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dimanche 28 mai 2017

The 1 Thing Experts Warn Isn't Nearly as Healthy For Babies as Parents Think

If you give your child fruit juice, experts want you to know definitively that it's not as healthful as you think it is.

Up until now, the American Academy of Pediatrics had advised parents to avoid 100 percent fruit juice for babies younger than six months, but now the organization is providing stricter recommendations and suggesting it be banned from a baby's diet the entire first year.

Why the tougher stance? "Considerable concern has been expressed about increasing obesity rates and risks for dental caries," the AAP said in its report.

Because juice offers minimal nutritional value, drinking it fills babies up without giving them the nutrients - protein, fat, and minerals such as calcium - they actually need and get from breastmilk or formula.

This isn't to say that fruit is bad - quite the contrary. The new guidelines emphasize the importance of fresh fruit in children's diets. Although juice may provide some vitamins - such as vitamin C in orange juice and vitamin D in some fortified products - whole "fruit generally contains additional fiber compared to juices." And that is critical for healthy growth in children.

The AAP is also firming its stance on juice intake with other age groups as well, with maximum allotments as follows:

1-3 years old: 4 ounces
4-6 years old: 4-6 ounces
7+ years old: 8 ounces

"Toddlers should not be given juice from bottles or easily transportable covered cups that make it easy to consume throughout the day, nor should they be given juice at bedtime," the AAP noted. "When juice is served to older toddlers, it is important that it not be used to calm an upset child. It is not useful for the management of diarrheal illnesses and may predispose infants or young children to the development of hyponatremia."

Bottom line: babies should exclusively drink breastmilk or formula, and once weaned, thirsty kids should stick to milk or water as their primary fluid sources.

dimanche 28 mai 2017