Coffee for kids?

[Bruno@MT]

Someone mentioned in another discussion that coffee is apparently considered bad for kids in the US.

My 4 year old kid drinks coffee in the weekend. I drank coffee when I was a kid, as did most everyone else in our family.
Coffee is considered a normal drink for kids to have as soon as they can drink from a cup. Ditto for tea btw.
Not all kids like it of course, but they're free to have it if they want.

Why wouldn't kids be allowed to drink coffee? (in normal quantities of course).

 

[terryl965]

Mayve vecause of the caffiene addiction is too much for a child, but then again I am guessing..

 

[JadecloudAlchemist]

Most kids eat some sort of sugar cereal for breakfast.
Lunch has some sort of sweets and the juice box is loaded with sugar.
When the kids get home if they do not have a snack prepared for them
they will most likey eat something sugary. Adding coffee on top of that which I think has to have some sort of sweetener in it is alot of sugar.

A lot of kids are drinking coffee because of Starbucks and Dunkin doughnuts coffee treats. The problem is the Starbuck drinks have alot of fat,calories,and sugar.

On the other hand if a kid is drinking soda for breakfast then changing it for coffee that is home brewed with less sugar might be a better alternative. I think it has to be case by case and in line with the kids diet.

 

[Bruno@MT]

It would seem to me that proper coffee would be better than coca cola, because of the lack of sugar and lack of a boatload of additives.
The caffeine argument can be made for coke as well.

And in moderation, the caffeine is not a problem. I'd rather have them drink coffee than coke.

 

[Big Don]

My family put away gallons of coffee at every gathering, everybody drank it, except for me, my cousin and my little sister. We weren't the oldest kids, or the youngest, but, we were the only ones that didn't drink coffee.

 

[Tez3]

I had the thought that American coffee has more caffeine in than ours and it seems I'm not alone in thinking that. It seems we use darker roasts too which have less caffeine in.
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/266391

Children of course do not drink expresso but cafe creme which is more milk than coffee. I've drank coffee since I was a child as as my children.
european children even now tend not to eat cereals for breakfast rather they eat bread, meat, cheese ie a continential breakfast. Oh and bread with sprinkles ...wonderful!

 

[Steve]

Someone mentioned in another discussion that coffee is apparently considered bad for kids in the US.

My 4 year old kid drinks coffee in the weekend. I drank coffee when I was a kid, as did most everyone else in our family.
Coffee is considered a normal drink for kids to have as soon as they can drink from a cup. Ditto for tea btw.
Not all kids like it of course, but they're free to have it if they want.

Why wouldn't kids be allowed to drink coffee? (in normal quantities of course).

My son drinks coffee, but not very often. I have no real problem with it. I told my son I'd rather he drink coffee than soda or energy drinks.

 

[Lisa]

I have no problem with a child drinking coffee...neither of mine do, they have never been interested in it. What I think is a bad thing for kids is to use it as "breakfast" and to "wake them up" as many adults do, myself included.

I try to stress to my kids the importance of breakfast. I pack enough food in my daughter's lunch to help her make it through the morning as well, for she never eats breakfast but opts to eat an apple in first class and something else in her lunch before lunch, if need be.

 

[JDenver]

Plus, coffee is a strong diarrhetic. It does an interesting number on your digestion.

I never drink coffee. I remember, many years ago, I had to stay up late on assignment, so I decided to have some coffee. At that point I hadn't had any coffee in 2 or 3 years. I had 1 cup and spent the next 3 hours on a toilet.

If you drink coffee all the time, this won't happen to you of course. But it shows how adjusted your sytem becomes to the drink. Personally, I think it's a bad idea for children.

 

[arnisador]

I wouldn't have an issue with a kid drinking coffee--my (now 15 y.o.) daughter does on occasion--but definitely in moderation if they're below high school age. A cup a day of caffeine would be more than enough at that age.

 

[Stac3y]

I don't allow my kids to drink coffee because I don't think it's a good idea to get addicted to caffeine at a young age, and I don't think I could deal with them being any more energetic than they already are.

