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Weaning

Find weaning advice from other Mumsnetters on our Weaning forum. Use our child development calendar for more information.

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Original poster

is it cruel to offer water and no juice?

30 replies

butterscotch · 01/11/2007 00:42

Sorry to sound like a meany mummy but what is the point in offering juice? I mean I know it has vits in but surely when the weaning stage starts DD will get these from the veges and fruits offered? I am concerned if I offer FJ watered down or the "baby juice" they sell she will get a sweet tooth and not take water in the future? I drink water by the bucket load and would take water over coke, lemonade or juice and it is often a better option imho for a child? but am I cruel or is there something obvious i am not seeing? I am also thinking that you can get mineral water anywhere and it taste pretty much the same so when travelling on holiday or different part of uk no "brand specific" juice faves to content with? Or am I over reacting?!?!?!

OP posts:

ruddynorah · 01/11/2007 00:47

i'm the same. dd's 18 months now and had her first taste of juice (watered down squeezed orange juice) this week. she wasn't fussed by it, drinks tons of water. i was trying a thing for drinking orange while eating iron to increase iron absorption, though the amount of juice in it was probably pointless.

Gingerbear · 01/11/2007 00:47

fortyplus · 01/11/2007 00:55

Definitely no harm in only offering water, but I think your worries about not accepting water later are groundless. I had one of each - ds1 always had water, ds2 just didn't like it at first and became constipated one very hot summer, so I gave very dilute juice instead. Both of them always drank water once they were older - they're 12 and nearly 14 now and usually have water to drink in preference to anything else. (Though ds1 will have lager when he's allowed! )

Niecie · 01/11/2007 01:30

There is absolutely nothing wrong and loads right with offering water and it is great if your DD will take it but my DS1 never ever would, even when I knew he must be really thirsty. It has in the past even made him retch when he was ill - he just can't cope with the tastlessness of it. I had to give him a very very diluted juice to get him to drink and he was fine with that. DS2 will drink anything if he is thirsty so it didn't make any difference to offer him juice as a change.

I kind of sympathise with DS1. I would say 80% of what I drink is plain water but when I was younger I wouldn't touch the stuff and would go without rather than drink it. I made myself ill on one occasion (UTI) so my mum let me have very dilute squash. Now I can't stand the squash. Tastes change.

So on that basis I agree with fortyplus - it isn't all or nothing. Even if she drinks juice now, it doesn't mean she will never touch water but if you don't want to offer juice then don't until she is older and the water drinking is an ingrained habit.

whomovedmychocolate · 01/11/2007 06:49

DD has water or 'mummy juice' (breastmilk). None of that Kio-ora-wotsit nonsense here! Also juice can give them nappy rash (real juice) and is an eco-nightmare. Good for you!

massivebigpumpkinface · 01/11/2007 07:03

Why would you be cruel? You are giving them the best there is! A bit of fresh juice is nice too now and then although I haven't given dd juice yet and not sure when i will.

massivebigpumpkinface · 01/11/2007 07:04

whomoved - why is fresh juice an eco nightmare?

whomovedmychocolate · 01/11/2007 08:55

Because it tends to be shipped halfway across the world, uses a lot more fruit than just eating fruit, encourages intensive production and is packaged in non-recyclable packaging most of the time.

BecauseImWorthIt · 01/11/2007 08:58

No point introducing juice, because you're just introducing extra sugar into their diets. Water is great for as long as they will accept it; won't be long before they're wanting Coke (or lager! )

A friend of mine used to give her children water, but called it juice!

LilBloodRedWantsGore · 01/11/2007 08:59

DD usually has water and very occassionally has watered down juice (or cordial at her Grandparents). My FIL told me I was cruel for not letting her have sqaush or juice all the time, I told him to bog off (politely of course ).

Jojay · 01/11/2007 09:07

We went to a first birthday party the other day and the Mum was getting drinks for all the babies - she was amazed when I said that my DS had never had anything except milk or water, and no, we didn't want watered down fruit juice.

Saying that, I'm sure there's far worse things in the world than to give your child than a bit of watered down juice, but my ds is perfectly happy with water - for now - so I see no reason to give him anything else yet.

Dropdeadfred · 01/11/2007 09:23

My dd3 is 2 and a half now and she still has water all the time, occasionally when we have been out she has had to have a swig of juice from someone elses carton/bottle etc if she has finished her drink but it never makes her reject her water - she loves it.

