Drinking Undiluted Juice???

Moderation is key with things like this. It's juice, not vodka :-)

3 moms found this helpful

I give 100% apple juice and chocolate milk. A couple times a week she even has dr pepper (gasp). That's how I was raised and around her there's nothing wrong with it! Juice has sugar but it also has vitamins. That's where i stand!

3 moms found this helpful

I gave my daughter all the undiluted fruit juice and whole milk she wanted, and she has never had a weight problem.

3 moms found this helpful

yes it's fine. I have never diluted juice for my kids, ever. They don't drink it all the time, but when they do it's always 100% juice, not the super sugary kind

2 moms found this helpful

Not a silly question! But, the answer has to be what you think is OK, not what other people tell you is OK.

If you want an opinion, I would say (almost) everything in moderation is OK. Every now and again, let him have the undiluted juice. You pick how often. It could be as a special treat when you go out to eat. Or, do a 50-50 split. My children are not allowed soda at home, but when we go out to eat, they are allowed sprite or something similar. I diluted our juices until about age 3 or 4, although I never diluted them as much as you do. I put more juice than water in the ratio.

I don't think you are ignorant at all! It is very smart of you to be concerned with your child's health!

Good luck!

1 mom found this helpful

Not a silly question at all, especially since juice is evil to most pediatricians. However, if you're making sure his nutrition is well-rounded, and he's not drinking 16oz of juice per day, it's fine. My 4.5yo and 19mo both only get 8oz of juice per day, whether it's OJ or Capri Sun. That way, they still get the treat of juice without it being a huge part of their diet. It's the same way for any food or liquid - ice cream, cookies, cake, donuts, fruit snacks, etc. Anything in moderation, I say :)

I also don't dilute. They drink mostly water anyway, so where's the harm in a little treat?

1 mom found this helpful

There's a new juice soft pack (versus a juice box) called Honest Kids that is very diluted and portable. I think it's great that you are encouraging water and are so aware of the sugar in juice. I do think that kids develop a taste for sugar - not an addiction - but they get used to sweetness and things that are less sweet don't taste as good.

An occasional undiluted juice certainly won't hurt him. It might be a good idea in the future to be sure you always carry along a container of water when going out in the car. If he has his own sippy or straw cup, just fill it before leaving the house, or have some bottled water on hand so you can just grab one of those.
I also noticed your dilution of the juice and feel that it isn't necessary to dilute it that much. It won't hurt him to have that much dilution, of course, but I think most of us dilute about 50 - 50.
Even though you don't mention milk, I'm assuming that unless he has a lactose intolerance problem, you are giving him milk for most of his meals and water throughout the day otherwise.

This is from dietsinreview.com:

First off, always purchase 100% juice
-V8, Tomato juice, and prune juice are all 100% and provide you with fiber, protein, and potassium
- Juicy Juice is 100% juice
- Others that I found to be OK are Tropicana OJ, Simply Orange juice, Florida Natural
- Tropicana Pure juices give you potassium, but no fiber or protein

KEEP IN MIND!
- Always note sodium on juices…you will want to try to keep it as low as possible. Producers of the juices add more sodium when attempting to cut calories, so when you buy a “light/lite” juice note the sodium is higher then the full calorie beverage.

Juices to avoid:
- Anything not 100% juice
- Hawaiian Punch
- Kool-Aid
- V8 fusion light
- Sunny D

I glanced at the other answers and I agree. Anything in moderation is okay in my opnion.

At home my daughter drinks water, skim milk, or occasionally juice. At home we dilute the juice about 50-50 sometimes a little more water. If we are out I usually ask for her juice or lemonaide to be diluted, but sometimes I forget and she gets the whole amount. Oh well, she will be fine :) I'm not pumping her full of apple juice 24-7.

Sometimes you just have to give them a juice box, it's all there is that won't spill all over. I'm sure your kiddos will be fine.

I try to keep my family eating healthy and exclude as much sugar as possible. My kids know juice as "water with a splash of juice". My kids rarely drink undiluted juice and when they do, most of the time they ask for water after. Sugar is fine in moderation. If you are out and want to get a treat I think that is ok as long as it doesn't become habit and you end up with health issues:)

Every once in a while it's okay. If I have to give my kids undiluted juice, I try to pick things like Orange Juice or pineapple juice because I wouldn't dilute those types of juices anyway. I only dilute juices like apple, grape, cranberry, etc. But since you say he drinks mostly water, it's not going to hurt him to have it every so often.

