Is milk good or bad for kids? And how much dairy do they actually need?

If you follow child nutrition content on social media, you’re bound to be confused when it comes to giving your kids milk. Some influencers claim you should avoid milk at all costs, for fear it could cause asthma, allergies or digestive problems. Others say your child probably isn’t drinking enough.

Then there are the different types . Do you give children full cream, low fat or skim milk? Or the array of milk alternatives you can now find on the supermarket shelf? And how much is enough?

Let’s look at the science.

Why we need dairy at every age

It’s important for the small number of people with a cow’s milk allergy or lactose intolerance to avoid dairy.

But for most other children, dairy can provide calcium, iodine, protein and other key nutrients needed for healthy growth and development. It supports key body systems from early childhood through to old age, including:

1. Bone health

Dairy is rich in calcium, helping build strong bones in childhood and maintaining bone health throughout adulthood .

Children who consume enough dairy have higher bone density and some studies link dairy intake with greater height.

Adults who regularly consume dairy tend to have better bone health and lower fracture risk.

2. Heart health

Dairy provides essential nutrients that help regulate blood pressure and support circulation.

Higher consumption of both full-fat and reduced-fat dairy has been linked to healthier hearts in kids and lower rates of heart disease and stroke in adults.

3. Weight management

Contrary to diet-industry myths, dairy supports a healthy weight because it’s high in protein and calcium, which make us feel fuller for longer.

Research shows kids with high dairy intake are less likely to become overweight.

In adults, studies show consuming the recommended daily intake is associated with a lower risk of obesity.

Common concerns about dairy

Some concerns about dairy are valid. But these don’t apply to all children.

Allergy and intolerance

Cow’s milk allergy affects a small proportion of young children, causing hives, vomiting, wheezing or eczema flare-ups. These children need careful medical assessment and may need to avoid dairy.

Lactose intolerance is different. It happens when the body has difficulty digesting lactose, the natural sugar in milk, leading to symptoms such as bloating or diarrhoea. Lactose intolerance becomes more common with age.

Asthma and mucus

Some parents believe dairy worsens asthma or increases mucus production. But research doesn’t support dairy as a cause of asthma symptoms.

Milk can temporarily leave a coating sensation in the mouth and throat that some people interpret as extra mucus. But dairy doesn’t increase mucus production itself.

Nutrition concerns in toddlers

One time parents do need to be careful about dairy intake is during toddlerhood.

During the transition to solid foods, drinking too much milk can reduce children’s appetite for iron-rich foods and increase the risk of iron deficiency .

That’s why health professionals encourage a balance between milk and iron-rich solid foods during toddlerhood.

What the guidelines say

Australia’s dietary guidelines recommend daily dairy consumption from 12 months.

One serve equals:

one cup (250 ml) of milk

two slices (40 grams) of hard cheese or half a cup (120g) of ricotta

three-quarters of a cup (200 grams) of yoghurt.

The number of serves recommended varies by age, sex and life stage:

toddlers, 1–1.5 serves

girls aged 2–8, 1.5 serves

girls aged 9–11, 3 serves

boys aged 2–3, 1.5 serves

boys aged 4–8, 2 serves

boys aged 9–11, 2.5 serves

teens, 3.5 serves

adults aged 19–50, 2.5 serves

women aged 51+, 4 serves

men aged 51–70, 2.5 serves

men aged 70+, 3.5 serves.

The guidelines also recommend consuming mostly reduced-fat dairy from the age of two.

However, many experts argue this recommendation is based on older assumptions about saturated fat that are increasingly being challenged by newer evidence .

What type of milk is best?

Full-cream, low-fat and skim milk all provide essential nutrients. The only real difference is the calorie and fat content. Full cream milk contains around 3.5% fat, low-fat milk is 2%, while skim has less than 0.2%.

While this leads people to believe reduced-fat milks are better, we now understand dairy’s saturated fat behaves differently from the saturated fat in processed foods, such as sausages and cakes, and has neutral or positive effects on heart health.

So whether your family prefers full-fat, low-fat, or skim, all are healthy options.

Plant-based milks are not nutritionally equivalent to dairy milk , and many contain less protein, iodine and naturally occurring calcium. However they may suit some families’ preferences.

For children who need an alternative due to allergy or intolerance, calcium-fortified soy milk is generally considered the closest nutritional substitute . Unlike other plant-based milks, it provides a comparable amount of both protein an…