Mom Leads the Way in Drinking Milk

February 6, 2001

New research suggests that children will be more likely to drink milk instead of soda if they see their mother making the same choice, according to a new study published today in the Journal of Nutrition. Researchers at the Pennsylvania State University examined the trade-off between soft drinks and milk that young children frequently make and explored the impact of a mother's influence.

The study looked at 180 pairs of mothers and their five-year old daughters over a three-month period. The results showed that not only did moms who consumed more milk have daughters who consumed more milk, but those mother-daughter pairs also drank fewer soft drinks. Additionally, the mothers and daughters who consumed more soft drinks tended to have lower calcium intakes. In fact, the results showed daughters who drank more than one serving of non-juice or soft-drink beverage each day consumed less milk and as a result consumed about 150 mg less calcium per day.

"Many moms do not realize the impact their eating habits may have on their children's overall health and our results show it's more important than ever for mom to set the right example by drinking milk," said co-author, Leann Birch, Ph.D., professor and head of human development and family studies in the College of Health and Human Development, Pennsylvania State University. "If mothers drink milk, their girls are more likely to drink milk, which could possibly help to reduce osteoporosis risk."

The latest government studies reveal that most children are not getting the calcium they need for adequate growth and development. Mothers are coming up short too with more than nine out of 10 failing to meet the daily recommendation. Milk is one of the best sources for calcium and also provides vitamin D, which can double the amount of calcium absorbed by your body.

"There's no question that milk provides good nutrition for your body and it's easy for moms and kids to incorporate milk into their every day life," said Ann Marie Krautheim, mother of one and a registered dietitian for the National Dairy Council.

Krautheim offers the following tips for mothers: Include milk at the table during breakfast, lunch and dinner; when preparing instant cereals, soups or hot chocolate be sure to add milk instead of water to make the food tastier and more nutritious; adding a fun straw or serving milk in a goofy glass adds some excitement to snack time; when reading to your children, share the story over a glass of cold milk.