WorkingClassScum · 01/11/2007 10:17

ds has always had water, sometimes we've got juice in for adults and other kids but when it's gone he doesn't ask for it. But the husband and I always drink water for a cold drink anyway so it's influenced by what he sees... which I suppose why he's begun asking for a cup of coffee!!

mixedmama · 01/11/2007 17:19

You arent being cruel. I had very strong opinions about this (only in relation to my own DC nobody elses).

i know my DS gets juice at ILs and has doen since 6 months which caused many many rows, more because they went against my wishes. He is now 20 months and I just ignore what he gets elsewhere and when with me he has water and milk.

in the grand scheme of things a bit of juice is not the end of the world, but for DS i just didnt see the necessity if he was happy with water.

TheBlonde · 01/11/2007 17:24

DS didn't really have juice til he was 2
It's just unnecessary and bad for teeth

RoyKinnear · 01/11/2007 17:25

i only offer water!

HairyIrene · 01/11/2007 17:26

no not cruel at all
they need water more than juice i think at this stage

working class scum..same here, we drink alot of water, as does ds
we drink expresso..as does ds !
tiny one, only in mornings at weekends!!
oh he's 3.6 not really little!!

SenoraPostrophe · 01/11/2007 17:27

no, you are not cruel.

But then you obviously know that, and I think it would have been more honest of you to entitle this thread "are mothers who offer juice crap mums or what?" to which the answer is also no.

btw you shouldn't give mineral water to babies, and some children are easier to please than others, as I'm sure you'll find out.

HairyIrene · 01/11/2007 17:28

workingclassscum
you have as good a choice in mumsnet names as me at the minute!!
btw i like it!!

hunkermunker · 01/11/2007 17:29

My DSs drink water by the gallon. So do I. I think that probably helps - if they ask for a bit of my drink, it's more than likely water!

DS1 wouldn't drink anything but water till he was nearly 3. He now drinks milk, some smoothies and the occasional drop of juice, but if he asks for a drink, he means water.

DS2 likes sniffing tea and coffee and will drink anything anybody's got, given half a chance... But he drinks a lot of water too.

And I'm not cruel, so no, it's not cruel

Hels67 · 01/11/2007 17:30

DD - 10 months - always has water with her meals and loves it!

I think the juice idea is to encourage iron absorption after a meal, but you can get this by just eating the fruit (orange or berries) themselves as dessert - much better than juice IMO.

I'm a big water fan myself - much prefer it to either coke or lemonade, but strangely not over vodka, perhaps because it looks the same !

Original poster

butterscotch · 02/11/2007 09:43

Hels67 I'm the same water is my preferred soft drink vodka or wine would win over water though any day I drink a lot of tea, the reason I ask is my dd is now 4.5months and people in my antenatal group are all offering juice, and I just wonder what others thought as someone at my hc said its cruel not giving them juice? I was thinking its better to have water as the drink of choice with juice as an occassional treat I know I am going to have battles with the Monster in Law over this and chocolate

OP posts:

mixedmama · 02/11/2007 11:04

Oh Butterscotch I had a long battle about this. At 4.5 months tho I think you would be well placed to asert your authority and make sure it is water only.

MrsHarry · 04/11/2007 23:54

Butterscotch, can I just ask why you (or other members of your AN group) want to give water or juice anyway at only 4.5 mths?
Sorry, this isn't meant to be a criticising question (altho I think it may sound it...),
it's just that my (breastfed) DD is 5 months now and I've been wondering about whether to give her any water as well as milk but I keep reading that babies don't actually need anything to drink except milk till they are about 6 months old.
I especially keep reading that breastmilk is supposed to provide all that's required in terms of drink and food, tho I don't know if that's same for formula?
So just wondered whether I've missed something and maybe it's good idea to give water as well.
Also, even if they don't need it, I do wonder whether it's actually a problem to give water or if makes no difference at all. (I mean as well as milk, not instead of juice, IYSWIM!)
Sorry if this is rambly...what I really mean is, at 5 mths can I give another drink as well as milk, is it best not to, or does it not really matter either way?

Shitemum · 05/11/2007 00:12

MrsHarry - if your DD is not takng anything other than bmilk then you dont need to give her anything else. I started giving my bfed DDs water once they'd started on solids at about 6.5 mo, this also coincided with the weather getting a lot hotter...but some would say they still dont need water if bfeeding on demand...
Juice for a 4.5 m?

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