Brits Confused about Toddler Health:
Survey Reveals Misconceptions Among Parents

A new survey shows that parents are more confused than ever about toddler health, and that a significant amount of education among parents is still needed to combat confusion surrounding dairy allergies and intolerances.

Around 70 per cent of the world’s population do not produce enough lactase, and therefore has some degree of lactose intolerance. Furthermore, it is estimated that around 5% of the UK population*, which equates to around 10 million people, cannot digest lactose properly.

Most worryingly, over half of parents surveyed were confused about the differences between a dairy allergy and a dairy intolerance.

It is crucial to understand the difference: Dietician, Kate Arthur from Alpro soya, explains, “A dairy intolerance is far more common than a food allergy, it does not involve the immune system and is generally not life threatening. Lactose intolerance for example may occur temporarily after a stomach infection, particularly in young children. Dairy allergies can be longer term and require compete exclusion of dairy products; furthermore, the consequences with an allergy can often be severe and even result in fatalities”.

In both cases, Alpro Junior 1+ is a milk alternative parents can consider feeding their toddler daily. It contains high quality plant protein and the essential nutrients calcium, iron and vitamin D.

However, almost half of mothers surveyed (46%) did not know how often they could feed soya milk to their toddler and over a fifth of parents did not know what the alternative to dairy milk is for toddlers.

The survey also revealed that almost half of mums (46% ) don’t know what their toddler’s recommended daily allowance of calcium should be. And almost a third of mums don’t know what foods contain good sources of vitamin D for their child.

Other Survey Findings:

• Around half of mums (45%) are not sure whether a toddler can ever outgrow a cows’ milk allergy or intolerance; when in fact many children can out-grow their allergy or intolerance by the age of 3 years.
• Furthermore, 75% of mums felt that there isn’t enough information about how to live a dairy-free lifestyle.
• 44% of parents believe that you can feed your toddler rice milk and 26% oat milk. However, Oat, rice, almond milks have an inadequate amount of protein, fat and calories for young children and are therefore generally not recommended.

7 out of 10 mums would choose Alpro soya for their family, compared to other leading soya brands.

Lastly, one in seven mums said that their child has a dairy-free diet either as a result of an allergy or simply because they prefer to limit their dairy intake for other reasons.

Arthur concludes, “This last finding is perhaps an indication that parents are not just feeding their children soya milk alternatives due to allergy concerns but that soya milk is developing a much broader appeal in daily diets among families.”
 

*SOURCE: www.nhs.co.uk   

Alpro soya’s dietician Kate Arthur or independent registered dietician and nutritionist Lynne Garton is available to comment on the findings.

Survey was conducted by child development website iChild.co.uk Respondents: 547 parents of toddlers 1 – 3 years (95% female, ABC1) – March 2011.

Dairy foods which contain lactose have to be avoided including cow’s, sheep and goats milk, although sometimes a small amount of dairy can be tolerated because they may have a small amount of the lactase enzyme  - but generally it is best to avoid lactose completely to begin with.

Parents can find more information about living a dairy-free lifestyle on www.alpro.co.uk; helpful resources to support toddler child development at www.iChild.co.uk; information about coping with allergies on www.allergyuk.org

Alpro Soya 1+ is a special formula containing vitamin B1 and calcium – the perfect formula for toddlers with a dairy intolerance or allergy, or even to children as a healthy alternative to dairy. It can be enjoyed every day as part of a nutritionally balanced diet.

Alpro soya 1+, a special formula with added calcium, vitamin D, fat, iron and vitamin B1, can be introduced into your child’s diet from 6 months in cooking and cereals, and as a main milk drink from 1 year. From the age of 2 years then they can move onto any standard Alpro soya milk.