I don't think there's anything "wrong" with it. I just do my best to dilute when I can to cut down on the sugar. I've gotten used to drinking it diluted myself (I do 50/50). Once in a while is no big deal. :)

It is fine, especially since it is not that often, and is special occasions, I do the same thing at home but when we are out to dinner or having a juice box you really cannot dilute it. Fruit sugar is much healthier and better than refined white sugar

I think it is interesting that all sugars are lumped into the 'bad' category. When talking about juice (not juice drinks, but 100% juice) all of the sugars found are naturally occuring in the fruit. You wouldn't worry about serving your kid a banana due to the sugar content. :)
If your son was drinking several cups a day, it could be a problem, but not due to the sugar. The problem is filling up on juice and not eating a variety of other foods. A cup of undiluted juice is no problem at all. :)

My son is the same age and has been drinking juice diluted and undiluted for a while now. I usually put a few ounces of water into the juice but hubby gives it to him straight. No harm in my opinion. I do like the V8 Fusion best, though....as it's fruit and veggie juice.

If he is only drinking juice 1-2X/week, then I wouldnt' dilute it either, in fact, I don't! ;) My kids rarely drink juice and when they do it's full strength! If he's getting more than 1 serving/day then yes, I'd probably dilute, but if not, I wouldn't worry!

Juice and soda is linked to diabetes2 because of too much sugar. Listen to your instincts.

Have a good day.

N. Marie

I have never diluted my kids' juice (and don't like diluted juice myself). But I do buy 100% juice, make sure it also has 100% vitamin C, and limit them to one juice box a day. I would rather have my kids drink one juice box, once a day, with water or milk for the rest of the day, than diluted juice all day. (Not that you do that, but I know some who would.)

My kids haven't gotten addicted to the juice either. These days (they are 8 and 9 now) they rarely want juice. I wish they did! Now I have to make sure they get enough vitamin C from their other foods.

By the way, if you are concerned about the sugar, you might want to compare the amount of sugar in a juice box to the amount in a shake.
I'm pretty sure you'll find there's less sugar in the undiluted juice than in one of the shakes you give him. :)
So I wouldn't worry about undiluted juice in reasonable amounts.

I dilute my sons juice as often as I can, I even ask restaurants to do it for me. But there are times you can't. A little juice doesn't hurt.:-)

I agree with the whole "in moderation" thing. My daughter hardly ever gets juice, and if she does, it's usually diluted. But, I don't freak out about the sugar if she gets "stuck" drinking undiluted juice once in a while.

My biggest concern (esp with something like oj) is how her digestive system will handle it. My husband and my mom both are really sensitive to the acid in oj. And if i remember correctly, your body naturally has a harder time breaking down apple juice.

We didn't give our kids juice until they were about 4, and still save it only for special occasions (Easter, Christmas, birthdays, Mother's Day and Father's Day...that's it). Other than those limited amounts on those days, it's water between meals and milk with meals, no exceptions (otherwise it opens it up to begging and tears).

Some people would say sugar in orange juice is bad, so dilute it, but I grew up with the real fruit/juice and it helped tremendously in giving all the vitamin C I needed to fight off infections.

I don't dilute my juice, because once it is coming from plant and not made IN a plant, it is good for you in my opinion!

It's no problem as long as they don't drink juice all day long and nothing else. I was able to dilute my sons juice until he was about 3 but once they start preschool, eating at others houses on playdates, become aware of what other kids drink etc., it becomes harder. Also, my daughter started getting straight juice sooner since her brother was getting it and she was aware of it. She loves juice in any form. I dilute her juice when she's at home, but when we are out I like to use juice boxes for convenience. I always buy 100% fruit juice (no "juice drinks" like Sunny D etc. because they are really just like Kool Aid). My pediatrician said there is no magic age to stop diluting juice. Just keep their teeth brushed well twice a day. As long as there is no weight problem, there is no reason why they can't drink undiluted juice in moderation. People always worry about the sugar, but remember fruit juices also have healthy antioxidants. And orange juice is particularly high in vitamin C too. It' not worth too much worrying - focus on the bigger issues that will be coming up like exposure to french fries, chips, candy etc. You cannot prevent the exposure to these things as they grow and have new experiences, but you can teach them how to eat them in moderation. For instance our Halloween candy lasts months because I control the candy. They are allowed one candy after a good lunch and one after a good dinner until it is gone. They are told that even though it tastes good, it is not a healthy food and that is why we only have one at at time and not a lot in a day. THey are told it's ok in small amounts. THey don't feel cheated like if I turned their candy into the dentists office or threw it away, yet they don't get total control over it either. I'm hoping it will teach them to eat it in moderation even when I am no longer to control of their food consumption.

