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Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Letter From UDSA Regarding Milk.....
meganlavonnesmommy 02:30 PM 08-02-2011
I got a letter this week from USDA about the milk switch. We live in MD.
It just said by Oct 1, all providers must be compliant and serve only skim or 1% milk. Which I totally agree with, so no problem.
It also said it will accept a parents written note if they prefer them to have soy milk, no drs note is needed. Which is great. I have two kids who prefer soy milk, so that makes it easier.
It doesnt say anything about if they will accept whole milk with a drs note tho. My daughter drinks whole milk at the advice of her dr. She is 9, but severely underweight, so the dr suggested it. I dont claim her for meals, so I dont need to worry about it. But I'm wondering what they would do if I needed to? I'm assuming I would just need a note from the dr.
It didnt say anything about juice, or restricting those servings, or offering water more often.
It just said by Oct 1, all providers must be compliant and serve only skim or 1% milk. Which I totally agree with, so no problem.
It also said it will accept a parents written note if they prefer them to have soy milk, no drs note is needed. Which is great. I have two kids who prefer soy milk, so that makes it easier.
It doesnt say anything about if they will accept whole milk with a drs note tho. My daughter drinks whole milk at the advice of her dr. She is 9, but severely underweight, so the dr suggested it. I dont claim her for meals, so I dont need to worry about it. But I'm wondering what they would do if I needed to? I'm assuming I would just need a note from the dr.
It didnt say anything about juice, or restricting those servings, or offering water more often.
MG&Lsmom 02:35 PM 08-02-2011
Did it just mention soy? Or all alternatives?
As an aside, have you tried almond milk with your daughter? If she's not allergic to nuts, I found that it was great for bringing my underweight 2yo up to normal. We also used a prescription calorie increaser with him as well. It's made by Similac or Enfamil and is a tasteless powder you can add to anything to increase the calories in meals/drinks.
As an aside, have you tried almond milk with your daughter? If she's not allergic to nuts, I found that it was great for bringing my underweight 2yo up to normal. We also used a prescription calorie increaser with him as well. It's made by Similac or Enfamil and is a tasteless powder you can add to anything to increase the calories in meals/drinks.
meganlavonnesmommy 04:13 AM 08-03-2011
It did mention other alternatives, cant remember which ones, but I want to say it was any alternative, whichever the parent prefered.
I havent tried the almond milk, but thanks for the info. Her dr said to stick with the regular milk for now because of the protein. Her weight is starting to come up, so that's an improvement.
I havent tried the almond milk, but thanks for the info. Her dr said to stick with the regular milk for now because of the protein. Her weight is starting to come up, so that's an improvement.
permanentvacation 05:34 AM 08-03-2011
What part of Maryland are you in? I'm in Middle River.
meganlavonnesmommy 05:52 AM 08-03-2011
We're at Fort Meade, near BWI.
MarinaVanessa 06:59 AM 08-03-2011
Originally Posted by MG&Lsmom:
Did it just mention soy? Or all alternatives?
As an aside, have you tried almond milk with your daughter? If she's not allergic to nuts, I found that it was great for bringing my underweight 2yo up to normal. We also used a prescription calorie increaser with him as well. It's made by Similac or Enfamil and is a tasteless powder you can add to anything to increase the calories in meals/drinks.
As an aside to your aside Did it just mention soy? Or all alternatives?
As an aside, have you tried almond milk with your daughter? If she's not allergic to nuts, I found that it was great for bringing my underweight 2yo up to normal. We also used a prescription calorie increaser with him as well. It's made by Similac or Enfamil and is a tasteless powder you can add to anything to increase the calories in meals/drinks.
I also found out that soy milk given to girls regularly may/can cause them to develop much sooner than normal because of estrogen levels in soy. As early as 9yo 
. My daughter was on soy until last month when we switched her to almond milk.Back to OP: My food program sponsor asked if I knew about the new act and said that the water portion of the act needed to be followed by October 1 but not the rest. She said that the USDA hadn't released any info yet about what would be necessary in order to substitute milk. She also said that if they don't specify any requirements on substituting milk that they would follow the guidelines that the food program already has in place, meaning that a Dr's note would be required but maybe each food program sponsor has their own ways of doing things? And maybe each state has their timeline for making the changes? I think that as long as the changes are made nationwide by January 1, 2012 the USDA doesn't care when exactly states start implement the requirements
I'm one of those that doesn't take someone's word for granted so I asked if she could give me a copy of the notices that they received and she emailed them to me. These are directly from the USDA. PS: the memos say "national school lunch program" but "said" that it's meant for everyone that falls under the act and that more info would come in October about it specifically for child care homes. I hope this helps and doesn't just confuse you more.
Water Availability During National School Lunch Program Meal Service
Nutrition Requirements for Fluid Milk