Age of Cow Milk Introduction and Childhood Growth

Recommendations on the age that children can start consuming cow milk vary between countries. In Canada and Denmark, cow milk can be introduced as early as 9 months; however, in most countries it is recommended to wait until 12 months. Through this thesis I aimed to determine if the age that cow milk is first introduced into the diet influences childhood growth. In this prospective study of healthy children enrolled in the TARGet Kids! cohort, introducing cow milk at a younger age was associated with greater height by age 3-5 years. Each month earlier that cow milk was introduced was associated with 0.03 higher height-for-age z score or 0.1 cm per month. There was no significant association between timing of cow milk introduction and adiposity. In this cohort of children aged 3-5 years starting to consume cow milk earlier in life contributed to gains in height, without adversely affecting adiposity.M.Sc.2020-07-28 00:00:0