I like to follow the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines on juice:
~ Not recommended under 6 months of age
~ 6 months-1 yr can give sparingly but has no nutritional benefits
~ Children ages 1-6 years old should have no more than 4-6oz a day (4oz is half a cup)
~ Children ages 7-18 years should be limited to 8-12oz per day
Over the past few months, there has been a lot in the news about arsenic in apple juice. Did you see the Dr. Oz show that was all about poison being in children's drinks? I had heard about the episode and what they had found. Then I read the report published by Consumer Reports where they had conducted their own study on several different types and brands of juice. They found some pretty concerning results as far as the levels of arsenic in juice - especially grape juice! As if that was concerning enough, I had started noticing the fine print on the bottles of juice. Some had, "Concentrate from fruit produced in Chile" or, my favorite, "Apples from China, Mexico, and/or USA." China? Isn't that the country that makes plastic kids toys with lead? There was another article on the web recently as well, about orange juice concentrate being stored in huge tanks for months and months and losing all of the flavor which requires the addition of flavor packs and on and on...
Bottom line is, none of it sounds very appealing, healthy, or safe!
So I have been pondering what our family should do:
1} Only drink water, and milk for the kids - boring
2} Start an orchard and press my own juice - takes too long and I'm pretty sure orange trees don't grow in Virginia
3} Find out if China puts arsenic in their juice - don't care to converse with China and wouldn't really believe them if they said no anyway
In other words, I'm still undecided. But I think I will give this juice a try, even though it is a little expensive:
What is your favorite juice to give your family?
