Lesson learned -- Sugar in Soymilk

When our daughter started drinking soy milk (instead of formula), I really didn't do that much research on what to give her.  I did know about the concerns with soybeans and causing possible medical problems.  I concluded that everything has something that is bad for you, so that didn't sway my decision.  What I was most concerned about for my then 13-month-old was getting the right nutrients in her. The doctors we had at the time weren't really much help.  I bought Silk's Very Vanilla for her because it says "Fortified for Kids" right on the front.  I also concluded that it had the most nutrients in it.

It wasn't until a month ago did I look at the sugar content in Silk's Very Vanilla Soy Milk. There are 16g of sugar in 1 cup.  In a day our daughter drinks about 3 cups -- sometimes even a little more.  That is 48g of sugar in a day.  Just to compare to other drink, a can of soda has 41g of sugar.  Yes, there is a difference in what sweetens the drinks.  Soda -- high fructose corn syrup; Very Vanilla Soymilk -  Cane Juice and Vanilla flavor.   And just like anyone can justify why something is bad for you, they will do the same why something (cane juice) is good for you.  The fact is that this soy milk had way more sugar than I think our daughter should have, especially if you take into account how much sugar is everything else.  I believe now that she's almost 3-year-old, she's getting those other nutrients in the Very Vanilla Soy Milk in the other foods she eats.  And after a recent nutritionist appointment (more on that in a future post), the most important nutrients to get are Calcium and Vitamin D, which is the same amount in the Very Vanilla and Vanilla soymilks.  I concluded to change her milk to Vanilla Soymilk, which as has 7g of sugar per 1 cup.

So, how do you change the tastes of a toddler?  Well, I did what I've done in the past.  Slowly introduce.   In this case, I mixed Very Vanilla Soymilk with Vanilla Soymilk -- Target brand (only because we live a minute from Target and it's a few cents cheaper).    I started slow.  I put 3/4 cup Very Vanilla Soymilk in her cup and added 2 Tbsp of Vanilla Soymilk.  I did that for a couple days and then slowly added more Vanilla than Very Vanilla.  About a week later we were add half and half of each.  Two weeks later we are adding more than 3/4 cup Vanilla and just a little Very Vanilla.  Her tastes gradually changed.  She was fine with the Vanilla Soy Milk in her cereal from the beginning.  I also made sure that she saw us mixing the milk -- no need to "trick" her.  That doesn't work.  I had tried before.

Do I believe you should change if you use Very Vanilla Soymilk?  No.  Do what you think is best.  I just felt that we were ready to change things a little.  I also based this decision on all the fruit and vegetables she's been eating lately.  Seems like all of a sudden she's a lot less picky.  Will we every drink Very Vanilla again?  Maybe.