NCDA&CS and the Dairy Alliance are partnering up on a new video campaign promoting the benefits of dairy milk for infants and young children. USDA recommends infants and toddlers only drink milk and water, because of the benefits that milk provides to developing kids. The campaign is funded through a grant by the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund. Here with more details is NC Ag Commissioner Steve Troxler.
Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler sits down each week with Southern Farm Network’s Mike Davis to discuss “Today’s Topic.”
Summary of Talking Points:
- We recently launched a new video dairy promotion touting the benefits of dairy milk for infants and toddlers, which coincides with new recommendations from USDA that young children should only consume milk and water.
- The video is part of a promotional series focused on the state’s diverse livestock industry.
- In the video, a Charlotte pediatrician and his wife who is a dietician talk about the USDA recommendation and why dairy milk provides the nutrients that young children need as they are developing.
- For starters, dairy milk is full of the kinds of healthy fats that young children need to promote brain tissue and nervous system growth.
- The doctor was pleased to note that the USDA recommendations are in line with recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
- One of the points that he stresses is that the specific macronutrient makeup of cow’s milk makes it particularly suited for promoting the neurological fine-tuning that takes place in the brain during the first two years of life.
- Consumers can find a lot of plant-based beverages in the stores that market themselves as milk, even though the FDA definition of milk notes it comes from a cow.
- Because of the growing consumption of these alternative drinks and the availability of them, the Charlotte pediatrician said he has now made it a point to have conversations with parents about the different nutritional needs of children and how these alternative products don’t meet those.
- Oftentimes, if parents have these beverages in their homes, they may think these products are providing the nutrients their children need.
- Because children’s diets are still so reliant on liquid calories early on, pediatricians generally recommend that children transition to cow’s milk at around one year of age, starting with whole milk until the child turns two, and then moving to 2 percent or 1 percent milk after that. He noted that there is no liquid substitution for good old cow’s milk.
- I know my mom made sure we had milk with our meals as kids. She always told us it would make us grow up big, strong and healthy. And what’s the old saying … mom’s know best. I’d agree with that.
- You can find this video on our YouTube and Facebook page. Check back to see others in this series throughout the year. I am grateful for the partnership of the Dairy Alliance in making this video, and the funding support of the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund.