When Is It Okay to Give Juice

I gave mine a little juice at 4 months and only gave juice to them in their sippy cups not a bottle as the extra sugars in juice drank from a bottle can cause tooth decay. It also helps them learn to use the cup when they like the juice taste and that is the only way they can have it. I usually gave them 1 ounce at a time and they drank it when they were eating at the high chair or mixed it in their rice cereal. They didn't get juice everyday.
They didn't start eating any other foods until 6 months.

In my opinion, that is really early to give juice. Babies don't need to have anything extra on top of breastmilk (or formula) for the first 6 months at least. I didn't give my son juice until he was closer to 2 - he is 4 now and he still hasn't had pop or any other sugar beverages. I just think the less of that they are exposed to, the better off they are in the long run. My mom didn't give us sugar cereal or any of the sugar snacks when we were young and I still prefer unsweetened cereals. Good luck!

I agree with the other Mom's that 2 months is too early to be introducing juice of any type to him. I Would say the 4 - 6 month range is better...and I would definitely dilute it half and half with water at first.

Breastmilk or formula is given and best choice till they are 4 months old and even then the dr will let you know when it is ok to try rice cereal first then go from there.

I remember drinking apple juice out of a baby bottle, and I'm 40! I never give my kids juice now . I naively did when they were little bcuz I thought u were supposed to. But kids really don't need it. It's simply a treat with tons of high fructose corn syrup . Diluted is way better but the best thing for him is milk . Later in life , water.

Susan,
If you are nursing, juice will only reduce his appetite for the breastmilk and there is not enough nutritional value to make it worth the "trade off". Check with your Pedi though.

If you would like to give him another drink, water is VERY healthy to get infants used to while they are young. It is a GREAT life-taste, that, if acquired at a young age, tends to stay with them as they get older. :o)

We gave our 4th child WATER at a young age, and she STILL prefers it to juice, sodas, and the like. (She is now 7 1/2 years old). I have talked with other Mamas and they too, have experienced success with water, if started at a young age.
I hope this is helpful Susan.

Congratulations on your new SON!!! Boys are sooooo wonderful!

Have a Blessed Day,
C.

www.TeamOfHearts.com

I would not give him juice until he has had applesauce or something like that food wise. You dont want the acidity to hurt him, even diluted it can cause problems if he is allergic to it.

Juice is not all it's cracked up to be. My daughter is 6 now and juice is a treat, we don't keep it in the house. I had gestational diabetes when I was pregnant and realzied that juice (even all natural juice) converts straight to sugar. My daughter LOVES water, plain old water. We started giving her water when she was about 4 months or so and reaching/pulling for my water glass. I'd let her have a sip. I always put water in her sippy cup if it left the table or in the car or etc. Best choice I ever made! I've developed a water lover and never had any moldy cups to deal with or the mess they make when the do drip.

If you do decide juice, I would wait til more like 9 mos or a year and then still dilute it.

First of all, your doctor will tell you when you can introduce anything other than breastmilk or formula (which is not usually any earlier that 4 months depending on your doctor). Second, I personally don't think there is ever a need to give juice. When I was pregnant my doctor made me give up sugars, and she said that especially meant juice. I figured if it was THAT sugary that my child didn't need it. It is basically just sugar with a few vitamins. Soon your son will be eating solids, and then he can have the fruit itself. This will be much more nutritious! It will also help him want to drink more milk when he turns one, instead of wanting sweet drinks. Those little containers of juice by the baby food make you think that you are supposed to give it to your child, but there really is no need.

Hi Susan, I agree with what everyone else is saying about it being way too early for juice and that you want to wait as long as you can to give your baby something sweet. I promise they don't know what they're missing if they've never had it. IF your baby is severely constipated, as mine was, your Dr may suggest you try giving him diluted prune juice in small quantities by bottle. I believe I had to start giving it to my daughter at around 3 months for that reason. Good luck!

i wasn't planning on giving my baby fruit juice until maybe a year old. i figure she's getting breastfed at the moment so why bother.

I started giving mine jucie at 6 months old , they have baby jucie out there ! I don't know if your on wic but at 6 mo the start issuing check for jucie and cereal at that time.

Good Morning Susan, I personally would wait just a little while longer for juice. Even watered down sometimes it will burn hinny's. Depending on the child's sensitivity.

I gave our boys juice (apple, pear first then grape ) when they were closer to 6/8 months, half and half for a few weeks then 1/3 water 2/3 juice.. No Orange juice until a year old.
Did the same with all the gr kids. Now we are definietly Straight Water & Milk drinkers, no soda pops and very seldom even kool-aid.
God Bless you and your precious little Prince
K. Nana of 5

The reason you don't feel comfortable is probably because it is WAAAAY! too early to introduce juice. Breast milk (or formula) is the ONLY think babies need until they are SIX months. Their digestive system is not developed enough to handle anything else until then. They don't need juice, cereal, or anything else to 'suppliment' their diet. Introducing anything before the 6 month mark is setting your little one up for digestion and dietary issues, not to mention allergies, that could last a lifetime. PLEASE wait!

In my opinion 2 months old is still too young to give juice. Juice comes when they can drink it from a cup, not a bottle. Plus baby could choke on juice at this age. I say wait. Congratulations on your little one!

