We are currently in hot and humid weather down south, and my 2 year old is not drinking any water. He drinks a lot of milk(organic whole milk), in fact I have started taking milk even when we go out because he refuses water and asks for milk when he is thirsty. He doesn't drink much water even though I have a sippy cup always around for him and offer it often indoors n outdoors. I am not very sure about tap water here, so I have got nursery water and though he used to drink that before , I am wondering if he doesn't like the taste now.
Do you have any ideas to get him to drink water? I am thinking if I buy a new sippy cup to get his interest and maybe he will start drinking again.I already have too many sippy cups, so thought I will ask you moms for ideas before I go buy another one.
Also I know some toddlers drink diluted juice instead of water, I have never done that with my son. Which juice is best for toddlers for everyday drinking ?
Any other ideas? Thanks in advance moms!
I used to call it Icy-Juice. Basically ice water. Never did I have an issue of them drinking water. Even today they like to have ice in their water.
Icy-Juice.
What if you didn't negotiate? Give him water, and he will drink if he's thirsty. If he's that picky about his liquids, I would not introduce juice right now. He will only want juice, and you will be in the same predicament.
he absolutely needs WATER. not juice, not watered down juice or flavored water. WATER. drink water yourself, when he is thirsty give him water. he's not refusing water because he needs milk - he is refusing water because you've allowed it. yes i know it's hot. pick a day you are inside most of the day and do NOT back down. not drinking water is insane imho. we are human beings. we are MADE OF WATER. we are made TO DRINK water. we don't even NEED cow's milk. we NEED water. anything else is superfluous at best and totally detrimental to his health at worst. WATER WATER WATER!
My boys will drink water all day long....out of my glass! All I have to do is get myself a big glass of ice water (must have ice in it and be very cold for them to drink it) and have it sitting out and they are both all over it :) b/c it's mine. They also know that the only time they get anything to drink besides water is at meal time (or special occasions).
A total serving of juice for the whole day is about 4-6 oz. That's 100% juice only too. Juice is not bad for kids. It is allowed on every nutrition plan in schools and in child care.
It's the parents who don't know what a serving is that overdo it.
He could have weak koolaid, juice and water mixed, do not do anything diet. I truly feel that it will come out in the future that artificial sweeteners are the one thing that we have done so wrong. I think they are the root cause for obesity and illness related to diet. They also poison our bodies. So don't do sugar free anything. Even my friends diabetic doc took her off all artificial sweeteners and she uses real sugar now, just in moderation and her blood sugars are so much better. She does not have an insulin pump anymore and most of her meds are gone too.
There are lots of flavors you can put in the water, lemon, lime, a fruit with juice that can just be sprinkled on the top. That's what I would do.
He may not like water the same temperature as you do. I like my water so cold it can give M. brain freeze. Most of my friends like it room temperature.
I used to put crushed ice in our daughters milk.
Or offer her water with crashed ice.
It really is just so hot.
Dilute the milk gradually over the course of a couple weeks until he's used to the taste and texture of plain water. I would avoid adding new flavors because the point is to get him to drink plain water, which is the healthiest.
It would definitely be good if your tot learnt to drink water.
My daughter took to drinking water very happily, and so I never experimented with diluted juice (now she doesn't like drinking any juices....that's another thing though..). I just offered her water in a new sippy cup.
Can you try getting him a new sippy cup, let him pick, maybe? Or how about, you drink water from a glass, and offer him a sip or two from yours? At 2, he can definitely start drinking out from a glass...maybe the novelty would get him interested?
place a slice of fruit in his water, make a big deal out of this special treat, do it the night before, telling him it has to infuse over night. one day it is strawberries, the next orange slices, kiwi, cucumber and mint. The crushed ice sounded like a nice novelty as well!
Some kids really like water and some do not. At 2, your son definetly needs liquids besides milk as even organic milk will fatten him up over time and hurt his appetite for real food. You can give him all natural juice diluted if he wont drink water. Only buy juice that is 100% juice with no artificial colors or preservatives. I buy organic juice for my son and do 50/50. I am lucky, he likes water.
I didnt read the other responses but..my 2 year old is te same way. I just add something sweet to it like jusce or soda. I put like 95% water and 5% juice, drink, koolaid, etc.
My 2yo DD refuses to drink out of a sippy... She wants either a real cup or a sports bottle. lol. I bet if you took your son,and let him pick out a big boy cup he would drink anything out of it!
Your son definitely needs something to re-hydrate him... My DD also doesn't care much for water. I have found that she likes it more when it is really cold. I have also experimented a bit lately with adding things (like cucumber, lemons, berries, etc.) to a pitcher of water in the fridge. She seems to like that quite a bit! On REALLY hot days, or if she doesn't seem to be drinking enough, I will give her 'smart' water (has added electrolytes to help with hydration) or mix just a bit of Poweraid into her water. My rule is that she has to drink at least one cup of plain water, to every cup of 'juice' (which is whatever 'treat' drink she gets that day, diluted by at least half... Or maybe chocolate milk) So when she starts asking for her other drinks, I will tell her to finish the water in her cup first.
I do home daycare and my kids, age 10/12 mos and up have a sort of water bottle, not sippys for outside. The sipper top slides up for open or down for closed. Easy!
Maybe hit Target or similar store and get a kid size water bottle. They make fun stainless steel ones that are easy to wash and durable as heck!
I love the idea of infusing with fruit. I might try that!
Make sure he sees you drinking water all day.
Offer him some out of yours.
Take him to the store to pick out his own cup. One w/a cool character on it he's into.
Try one w/a straw.
See if he'll drink out of water fountains (it's the novelty) wherever you are: park, store, mall etc.
Give him juice (apple is my favorite) & add some water to dilute it.
Updated
Make sure he sees you drinking water all day.
Offer him some out of yours.
Take him to the store to pick out his own cup. One w/a cool character on it he's into.
Try one w/a straw.
See if he'll drink out of water fountains (it's the novelty) wherever you are: park, store, mall etc.
Give him juice (apple is my favorite) & add some water to dilute it.
Does your son want to drink out of your cup? My kids (4yr and 18 mo) always drink my water and I try to make it a game - Don't drink all my water! - and they usually drink it down in minutes, and tease that they drank it all. I have a few water bottles I use. Instead of sippy cups, how about a small version of an 'adult' bottle. I have had a ton of water bottles and found that the BPA free rubbermaid bottles don't get lost. They make a short one witha straw in it. Also, try using lots of ice. My kids love the sound the ice makes and trying to get bites in their mouth.
