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(WebMD) -- Whether you're b___stfeeding or bottle-feeding your baby, you may be wondering when you can begin giving her cow's milk. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends waiting until a child is a year old before starting her on fresh cow's milk. There are several important reasons for this: Reducing the risk of allergy Waiting to give fresh milk to your child may prevent or lessen a cow's-milk allergy. About 2 percent to 3 percent of infants will develop some or all of the following allergic symptoms when they drink cow's milk: a red bumpy rash, a runny or stuffy nose, coughing, wheezing, constipation or diarrhea. By waiting a year to give fresh cow's milk to your child, it is possible that you are giving her a chance to build up her immune system, which may decrease the likelihood of a serious allergic reaction once she does drink fresh cow's milk. It's important to note, however, that many formulas also contain broken-down cow's-milk products, mainly proteins. Even though allergic reactions to formulas are not as common as reactions to fresh cow's milk, they do occur. If your infant has any of the allergic symptoms mentioned above, talk to her doctor. The doctor will probably suggest that you switch her to a soy-based formula that doesn't list cow's-milk protein as an ingredient. Keeping your child's blood iron-rich By giving your child fresh cow's milk before 1 year of age, you may increase her chances of developing iron-deficiency anemia (a low number of red blood cells). Iron deficiency in infants can harm brain and nerve development, and can happen for several reasons: Fresh cow's milk has less iron than b___st milk or iron-fortified formulas. The composition of fresh cow's milk -- calcium, phosphate and vitamin C -- can cause a decrease in the absorption of iron in a baby's intestine. Fresh cow's milk can cause slight intestinal bleeding. This bleeding cannot be seen with the naked eye, but can be enough to make your child anemic. Some studies have shown that around one-third of children who are regularly given fresh cow's milk before 12 months of age will be anemic before they are 12- to 15-months old. Reducing the risk of dehydration Finally, the high amount of sodium in fresh cow's milk compared to formula or b___st milk can draw water out of your child's body. If your child already has diarrhea or vomiting from a stomach flu or other problem, fresh cow's milk might cause or worsen dehydration.

Babies are unable to tolerate cow's milk until about 1 year old. It is too hard on their stomache's and can cause abdominal bleeding.

IT is a real cow's milk-- I dont know how/why we started drinking it in the first place. As much as I love it--its kinda gross when u think about it.