rice dream not suitable for under 5y/o??

[GodChick]

DD1 loves rice dream. just today i noticed on the box it says "not for use as infant formula (duh!). for children under 5 consult your child's doctor." whhaaa??? isn't it okj for my 9mo to drnk rice milk? we don't use it as formula--we bf. she just drinks it instead of cow's milk when she has her little bit of solids. :shrug

while i'm at it--we've been using original RD. but is the enriched kind ok? it's got about as much calcium as cow's milk. but it also has 15% adult rda of phosphorus. i'm assuming that's because the calcium is tricalcium phosphate. :think

[Iansmama]

:scratch Hmm...maybe they say to talk to your dr because rice milk is low/non fat and they want to make sure children under 5 are getting plenty of fat?

[ArmsOfLove]

I would suspect this is because they don't want people to use it as formula--but it's okay to drink :) Rice dream does have gluten, though, if that is an issue.

[PurpleButterfly]

I agree that it's probably about formula and fat content. We use the enriched vanilla RD and have since ds was about 18 months old, with hearty endorsement from our pediatrician. :) Along with rice milk, I also like to rotate almond, hazelnut, oat and some soy milk. :yum

[BornFreeBaby]

Children don't really need 'milk' anyway, so I think that it would be fine to give it to your dc. For us, its really the only option because dd is allergic to milk and soy, so what else are we to use. :shrug
We have used almond milk before, but it has the same warning on the package.

[Irene]

wow I have never seen that warning on the package! is it only on rice dream maybe? we use a gf brand :think teri, we are allergic to dairy soy and nuts, so rice was kind of our only option as well, but we really dont use a whole lot of "milks "anyway :shrug they drink it for a special treat, but like you said, they dont really need milk so :shrug but I can understand using it for a drink for the kids :)

[milkmommy]

:-) I actually wondered about this very thing back when I first started using it so I Emailed them and asked. :yes They said the 5 and under is because 5 is the overall natural age for weaning from the breast. Since they sell to other counties where breastfeeding till self weaning is normal.. they put 5 and under. The idea is to make sure a family isn't substuting rice dream for all breastfeeding or for formula is thats the case. :mrgreen HTH It kinda made me want to support them more :)

Deanna

[BornFreeBaby]

Wow... 5 is the natural age to wean?? How backwards is OUR society to say that 1 year is the social norm! :banghead

[Heather Micaela]

Wow... 5 is the natural age to wean?? How backwards is OUR society to say that 1 year is the social norm! :banghead


tell me about it!


Yeah i saw that too and figured it was to enforce the not using it a formula.

[milkmommy]

Wow... 5 is the natural age to wean?? How backwards is OUR society to say that 1 year is the social norm! :banghead

:yes in Countries where children are freely allowed and even encouraged to nurse till they weain the average is around 5 (not that some don't go longer or some sooner) Its ashame what our country deems as "normal" :no2

Deanna

[flowermama]

:-) I actually wondered about this very thing back when I first started using it so I Emailed them and asked. :yes They said the 5 and under is because 5 is the overall natural age for weaning from the breast. Since they sell to other counties where breastfeeding till self weaning is normal.. they put 5 and under. The idea is to make sure a family isn't substuting rice dream for all breastfeeding or for formula is thats the case. :mrgreen HTH It kinda made me want to support them more :)


Wow, that's pretty cool! :cool

[GodChick]

:tu Thanks ladies! Way to go RD people, for acknowledging EBF!!! :tu ITA about kids not having to have milk, too. DD2 (I was in a hurry last night, and accidentally typed DD1--it's DD2 who likes RD so much.) just likes it--but i don't consider it a neccessity--she drinks plain water too. :mrgreen

[Irene]

wow thats awesome!!! :tu

[Katherine]

For us, its really the only option because dd is allergic to milk and soy, so what else are we to use.


We avoid dairy, soy, and nuts due to ds's food allergies. We use Dari-Free, a potato-based milk substitute. We like it better than any milk substitute we've tried for taste and ease of use.

We don't drink a lot of milk "straight" so to speak, but we still enjoy a bowl of cereal in the morning and I use it for baking and for things like dairy-free hot chocolate/pudding.

[willjenn]

Yeah, but I can buy rice dream at Wal-Mart and dari free is only availble online with a shipping charge, so I can't really afford it. I have tried it and I like it, just wish it was locally available. If I come into some money I will probably buy it in bulk and keep it on hand. It is much creamier and more "milk" like. It makes an excellent coffee creamer.