AIBU to be surprised by a five-year-old given cola in a bottle?

[Freshtona]

On a flight the other day and a child of about 5 was having total meltdown and was given a baby bottle with Coca-Cola to calm them! The parents had bottles of coke with them to top it up!

I think child was ND, but regardless of that, why would anyone give that to a 5-year old child??? I try not to judge other parents and my own DC aren't strangers to sugar but cola is not allowed. The caffeine and sugar would surely make meltdowns even worse, not to mention the effect on teeth.

I have seen a tot in a pushchair given a red bull . Unfortunately.

Coca cola at 5? On a plane?!

Totally unacceptable.

Should have been a white Monster energy or nothing at all.

The dumbest part of this is why someone would even think of doing something that keeps their child awake for longer 😆

I won’t even let my 13 year old drink cola. There is no need for caffeine and tbh nd or not it’s not going to settle a child. I would just think poor child . Many parents just don’t know and don’t listen to health advice .

Or Tennants super if In Scotland.😁

we had it pretty rarely as did most people, and certainly never in a baby bottle

No. Diluted squash.

sorry quoted wrong post!

Aye but it was Rola Cola or Panda Cola so tasted crap and so no one was addicted to it.

Not sure what’s worse, the baby bottle at 5 or the coke!

That said, DD1(7) sometimes gets a can of Fanta or 7Up as a treat on a day out so perhaps I shouldn’t judge too much. It’s not in a baby bottle at least!

I saw the same at Beamish museum a couple of years ago. The kid was around 3 and was chugging coke from a bottle. Every time I saw them throughout the day they were topping up the bottle.

I’d personally be appalled that a 5year old knew what cola was to have developed a preference for it, yes, but frankly any tactic that keeps a child quiet through a flight is fine with me (though I’d question whether carbonated and caffeinated drinks would achieve this).

It annoys the hell out of me when parents on flights - especially long haul - use that time to reinforce the ‘if you don’t eat what was given, you go without’ rule and performatively bang on about not giving them junkfood and snacks between meals … so then you have a crying, hungry, misbehaving child kicking the back of your seat for 7 hours and parents repeating ‘well you should have eaten your dinner’ a hundred times loudly.

We always went armed with my Mary Poppins bag of distractions, snacks and drinks. Am guessing that is the tack that these parents were taking.

Wait till you find out what caffeine does for people with ADHD, or that the medication they give people with ADHD being amphetamines or amphetamine derivatives. Yes, including kids.

They were on a plane, it's not like they were carrying round stacks upon stacks of vimto or Robinsons. It was probably a one off and the OP should mind her own business.

That situation is nothing to do with you, so of course YABU.

Yes my adult sister with ADHD drinks a can of coke before bed as the caffeine helps her sleep.

Well id secretly judge this too @Freshtona. That kid will have a mouth of fillings soon.

I am from the west of Scotland and have never heard of this!

Highly unlikely that cola and formula would be mixed together as the powdered milk will curdle almost immediate because Coca-Cola contains phosphoric acid, which creates a highly acidic environment that forces the milk proteins to clump together.

Also formula is mixed with water which is readily available for free. Why would anyone buy cola to make up baby bottles?

Really none of your business.

It’s not great, but maybe it’s sugar free? Maybe the child is ND and they knew this would prevent a huge meltdown? Sometimes parents have to do odd things to pacify a ND child. It’s not something anyone would recommend but a one off on a plane then yes. I’d make sure the baby bottle was not a clear one though so the contents couldn’t be seen, to avoid judgy people

I will have one on a bad morning. It works better on my cronical pain than painkillers. Judge me. Consultants say it fine.

If the parents had bottles of coke with them, it’s hardly a one off. It’s what they do. A baby bottle swills it around the teeth too. So I’d notice this and think poor parenting. However if dc was pacified and I got a quiet flight, bring on the rotten teeth! (Only joking).

I was probably a judgey Mumsnet thread fifteen years ago. I was 24 hours into a flight from NZ to UK with 3 year old and six month old DDs (just me and the two DDs)

DD1 hadn't slept for over 30 hours (and thus neither had I) and was being foul, and had exhausted all the kids entertainment on the seat screens. So she was watching Family Guy, and the woman next to us said "I wouldn't let my three year old watch that".

I had to refrain from punching her and just politely explained she liked the talking dog and everything else went way over her head.

I doubt it was a consideration to be honest.

I read a book by an American air steward a few years ago. He used to work on a regular late night Friday flight to Puerto Rico. He said every mother would give their child a bottle with coke and two sachets of sugar added!

It's not just the effect os sugar though.
Carbonated drinks are more acidic regardless.

I know and generally I’m very anti kids (even adults) having fizzy drinks. Just in these circumstances I think the parents wanted to keep her quiet on the plane which is understandable