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Healthy juice alternatives for kids
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Kids LOVE juice. If given the choice, most kids would drink juice for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And although juice manufacturers would like for us to believe that it’s perfectly OK for them to consume vast amounts of this beverage, we all know that it is not. Even the best, all-natural juices are loaded with sugars and should be given in moderate amounts.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), kids who drink too much juice have been found to have higher levels of obesity, more cavities, and other gastrointestinal problems. The AAP’s guidelines for doling out the sweet stuff are as follows:
· Juice should not be introduced into the diet of infants before 6 months of age.
· Infants should not be given juice from bottles or easily transportable covered cups that allow them to consume juice easily throughout the day. Infants should not be given juice at bedtime.
· Intake of fruit juice should be limited to 4 to 6 oz/day for children 1 to 6 years old.
· For children 7 to 18 years old, juice intake should be limited to 8 to 12 oz or 2 servings per day.
· Infants, children, and adolescents should not consume unpasteurized juice.
If your kids are begging for juice on a regular basis and the offers of water and milk aren’t working, there are some healthier juice alternatives on the market that may do the trick:
Froose: Froose is a beverage made from organic ingredients such as brown rice and fruit to make a more healthful and nutritious drink for kids. They offer three flavors: Cheerful Cherry, Playful Peach and Perfect Pear. Milton the Moose, Froose's official mascot, will also be liked by kids of all ages.
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Honest Kids: The popular brand, Honest Tea, started a kids line of organic, low-sugar, fruit flavored "thirst quenchers" to provide parents with an alternative to high sugar juices. They claim that each pouch contains less than half the sugar of most other pouch drinks. The three flavors they offer are: Tropical Tango Punch, Berry Berry Good Lemonade and Goodness Grapeness. Honest Kids also partners with Terracycle to donate a portion of sales to teaching kids about preserving our planet.
Bot: Bot fortified water comes in whimsical packaging and in a kid-friendly size. Although it is indeed flavored water and not juice, the options (including lemon, grape, orange and berry) may appeal to kids who need a little more oomph to their water. Bot is all natural, contains no preservatives and is fortified with essential B vitamins for growth and energy. 
Wateroos: Wateroos are purified water drink boxes that contain natural flavors derived from fruits. Cleverly packaged as a juice box, these convenient water boxes contain no artificial ingredients, sweeteners or sugar. Wateroos come in apple, berry and grape flavors.
Give these alternatives a shot. If your kids are drinking copious amounts of juice, it may take some getting used to the taste (or lack thereof), but in the long run, cutting out sugar where possible is an important step towards better health.
For more info: Please click on each company's hyperlink above to access their Web sites and view locations where these products can be purchased.
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