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Hi all!
My daughter is now 11 months (vegan since conception) and I am planning to wean her from breastfeeding in the next few months. I'm just wondering what I should replace the breastmilk with after? Have you all switched your babies to soymilk or other non-dairy milks? Non dairy formula? Or just no milks at all?
Any advice would be really helpful!
Thanks Kind Lifers!!
Leigh
Hi!
I don't have a child but my aunt fed her baby boy with soybased milk powder (you add water to it) right from birth (she couldn't breastfeed her first child). She's not a vegan! She totally did it for allergic-reaction-reasons and it went well - the boy is healthy and growing up fast :).
Hope you find the right choice for your baby! Good luck,
Charlotte
Thanks Charlotte 
Its been a long time since my girls were that little (my yougest is 9 now!). I remember I used non-dairy milks. Just make sure you get fortified - extra vitamins etc. My daughter had a problem with soy, so we switched off between rice (she liked that best), hemp, almond, hazelnut. etc. If you're really concerned with the nutrients, you can switch off with a non-dairy formula too.
My daughter was weaned at 17 months and she refused any type of milk until she was over two years old. As long as she has all of her vitamins/mineral requirements milk is not necessary at all.
Hi Leigh!
She is old enough to try ricemilk or any other type of grain milk, but I would wait until she is 1 year old to try soy or nut-based milk. Just make sure they are fortified with calcium, vitamin D and B12. That being said, she can meet her nutrition needs without fotified milk, but you have to be on top of it (e.g. adding freshly ground chia or flax seeds into cereal/smoothies and serving kale/brocolli, etc... can boost calcium, adding nutritional yeast on top of pasta/rice/etc...can boost B12, and most kids need a separate vitamin D supplement anyway). I would avoid the soy powder as this is usually intended as an ingredient versus a beverage base and the non-organic powder is sometimes processed with hexane. As for protein, a 1 year old (on average) only needs 10-15 grams/day--eaily met without milk. My daughter really likes homemade ricemilk and you can get creative (e.g. add chia gel for extra calcium) if you want :)
Sara, R.D.
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