Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:When I was young my Great Grandmother made coffee milk for me. We would sit and play cards, she drank her coffee, I drank my coffee milk.

My mother and grandmother also made me coffee milk while we played cards! Was your GG eastern european?
I have been drinking a cup of coffee a morning since I was in high school - one cup a day, often I don't even finish the cup, because it is the taste, smell, warmth and ritual of it that I "need" more than the caffeine. I really don't think it is a big deal.

If you are from Europe, then most likely you also were not sedentary and walked everywhere, so perhaps a bit of coffee as a child didn't impact you much. But, American kids are more sedentary (indoor recess?), so caffeine + sedentary = not good outcome.

Also, sorry, but Europeans smoke too much so it's not like they have such a healthy lifestyle, either.

Anonymous wrote:When I was young my Great Grandmother made coffee milk for me. We would sit and play cards, she drank her coffee, I drank my coffee milk.

My mother and grandmother also made me coffee milk while we played cards! Was your GG eastern european?
I have been drinking a cup of coffee a morning since I was in high school - one cup a day, often I don't even finish the cup, because it is the taste, smell, warmth and ritual of it that I "need" more than the caffeine. I really don't think it is a big deal.

Caffeine is and appetite suppressant and a diuretic. Plus it is addictive.

So, nope, I wouldn't give my own child coffee in the morning. Although when they are a Junior/Senior in HS - sure. I would just advice them not to get into the habit of adding a bunch of sweeteners and cream to their coffee. A cup of black coffee has pretty much no calories but a cup of heavily sweetened cream with a heap of sugar and a little coffee is caloric and not very nutritious. Might as well eat a Twinkie for breakfast.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Normal for all kids to drink it in the morning in Guatemala from what we could tell with our host family. No ill effects on the kids.

Average height in Guatemala: males- 5'2" females- 4'6"

Wow, that's dinky!

I wasn't allowed to have caffeine until I was 18, and I am 5'9"--just sayin'.


OP, does your daughter drink enough water? Maybe she's dehydrated.

YOU ARE AN IDIOT. Try learning about the peoples of the world. Sigh, I bet you are voting for Trump.

When I was young my Great Grandmother made coffee milk for me. We would sit and play cards, she drank her coffee, I drank my coffee milk. After she passed away I never drank it again until I was in my late 30s. Coffee milk. More milk than coffee. Once a day.

Later I drank chocolate coffee. Little milk, coffee, squirt of Hershey's chocolate. 3 times a day until I hit menopause then quit because I thought it made me have hot flashes and sweats. I had very bad headaches after quitting cold turkey. I never drink it again. Love the smell, make it for my husband but I can't drink it. My body healed itself of caffeine and my stomach can't handle it.

Once in a blue moon at the mall I'd drink a Carribean Iced coffee. I'd go home and cleam my house. It made me zoom.

I never gave my kids coffee but when they were in high school they drank a coke with breakfast. I was a bad Mom. I let them have it.

I don't see why there is inherently anything wrong with letting your 11 year old drink coffee. I started occasionally drinking coffee around 13 and regularly drinking coffee in high school. I have never been a morning person, and it helped me focus in school. However, if it affects their sleep, or if it makes them anxious or jittery, then that seems like it would not be a good idea (just as some adults don't like how caffeine makes them feel). A lot of 11 year olds I know think coffee is too bitter as well and just don't like the taste.

As far as the stunting growth deal, that is a myth. Look it up. There are also plenty of healthy phytochemicals in coffee.

In many parts of the world, children drink coffee and tea with no ill effect. Really I think this has more to do with a cultural feeling in the US that coffee is a grown up drink and that we don't like to see our kids do "adult" things, even relatively harmless things.

What about green tea?

Coffee does not stunt your growth. That old wivestale, based on nothing, has been debunked for a long time.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/18/health/the-claim-drinking-coffee-can-stunt-a-childs-growth.html?_r=0

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Normal for all kids to drink it in the morning in Guatemala from what we could tell with our host family. No ill effects on the kids.

Average height in Guatemala: males- 5'2" females- 4'6"

Wow, that's dinky!

I wasn't allowed to have caffeine until I was 18, and I am 5'9"--just sayin'.


OP, does your daughter drink enough water? Maybe she's dehydrated.

My kids drank coffee since they were babies, snitching it out of my cup. By 11, my daughter made both of us coffee-- my son drinks tea. We are all fine.

No, I wouldn't give my kids coffee.

It's not a bad thing, I don't think coffee itself is a big deal, neither is sugar.

But I do think it's weird a kid that age is tired a few times a week and needs coffee to feel perky in the AM. Probably should look into why that is happening and cut back on the activities.

Anonymous wrote:I am very surprised. Everyone I know who drinks coffee seems addicted to it. If they don't have their morning coffee, they get a headache or cannot function without it. It really looks like an addiction. I saw that growing up with every single adult I know, which is why I never wanted to drink it. Why would anyone want to introduce that addiction to a child?

+1 And, no, I don't let my kids drink soft drinks with caffeine, either. Actually, my kids don't like soda much. I have seen 6/7 yr olds drink a whole 12oz can of Mountain Dew at lunch at school. I felt sorry for their teachers after lunch.

As a PP noted, most teas have less caffeine than coffee. Caffeine can be addictive. Wow, I can't believe how many people let their less than 10 yr olds drink coffee. Did I read someone say they let their 4 yr old drink coffee? Wow.

I am very surprised. Everyone I know who drinks coffee seems addicted to it. If they don't have their morning coffee, they get a headache or cannot function without it. It really looks like an addiction. I saw that growing up with every single adult I know, which is why I never wanted to drink it. Why would anyone want to introduce that addiction to a child?

I have no problem with my kids having a cup of coffee/tea in the morning. It's traditional where I'm from. But, no caffeine after 2:00PM as it seems to impact their sleep. I don't know why people are so hung up on it.