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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to let DD have only water/milk to drink?

73 replies

NormaSknockers · 16/06/2009 11:29

Because my SIL in particular seems to think I am!

DD is 3 next week & has always had water to drink during the day, at meal times etc & then a cup of milk at bedtime.

It's what she's always known, if she asks for a drink she knows it will be water & doesn't think anything of it. If we go out then I usually take a bottle of water with me for her. Occassionaly she'll have some orange/apple juice & as a special treat she gets 'pink milk' (small drop of strawberry milkshake in her milk).

It's not like she NEVER has anything else but admittidly very rarely.

When we go to partys etc she'll just usually have the water we brought with us but obviously if she's offered juice then she can have that I don't take it off her but she knows it's a treat.

Anyway (sorry waffling) my SIL seems to think I'm most odd for not letting DD have fizzy drinks etc etc & is forever trying to sneak Lemonade/Cherryade/anything fizzy to DD behind my back when we have family events etc & gets really stroppy about it if I tell her DD isn't allowed it.

I really don't see the issue, surely the fact that DD mainly drinks water is a good thing?

AI really B that U?

OP posts:

cheesesarnie · 16/06/2009 12:21

yanbu.

ds2 had never had anything but water or milk until the end of last year when he ended up ill in hospital.he was not eating or drinking amongst over things and was dehydrated and had low blood sugar levels so they said give him juice,give him ice lollies,give him anything!!!so we did and soon had an addict.we now buy small amounts and ration it and when its gone,its gone!

fizzy drinks only happen if we are out-say a pub lunch or something(which happens maybe once a year!).

tea and coffee we dont do partyly because we are veggie and it aparently stops the vitamin c being digested that you need to have along with iron(i have no idea what im warbling on about but i know what i mean).

Bella39 · 16/06/2009 12:24

My ds and dd drank only milk and water until they were about 3, then I would occasionally get juice in. After a couple of days glugging the juice they usually go back to milk and water of their own accord and ds (7) has taken the decision himself that he no longer wants juice.

YANBU - you are doing exactly the right thing - much better than bathing children's teeth in acid every day, which is what juice drinking amounts to

EyeballshasManBoobs · 16/06/2009 12:25

YANBU. DD only has water and milk. Every once in a blue moon she'll have a sip of tea, or apple or orange juice but literally a couple of sips every 3 months. I'm not going to fobid them when she's older but there's no point letting her have things like that until she's old enough to pester ask you for them.

mumof2222222222222222boys · 16/06/2009 12:26

YANBU.

My boys (4 and 2) have a bit more squash than they should. But the issue with your SIL is fizzy drinks. DS2 has tried a fizzy drink and hates it. DS1 likes coke and orangina and gets a small drink about once a month. But I think that it should not be encouraged and we don't have it in the house.

If she thinks your DC's palate needs challenging there are plenty of other exciting healthy options.

welshone51 · 16/06/2009 12:35

Its hardly a crime to try and do the best for your child is it, at the end of the day as her mum you know best, she doesnt seem to miss, need or want any other drinks so try not to worry. I must confess though that my son has a variety of drinks although I try to stick to water and milk it doesnt always happen as long as he brushes his teeth I am not too concerned.

sarah293 · 16/06/2009 12:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

kidcreoleandthecoconuts · 16/06/2009 12:37

YANBU.
My DS just had water and milk for a long time but in the last year or so he occasionally has apple juice, he's nearly 4.
My DD is 16 months and has breast and water with meals.
I'm going to try and keep them off it for as long as possible.

shoptilidrop · 16/06/2009 12:40

YANBU - My DD is 3 and half.
She MOSTLY drinks only water or milk. Somedays she has some fruit juice, most days she will usually have a cup of squash. I try to let her choose... and bless her if anyone asks her ehat she would like if we are at friends etc... she will usually ask for water!
She has tried a sip of fizzy at a party and other children had it. I really didnt want her to have it BUT luckily she didnt like it.
I only drink water anyway, so im hoping she will sort of be the same in the end.
At the end of the day, its your child and you do what you think is best. Stuff anyone else!

MadameDefarge · 16/06/2009 12:41

Pretty much the same thing round our way.

Ds will only drink water milk or apple juice.

And I do occasionally get the old "you are being mean to him" look from other parents. But its his choice, not mine! Grrhhh!

He hates fizzy drinks. But loves slush puppys, so I manage to get the recommended quota of rubbish colorants into him from time to time.

LittleB · 16/06/2009 12:51

My dd(4) has alot of water and milk (and like yours pink milk as a treat!) but also dilute fruit juice. She does have a cousin who is now 11 and will still only drink water, which can be quite tricky at times so I do think its a good idea to give them other things occasionally. DD has tried fizzy drinks at parties and doesn't like them anyway!

kitkatqueen · 16/06/2009 13:09

My 3 are happy with water & milk, I allow them one juice a day ( generally watered) because I can count it as one of their 5 a day and if its with an evening meal then its not so bad for their teeth. Within an hour it will be time to clean their teeth anyway

The thing that always concerns me is that kids tend to be given cold drinks, not such a problem at this time of year but I just think I wouldn't want to drink nothing but cold water in the winter. My kids all have the choice of warm / cold and generally prefer warm water. ( obviously from the kettle not the tap )

Danceswithchickens · 16/06/2009 13:14

YANBU. My DD's have water with breakfast & lunch & diluted fruit juice at tea time. As far as I'm concerned their teeth have to last them a long time, so do our best to care for them now.

