(Getty)
While it may be easy to just shove a juice box in your kids’ face to keep them happy and quiet, doctors are now warning parents against giving too much juice to kids of all ages. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has just come out with some new guidelines on fruit juices, the first changes they’ve made with regards to juice in 16 years.
The biggest change is in reference to babies, with the AAP now saying parents should avoid giving babies fruit juices for the entire first year of their life. Before doctors suggested it was okay for them to have it after six months. The guidelines now say breast milk and formula should be the only thing given to kids up to six months, and after six months they can have fruit, but not in juice form.
As for other juice recomendations:
- Ages one to four – Kids should get one cup of fruit each day, with up to four ounces of that coming from 100 percent fruit juice. The juice shouldn’t be put in sippy cups though since that can lead to cavities since they suck on the cups with their gums.
- Ages four to six – Again, parents are encouraged to give their kids whole fruit, but if they have juice it should be limited to four to six ounces a day.
- Ages seven to 18 – Children in this age rage should eat two to two-and-a-half cups of fruit per day, and juices should be limited to only one of those servings, and can be a up to eight ounces.
Source: CBS News