sheep's milk can be a good substitute for cow-based dairy and have a very close nutrient profile. 

At this time, the only dairy alternative that is considered nutritionally equivalent to dairy products by the USDA is fortified soy beverages and soy yogurt. Some of these soy products have lots of added sugars, so if you use these, try to find the unsweetened options. 

Other dairy alternatives such as oat, rice, coconut, and almond milk, are not considered equivalent to dairy milk and will not by themselves meet the nutritional needs of this age group. The protein and often the fat content in these options are significantly lower than dairy milk. Moreover, they are not always fortified with calcium and Vitamin D. 

If you decide to use dairy alternatives, on occasion, in your toddler’s cereals or as a beverage, they should not count towards meeting their daily dairy requirements.

However, if you choose to use these other alternatives as the only milk source your toddler drinks, please talk to your child’s healthcare provider beforehand so they provide you with the necessary instructions or refer you to a nutritionist. The reason that we are asking you to do this is because we want to make sure that you make all the necessary adjustments to their diet if they are going to be dairy free.

Toddler Serving Size: Dairy

Toddlers need about 4 servings based on our serving sizes listed on the chart below. Toddlers who drink the recommended 16-24 ounces of milk per day will meet their milk requirement. And toddlers who drink 24 ounces will meet their total dairy intake and should not have any more dairy products. However, if they take closer to 16 ounces, they will have met their daily calcium intake but only half their Vitamin D requirement. And that’s OK, drinking even 16 ounces is a lot for many toddlers, but just be sure they take some Vitamin D. In fact, we would recommend closer to the 16-ounce amount of milk because if your toddler drinks too much milk at meals or at snack time, they will often be too full to eat other  foods. 

Foods like Greek yogurt or cheese can be offered as a source of dairy and contain calcium, fat, and protein, but do not have Vitamin D. 

For toddlers who tend to drink less milk and eat very few other dairy foods, additional sources of calcium and Vitamin D or a supplement might be necessary. Ask your child’s health care provider. 

Dairy

Toddlers Daily Need: ~4 servings But no more than 6

Serving Size

½ cup Whole Milk

½ cup Full-fat Yogurt, cottage cheese

¾ oz. Cheese

¼ Rule. If you don’t want to calculate or weigh food portions, the general rule is Toddler Serving size = ¼ Adult serving

Snacks = mini-meals. Like meals, snacks should be nutritionally dense and include a variety of foods.

Snack serving = ½ toddler serving sizes.

Do offer 3 meals plus 2-3 snacks but limit to no more than 3 snacks per day

If possible offer each item at each meal and in ½ portions at each snack

• Serve with milk or water

• 1 protein 

• 1 carb 

• 1 fat source if the protein is lean

• 1 vegetable or 1 fruit