On DD1's b'day I bought her some fizzy disney drink for her party, but no-one liked it.

DD2 had schloer on xmas day though & thought she was in heaven

Tillyscoutsmum · 16/06/2009 13:20

YANBU - dd (2.1) has only ever had water or milk. My mother seems to think I'm depriving her of something but its not that she's not "allowed" other things, she just hasn't had them yet and is more than happy with water so I don't see the point. My mother is also always insisting I should get dd tested because she's convinced she drinks too much water and there must be something wrong with her ??!

DSD is 5.5 and has never had fizzy drinks (she does have squash and fruit juice sometimes though)

callalilies · 16/06/2009 13:30

YANBU. DS is 2 and only has water with his meals and if he wants a drink. I have squash sometimes so if I do he shares a bit with me. He doesn't have juice and certainly nothing fizzy.

I do drink quite a bit of diet coke myself, including in front of him, but he knows it's Mummy's special drink and has never shown any interest in trying some, which is fortunate as I have no intention of letting him start on that stuff anytime soon!

sleeplessinstretford · 16/06/2009 13:48

My 20 month old only drinks water and milk- if she asks for anything else we'll let her taste it (not alchohol-I think that's child abuse to let kids drink booze out of their parents glasses under the age of about 11-anyway- I digress)
One of my pet hates is greedy children- I can't abide watching groups of kids get into a punch up over smarties,crisps,drinks-just in case they miss out on something. In my house we don't have forbidden-DD1 always had access to whatever I had access to-nothing was 'a treat' food or drink wise- I think you are storing up a lot of bizarre connections to food for the future making 'cakes and sweets/pop' a reward.
My dd1 is as likely to have a glass of water as a coke by the way-well she was until she became a teenager and now I suspect her drink of choice is a litre of merrydown....

Morloth · 16/06/2009 13:55

DS is 5 and doesn't drink fizzy drinks (with the exception of a sparkling water if we are at at restaurant). It isn't forbidden fruit, we don't drink them so they aren't around.

If he wants a drink at home he gets his own glass of water/milk. When we are out and buying drinks he has water or sometimes juice but he isn't keen on the sweetness of the juice.

I like a diet coke occassionally (especially with chocolate/ice cream) and he will sometimes have a sip of that, but once again he isn't too fond of the really sweet stuff.

What you are doing is fine IMO, as long as there is no fuss made about it your DD will assume that you drink water when thirsty and have other stuff sometimes because it tastes nice.

MIAonline · 16/06/2009 14:12

YANBU, it is nothing to do with your SIL.

Some people make themselves feel better about their choices by belittling yours.

It is better, as Morloth says, for your DD to learn to drink water when thirsty rather than automatically reaching for juice. Especially when very young as they tend to have lots of small drinks throughout the day rather than sit down and have a full cup at a time, as many older children do.

brettgirl2 · 16/06/2009 14:47

YANBU 3 year olds shouldn't be drinking fizzy drinks.

Does anyone know of a 'diet coke addicts annonymous' group? I am going to have to wean myself off it before my dd is old enough to know what it is

piscesmoon · 16/06/2009 14:53

There is no need to have fizzy drinks- not a good idea for anyone, incuding adults- but she is getting to the age where you start to lose control-for example if she is at a birthday party it is rude to not take a choice from what is offered.

llareggub · 16/06/2009 14:57

I never had fizzy drinks as a child. My parents didn't give me any when I was very small and when they finally did I didn't like the fizz in my mouth. I cost them a fortune in orange juice when we went abroad on holidays, so it really bit them in the bum.

I tend not to drink fizzy drinks now either. I'm not fond of them, but it isn't really a big deal, is it?

SOLOisMeredithGrey · 16/06/2009 15:01

LOL! of course fizzy water. I don't ever have fizzy water, so it didn't enter my mind that that was your meaning spicemonster! .

piscesmoon · 16/06/2009 15:04

My DS didn't like them either and it did cost a fortune abroad! He would just ask for something else at parties-I think this was much better than me taking, or asking, for something else.

supagirl · 16/06/2009 15:04

yanbu. My dc's only had milk and watr until they were 3 and after that I introduced diluted fruit juice. Even now for the older ones (10, 6, 5) squash, fizzy drinks and such like are limited to special occasions such as parties/weddings etc. Limiting them has not made them more desirable in their cases - they actually prefer water and the 5 year old will not drink squash at all as he really doens't like the taste of it.

Your sil is bu imo.

Original poster

NormaSknockers · 16/06/2009 15:06

Phew - very pleased to see it's not just me then!

piscesmoon she does have the drinks that are on offer at parties usually as I said I wouldn't take it off her but 9/10 she asks for her water

OP posts:

piscesmoon · 16/06/2009 15:09

If you don't have them yourself then your DC isn't likely to even want them. I very rarely have them in the house, even now they are much older. If you drink a lot of diet coke yourself you are on to a loser in the long run.

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