I think once in a while is fine! I always dilute my kids' juice even now at age 5! Juice has way to much sugar so I would rather they drink water with some juice in it for flavor.

M

I think it's a personal preference thing. I always diluted my kids' juice until around 2.5 or 3 years old. Even then, I only buy 100% fruit juice (nothing with added sugars). I buy the V8 Fusion juice now that has a serving of fruit and a serving of veggies, but my kids are only allowed one small cup of it per day and I usually only give it to them if they ask for it. I don't see the need to give them any extra added sugar in their diet and prefer to give them the fruit rather than juice, but my son was pretty picky and only just recently started eating fruit (he just turned 3), so I felt okay with giving him some of the V8 juice to try to get some of the fruits and veggies in him.

Anyway, I guess it's just something you'll need to decide on for yourself. I don't think it's a great idea to give them juice if they will drink water or diluted juice, but every once in awhile on the run isn't a problem in my opinion. By the way, my daughter (who is 5) never had undiluted juice until my MOM gave it to her while she was babysitting once. I hadn't thought to mention that she didn't drink juice. She knew what the real stuff was like after that and would complain if we gave her diluted juice, but we stuck to our guns and told her it was that or water! :-)

I have a 19 month old and a 4 1/2 year old, and they are both in perfect health, a little below average on weight but very good. (Honestly, it's not bad to be below an American weight average). They drink 2 glasses of whole milk and 1 glass of juice a day. (The rest are waters). Now I might mix it up a little and give them 4oz as a morning snack and 4oz later in the afternoon, or 8oz if they are out, or whatever. I started giving my oldest undiluted juice at 3 1/2yrs old, but what started out as 50-50 with water/juice just gets a little less diluted as they get a little older. Now, I will put a little splash of water in if he's having cranberry or grapejuice because those are a little strong and I can get away with it, frankly. My youngest gets a little more water in his juices than his older brother, just because he's still a wee boy and I am letting him get used to it a little at a time. We do love V8 fusion with a serving of both veg and fruit. However, if we go out to eat, or to a friend's house, or someone gives him a juice box, I am not going to stress that at all. All things in moderation. Sugar isn't evil. It's just not supposed to be a huge part of our everyday diet. My advice would be to not worry about it, to mix up the juice, fruits, vegetables, meats that they eat so it's not the same old thing everyday, and keep the family active. (My oldest is in kung fu, soccer, and swim class; my youngest loves to dance and wrestle with me and is in swim class; we parents take the boys to the beach and chase them around, kick the soccer ball around with them, play tball in the backyard, take them on walks around the block in the evenings, etc; we eat a wide variety of food, take a vitamin, drink water (but not only water), and enjoy life, and try not to stress so much---if you're concerned with teaching your kids how to be healthy, having a happy healthy approach to things is better than staying away from bread or sugar any day! :)

I think it's fine! Water is good, especially in summer. Mixed juice and water are fine. Straight juice is fine every day as it's natural sugar, not junk. But it depends on the child too. Some of my kids needed straight juice to help with poops. Some of my kids did not need the straight juice as they were heavier by nature. I think if you prefer to mix juice with water at home, then it's fine once in a while to have straight juice when you're out. After all, it's convenient and it's not all the time. I would continue to mix juice with water at home because it's summer and water it best for the body during summer heat. But also, it cuts down on the cost of juice if it's mixed as well.

K. B
mom to 5 including triplets

My daughter is 4 1/2 and I still dilute her juice most the time. I think it's fine to occasionally have it undiluted but drinking more water and less sugar is better.

I believe the current medical recommendation is less than 6oz a day - I think you're fine.

I always dilute the juice because I think less sugar and calories is better and I think that straight juice develops their taste buds for that stronger flavor. I even dilute it for myself. If you start giving undiluted juice he won't want the lighter flavor of water downed juice.