2% vs whole milk yogurt

I know you are not supposed to give them 2% milk until 2 years right? So does this go for yogurt too? My kids LOVE yogurt, and I like giving it to them because they aren't the best about drinking lots of milk. But the only yogurtl I can find in whole milk is the incredibly expensive YoBaby stuff. Sometimes I can find a big ol' container of plain yogurt, but not always. And then I have to mix stuff into it, which means buying jarred fruit, which cancels out the savings.

So you yogurt fans, what do you do?

 

I'm sure there are different opinions out there, but our pediatrician was very insistent that I give the kids yogurt with whole milk up until age 2 years; she actually repeated this several times. I buy large, 32 oz., containers of Mountain High yogurt and my kids can eat several containers of that in a week. There are times when I can't find any whole milk yogurt so I buy them the low fat kind, but only occasionally.

Another thing I do with yogurt is I use the blender to mix in fresh fruit like bananas and I make them yogurt smoothies to drink.

thea

 

I just gave them Yoplait yogurt. Also, my kids actually refused whole milk when we transitioned from formula to milk so they have been drinking only 2% milk from age 1 year and we have no issues nurtrition wise as they are pretty much in the 90th percentile in weight and length categories.

 

My girls can't drink whole milk because it causes GI problems so they get 2%. I also give them 2% yogurt because I can't find whole milk yogurt around here. We've never had a issue and our pedi isn't to worried about it.

 

I still do give my two whole milk yogrut, YoBaby, because they are on the small side from being preemies. But you are right it is costly. I never gave my oldest DD whole milk yogrut, always just Yoplait or something like that, and I have never heard our ped say it had to be whole milk. I'm actually contemplating switching yogurt now to save a few dollars. I don't think there is anything wrong with giving 2% milk yogurt before 2, they don't have it as much as they have milk.

 

They Yo baby stuff has TONS of sugar. So I occasionally substitute 2% yogurt with less sugar. Getting the plain stuff and adding fruit (if they like it, mine don't) is brilliant. Lots less sugar and better for them. My girls are average regarding weight, so I don't stress about it. But if yours are underweight, then you may want to ask Pedi or use whole until 2 yr.

 

I don't like the YoBaby b/c of the sugar, either. And also the price.

I tried Activia for awhile, to see if it would help dd's constipation problems.....but since it didn't seem to really make any difference, I'm going to switch back to a whole milk kind. And it's almost impossible to find!! Usually if I look in the health food section, I can find a vanilla flavored whole yogurt. The last one I got, though, was actually very good by itself. This morning I mixed a little of it in with their oatmeal, and they loved it. Otherwise, I'll buy fresh fruit like strawberries or blueberries & blend it up, or mash them really good into the yogurt. It's kind of a 2 for 1 deal that way - they're getting their fruit & yogurt at the same time.

 

Mine get 2% milk and have since the switch. The pedi said that it's a fat thing if they are getting fat other places which they are then it's not a huge deal. Also they have been doing lower fat yogurt b/c I refuse to buy the Yobaby it's to expensive. Both of mine are good in the weight department as well. Isn't it funny that all dr's say different things?

 

Mine still get the yobaby kind - I've tried the 2% kind, and it gives them poop issues, although it's supposed to be the other way around. We'll try again in a month or so. I'm not giving it to them still because of the pedi - only because they tolerate it better. I wish I could get them switched over...

 

It's not that you CAN'T give them 2% milk but that most peds recommend that you do not give them 2% milk as their basic milk intake. There have been a couple of times that we ran out of milk and had to give them our skim milk for their morning or afternoon sippy. When they hit 2 years old, I'll probably move them to 2% and then eventually to skim when they are older. That's what dh and I drink so it will be easier to just have to buy one kind of milk. As for yogurt, I sometimes give them yogurt that is lowfat because the options for whole milk yogurt seem to be very limited but I usually buy LaYogurt and Yogplait which I believe are made with whole milk (and incidentally, I found that the the thick and creamy or rich and creamy yogurts are a great way to start teaching them how to use a spoon cause it pretty much sticks to the spoon).

 

Its hard to find the whole milk so we use the 2% less sugar kinds

 

Thanks for the input ladies! The twins actually have their 15 month check up next week, so I'll ask the pedi then. I think mine tend to be around the 50% range on weight, so maybe he will give us the go ahead to give them the 2% yogurt, but stick with the whole milk.

BTW, I looked on the side of the yobaby cup, and the second ingredient was "naturally milled organic sugar" what is that exactly?!

 

I looked it up: (I was curious too).
Naturally Milled Sugar
It’s less processed. To make a refined white sugar, there is a series of filtration and processing steps, which consumes extra energy and produces additional waste. White sugar or 100% sucrose, stripped of all trace nutrients, vitamins and minerals is produced. In contrast, naturally milled sugar requires up to ten fewer processing steps. This saves energy while retaining traces of some nutrients. Naturally milled sugar can be included in an organic product. White sugar can’t.


BTW I've given the girls 2% milk a few times (we were at the zoo, park, etc and that's all they sold). My girls are around the 50% range too.

 

QUOTE(Safari @ Sep 20 2007, 02:03 AM) [snapback]415401[/snapback]
I looked it up: (I was curious too).
Naturally Milled Sugar
It’s less processed. To make a refined white sugar, there is a series of filtration and processing steps, which consumes extra energy and produces additional waste. White sugar or 100% sucrose, stripped of all trace nutrients, vitamins and minerals is produced. In contrast, naturally milled sugar requires up to ten fewer processing steps. This saves energy while retaining traces of some nutrients. Naturally milled sugar can be included in an organic product. White sugar can’t.
BTW I've given the girls 2% milk a few times (we were at the zoo, park, etc and that's all they sold). My girls are around the 50% range too.



So maybe it is a teensy bit better for them then? I'm guessing it is!!

 

Until the girls were two, we gave them whole milk and whole milk yogurt. We bought the big containers from Trader Joes so it wasn't too pricey. But, FWIW, once they turned two, the pedi told me to switch to skim milk and not 2%. They said they get their fat from the foods they eat and there is no reason for them to drink anything more than skim. They want us to try to keep all their dairy in the lower percents or skim. We just give them what we eat ourselves. It's more of a cholesterol issue prevention rather than weight issue. Rachel has never been in anything but the 5th percentile for weight and Danielle the 50%. They've had no issue with the switch to the skim products and are growing like weeds.

 

I can't find plain whole milk yogurt in the stores around here, so I gave 2%. They drank whole milk and are up there with weight, so I figured it's really not a big deal if they have 2% yogurt. I never bothered to ask the doctor about it. When I ran across whole milk yogurt, I would buy it.

 

Well, we had a wic appt yesterday & I remebered this topic & wondering about yogurt, so I asked the wic lady what she thought. She said as long as they're getting the whole milk, the lowfat yogurt should be fine.

 

My boys are in the 50% and 5% (yikes) percentile for weight, and my ped said that 2% yogurt and milk were fine. I don't know if that's b/c DH and I are significantly overweight, but since Ryan is so skinny, they're still getting whole milk and whole-milk yogurt (although I am about done with the YoBaby myself.)

 

Mine split 1 container of yobaby every morning. I read on Stoneyfield Farm's website that they were already in the process of reducing the sugar, so keep your eye on the nutritional information on the packaging. The sugar is supposed to be *less* awful than white refined sugar.