What is your policy on soft drinks?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Ohhhh...

Does anyone have a policy for dessert and soft drinks in the same day or *gasp* at the same meal?

We usually say he can have soda OR dessert. 7 yo. He will almost always choose dessert and get lemonade or idea tea or water. We eat dessert most nights at home and are not candy-shy. His dad and I drink soda but we don't let DC have a lot of it and it's very rare he gets soda at home.

Real iced tea or the premixed stuff? The premixed isn't much better than a soft drink.

[Anonymous]

Very occasionally we have sparkling juice like from trader joes or Izzy at a party or with popcorn and movie. I usually water it down with some seltzer. Or we just do lime in seltzer. Fridge just has milk and water and only orange juice if someone has a cold or if my parents are visiting because for some reason they need orange juice. I don't think my kids have had regular soda, but if they had some at a party, okay. Restaurants we get milk or water.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Exactly why would any intelligent parent give their child garbage to consume?

I'll ask my DH and get back to you.

[Anonymous]

Once in a blue moon I don't think it is a big deal. (5&7 here.) It isn't any worse than candy or anything else. Regularly, though, we don't do soda. We also don't drink much soda in our house so that helps. I used to drink a lot and my kids were always asking for it. Once I stopped drinking it and keeping it in the house, they stopped asking.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Exactly why would any intelligent parent give their child garbage to consume?

Because they aren't an uptight idiot like yourself and know a rare treat never hurt anyone.

[Anonymous]

That's not all they serve.

[Anonymous]

Rarely. Once in a while as a special treat but nothing with caffeine.

[Anonymous]

None. But I also never drink soda and neither does my husband (or at least we never drink it in front of the kids, once in a while we may grab one at work during a lunch event).

[Anonymous]

At around seven he started to taste soda, and he kind of likes it. So he gets one a week, usually on "Friday takeout night". He's not into sweets in general, though, so he's generally light on the sugar side.

Not going to kill him.

[Anonymous]

There is not one ounce of nutritional benefit to drinking soda. Why would you give it to your kid. My DD went on a playdate and the mom gave it to my child. Thankfully she hated it!

[Anonymous]

We allow our kids to have a soft drink when we are out at a restaurant but not at home. They drink water, carbonated or sparkling water, fruit juice and milk at home. I buy Cokes for my husband. Neither keep child likes Cokes. I did buy diet soda at one time but found they didn't really drink those so stopped. They are now teens and it is not an issue. I think had I started letting them have soft drinks at a young age, they may have developed a taste for them.

[Anonymous]

^^kid not keep...

[Anonymous]

Every now and then at the movies. We don't make it a big deal, and kids don't obsess

[Anonymous]

A Sprite maybe twice a year. But that's it

[Anonymous]

I'd let my kids have it once in a while, but they don't like bubbles. They have juice or lemonade once in a while.