Well, with my first, I was told that I could start giving her diluted juice in a bottle at 3 months when we started noticing that she had frequent constipation. I don't know if I was told that it was okay because of the constipation, but I was told not to give her any more than 2 ozs of juice and 2 ozs of water, total, per day. The reasoning was that any more than that could mess with their electrolytes and their systems that are still trying to figure things out. After she turned 6 months old, I was told that I could double the juice/water amount daily. I hope this helps.

I would wait mostly because thats pretty young. My sons ped(also my old ped) told me that juice isn't necessary. She told me to give it to him if he was constipated(diluted). Also my son is 20 mo so he eats plenty of fruits and veggies and doesn't need juice. I agree with another post, "it's a treat" I occaisonally give him cookies or other sweets but not to the point that he wants them all the time. He drinks milk and water and loves them both. he's had a couple "straw drips" of pop and I think my mom gave him kool-aid once or twice. I'm not going to deprive him lol but want him to enjoy the healthy stuff too!! :)

My daughter is almost 5. When she was a baby, they advised me to not give juice at all. Empty calories, little to no nutritional value. I did juice later when we took her bottle away, it lasted a few months then she gave it up. Now she only drinks milk and water. She loves to steel sips of my iced tea. I think juice is a bad idea, but I also do not have the most up to date info. Since he is only 2 months, I would ask your doc what they suggest.

I think they typically say to wait until 6 mos old to give diluted juice, but we talked with our doctor and decided to wait until our daughter was 8 mos old before we gave her diluted juice. You might also talk to your doctor, especially since you said your son has some feeding issues; he may need to continue to get all of the nutrition of breast milk/formula instead of replacing some of his intake with juice. Even so, 2 mos is too early, but he'll be old enough before you can blink!

I agree 2 months is to early. Don't waste money on juice right now there are so many other baby things to have to buy. My kids didn't get much juice and if they did it would be diluted with a lot of water. I think you should give them water first and they will get used to the taste of that and not always need flavoring in the water. I know it's so fun to do new things with food and drinks with your first child, but waiting is the best. Good luck and God Bless.

There is no reason to give a child so young juice. Juice is actually not very healthy at all, and babies don't need anything other than formula or breast milk until after 6 months. I would wait until 1 year to give juice, and then only juice diluted with water, 50/50, once a day.

I think 2 months is probably a little early. Im not really a juice person, but our ped told me I could give my son some applejuice or water @ 5 months because he was constipated. Again, Im not a fan of juice, unless its fresh squeezed juice, I really think it has more cons than pros. Im sorry this is so lame, but I dont like juice! lol

No, do not give him juice yet. Ask his dr., but I think it is about 6 months or older & just at meals. He will need formula/breast milk as his main food source & liquid for his 1st year. My SIL is a NICU nurse & they use diluted apple juice to determine if a baby has reflux b/c it is so acidic. Your son's stomache is not ready for acidic stuff yet.

God bless!

Hi Susan, I'm going to give you a little advise that was giving to me at the hospital by a nurse. Never give your child anything in their bottle exept for formula or breast milk. Wait to give him the juice when he's learning to use cups. This will help when it's time to wean him from the bottle. We never gave our girls anything but formula in their bottle and we never let them take the bottle to bed or let them wander around with it. We always held them and had them take it. They broke themselves of the bottle before a year. Guess it just wasn't worth having the bottle if they couldn't carry it. It was a hindrence to them when they started moving - and the cup had better stuff in it. Whole milk and juice! The only exception we ever did was when they would get a little constipated (both of mine did). The doctor told me to replace some of the water that I used to mix the formula with juice (usually pear). So if I was making 4 ounces of formula I'd use 2 ounces of water and 2 ounces of juice. This way they are not getting a real stong juice taste. But straight juice we never gave in a bottle. Good luck and enjoy every minute with that little guy - they grow soooooo fast!!

Everyone has to decide for themselves, but I would NOT give him juice yet. Water and breastmilk (or formula) is really all they need at this age. There is no need to get him into sugar at this young of an age and it doesn't provide him with anything he needs nutritionally at this age. Also, juice is not a good thing for developing his teeth. Good luck!

Those who are on WIC get juice at 6 mos. Those child care providers on the USDA food program get juice at 8 mos. Two months is definitely too young. You don't want your baby to discover the sweetness of juice and then refuse the milk. The juice needs to accompany the start of solid foods. Don't rush him. He'll get there soon enough.

Susan, they don't need juice. There is no nutritional value before the age of 6 months. They also reccomend you give juice in a cup not in a bottle so that they don't get baby bottle tooth decay from having that sugar stay up against the gums/baby teeth. I didn't give my little ones juice until they could sit up and hold a sippy cup. If your baby is constipated a little diluted apple prune juice can'r hurt, but I wouldn't make it a regular habit...lots of luck
B.

I would ask your pediatrician - ours recommended formula exclusively until 8 months and then could add plain water. She said that there's really no reason to add fruit juice to water (no real added nutritional value - despite the claims on the labels/ads)unless that's the only way to get the child to drink it.

I would first talk with your pediatrician. To me, two months old is way too early. I would wait at least until 6-8 months even before considering it. That being said, I think we gave our daughter juice around 9 months, but always diluted 50% juice and 50% water, otherwise it gave her diahrrea and diaper rash. I would limit it to only a few ounces a day as sometimes that fills them up instead of food or breastmilk!