I'm also a sugar nazi. I very strictly limit their sugar intake, because I want them to look at sugary stuff as an occasional treat, not an everyday staple. It's all part of teaching them to make healthy choices. My parents didn't, and I've been struggling with dental problems (lots of sugar and no enforcement of tooth brushing) and my weight. It's easier to learn how to eat properly as a kid than to unlearn bad habits as an adult.

 

[MJS]

Certainly not the best drink of choice, but within reason, I see nothing wrong with it. I grew up in a family that drank ALOT of coffee and still does, yet I can't stand it. I tried it once, and didn't even get thru the cup.

If we really looked at what we consume, I mean really looked, we'd be surprised at what we saw. Compared to a cup of coffee, alot of food is probably just as bad. As I said, within reason, I see nothing wrong with it. Now, if they're drinking large quantities a day, well, that may lead to issues down the road, just like if I ate greasy fast food 3 times a day. Do I still stop for a burger at McDonalds? Of course, but again, its not daily or even weekly.

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

Ahhhhh coffee the elixir of life!

As they say the coffee must flow!

Now I personally think we as adults need to watch very carefully what our children eat and drink. Caffeine is an addiction we want our children to avoid. So personally I think coffee at least American style coffee is best left to the adults. However the more diluted style of European coffee that Tez3 talks about would probably be fine.

 

[Xue Sheng]

Caffeine Contents of Drinks
Coffee is not the strongest

 

[blindsage]

I don't think anyone was claiming it's the strongest, but just about every drink on that list that has more than coffee is an energy drink, and not many people are letting their children run around with Amp, or Red Bull, or NOS.

I'm cracking up though that somebody made this into an actual drink (it's on that list)

 

[CoryKS]

I was told that caffeine "leeches" calcium and that it was therefore not a good thing to give to growing children.

Could be complete bs for all I know, I'm still not giving the boy coffee because I don't feel the need to be chasing Roger Rabbit all over the house.

 

[Tez3]

The dark roasts I believe while being lower in caffeine are much better tasting. There's nothing like having a coffee sat in an outside cafe watching the people go by. In Europe as well, teenagers regard drinking coffee as being far cooler than alcohol. You should see the very well dressed smart Italian boys drinking their espressos (expressos are trains btw)!
Children here are given very milky coffee which is far better for them than fizzy drinks.They aren't given espressos.
Drinking coffee may reduce liver cancer risks too.
http://www.foodnavigator.com/Scienc...nking-may-cut-liver-cancer-risk-meta-analysis
I think we may have different drinking habits too, for the most part the only meal coffee is drunk with tends to be breakfast, espressos being drunk after meals. Tea and chocolate is more likely be drunk though the day, this will include herbal teas. I think our eating habits may be different too tbh. Drinking coffee is a far more social event here perhaps, usually accompanied by gateau/kuchen and eaten with friends.

 

[Bruno@MT]

One of the things I really liked about London was that you can get a large cup of coffee at a reasonable price on any corner. For people who like coffee for the taste like me, that is great.
alas, that is one of the things that didn't really take off yet in Belgium.

The caffeine argument makes sense if they drink too much of it.
But just drinking 1 cup with breakfast (or at family occasions like birthdays etc) should be fine.

 

[Tez3]

London coffee houses started in the 18th century and were where a lot of business was conducted, Lloyds of London started in a coffee house.
http://waeshael.home.att.net/coffee.htmhttp://waeshael.home.att.net/coffee.htm
I love the taste of proper coffee, the stuff you get in Starbucks is insipid. there's literally thousands of places to get good coffee in London!

 

[Live True]

An interesting story: My great grandmother showed me a tiny china cup and saucer that she was given as a tiny child. She was given a small cup of milk at first. This then graduated to a small cup of milke with a little coffee in it. This progressed to her drinking black coffee by the time shew as a young child of say 5 or 6. I just thought the purposeful progression was interesting. This was during the depression era, and I've often wondered if that had any impact on this habit.

I'm not a big fan of caffeine addiction, but I certainly believe coffee and tea would be far better than soft drinks and sugary fruit juices in abundance!