Yes, according to a new study from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Researchers say children who consumed milk from alternative sources, such as almond, rice and soy milk grew less than children who consumed cow’s milk.

For every cup of non-cow’s milk a child drank, they grew 0.4 centimeters (0.15 inches) less in height than average for a child’s age. The decreased growth was dependent upon the amount of non-cow’s milk that the child drank, thus a child who drank 3 cups of non-cow’s milk was 1.5 centimeters shorter.

There could be several reasons for this finding:

• Alternative milks have less calories and protein than cow’s milk. They also have less vitamins and minerals.
• Children who drank alternative milks also drank less than those who drank cow’s milk. (Further analysis showed that this only accounted for part of the difference in height.)

So, what should your family do?

You should know that there is nothing magical about milk, but it’s an easy way to get your child’s calories, protein and calcium. If they’re getting those nutrients from other sources, I’m not concerned about how much cow’s milk they drink.

For children who are allergic to cow’s milk and families who decide to drink milk alternatives for various reasons, talk to your pediatrician about how to adjust your child’s diet to make sure they are receiving the proper amount of calories and protein.

Focusing on a balanced diet is the most important thing you can do.

About the Source

Justin Smith, M.D., is a pediatrician and the Medical Advisor for Digital Health for Cook Children's in Fort Worth, Texas. He has an active community on both Facebook and Twitter as @TheDocSmitty and writes weekly for Cook Children's checkupnewsroom.com. He believes that strategic use of social media and technology by pediatricians to connect with families can deepen their relationship and provide a new level of convenience for both of their busy lifestyles.Dr. Smith’s innovative pediatric clinic, a pediatric clinic “designed by you,” is set to open in Trophy Club in 2017.

You can read more on the FDA report from earlier today: It should be fairly easy to distinguish as the containers have “a Rocky Road pint with a Cookies 'n Cream lid, and contain Cookies 'n Cream Ice Cream.” They also will contain Cookies ‘n Cream ice cream and not Rocky Road, which should be hard to miss.

This mixup might be important for families with soy and wheat allergies which are contained in the Cookies ‘n Cream variety but not Rocky Road. Parents of children or adults with celiac disease should also be aware.

Children with soy and wheat allergies who ingest these substances present similar to other food allergies. Symptoms might start as itching around the mouth or hives which is a large, red and circular rash that covers the whole body.

Children with celiac disease who ingest gluten (which is present in wheat) can have with a wide variety of symptoms. These might include symptoms of belly pain, bloating, vomiting or diarrhea. Other issues that can be attributed to celiac disease are fatigue and behavioral changes or irritability. Other long term health consequences can result from untreated celiac disease.

If you have any of the mis-packaged product, you can return them to the place of purchase for a full refund.

About the author

Justin Smith is a pediatrician and the Medical Advisor for Digital Health for Cook Children's in Ft. Worth, TX. He has an active community on both Facebook and Twitter as @TheDocSmitty and writes weekly for Cook Children's checkupnesroom.com. His interest in communications started when he realized that his parents were relying more on the internet for medical information. He believes that strategic use of social media and technology by pediatricians to connect with families can deepen their relationship and provide a new level of convenience for both of their busy lifestyles. Dr. Smith’s innovative pediatric clinic, a pediatric clinic “designed by you,” is set to open in Trophy Club in the Fall of 2016.