Mom, Can I Have More Juice?

These days more and more kids are drinking less and less water. In our house, the rule is if your thirsty drink water. We give them one 4 ounce glass of juice for breakfast. That is it for the day. They get all of their servings of fruits from whole fruits.

Many parents find that their children don’t want to drink water because “it doesn’t taste good.” So they find themselves pouring juice – “the healthy alternative to soda” – instead. Too much fruit juice can fill up your child’s stomach, which in turn causes him or her not to eat nutricious foods. Doctors have noted that drinking too much juice can lead to tooth decay, obesity, malnurishment, and gastrointestinal upset. Kids should never drink juice all day long. When teeth are exposed to sugar again and again throughout the day, cavities can begin to form.

Juice is loaded with calories and can contribute to obesity in chidlren. Obesity has become a real problem among children. The number of overweight children contiues to rise. In some school districts they have even begun sending home letter to parents to notify them of their child’s weight problem. It is estimated that 1 in 5 children are overweight. This can lead to disease such as diabetes. Type II diabetes is growing rapidly among children.

The sorbitol and fructose found fruit juice can cause diarhhea and bloating. The sorbitol is hard to digest and water actually leaks into the gut causing loose stools. Especially with apple or pear juice. This is often called Toddler’s Diarhhea.

So what do you do if you have already established a pattern of unhealthy drinking of too much juice? You can wean your kids off of it and learn to say no. Limit your children to one or two glasses a day and only with a meal. Teach your children early on the importance of water. Water makes up 3/4 of you body. On a normal day you can loose up to two quarts of water. If you have been exercising and sweating, you loose even more! Most kids are in a constant state of dehydration. By teaching kids healthy habits while they are young, we will help them to buid healthy habits to last a lifetime.