do you give your toddler coffee? - Page 4

[Ianthe]

Originally Posted by Lydiah

My DD loves to steal sips from my mug. So now I make her own "coffee" every morning. Its Caf-Lib (roasted barely and chicory hot beverage) with lots of milk. She slams one back every morning. There is no real coffee in it but it has the same roasted flavour that coffee does. She calls it "cuppee".

THat's a great idea! My DS1 loves coffee, he would probably like that too!

[JollyGG]

Originally Posted by littlemizflava

does she wear a baltic amber necklace/bracelet? i ask because i get migraines & headaches and the amber helps me the most. also my dd 8 has not had any since she has been wearing her necklace.

No she doesn't, but it is certainly something to try. She had another this morning. Though I skipped the coffee this morning because hubby's not home to make it while I sit with her. Instead I just gave her a massage through most of it.

[YayJennie]

I've given my 17 month old a few sips of (black) coffee here and there when I am drinking and he's shown interest. Surprisingly, he really likes it, so I try not to drink it around him much. But I've also given him a sip or two of wine or beer if I'm drinking it. Obviously I wouldn't encourage it, and I don't offer, he asks, but I don't think a sip here or there is terrible.

[bri276]

DD is 5, so not really a toddler, but I do share a bit of coffee/cappucino or whatever with her. We're Italian and it's not uncommon, at least, not in our family. I had espresso and lattes from a pretty young age (not to mention a bit of alcohol- in fact, mixing Sambuca into the espresso was par for the course). I'm not going to let her take down a whole cup anytime soon but I do share, especially my melted iced coffees that are mostly water, cream and sugar in the bottom. If anything, I've seen a marked improvement with language skills after she's pepped up with caffeine (she has special needs). Never enough to cause trouble with sleeping or anything like that. I'd say she has a few sips of coffee 2-3 times a week, if that.

[EdnaMarie]

WOW! My aunt gives toddlers coffee and tea and my jaw hit the floor when I found out. They are all really tall. Still. I'd never heard of it. I gave both my kids a sip so they would stop asking (I drink it black or with milk, no sugar)... sadly, with DD2 loved it and now I have to keep it all up high.

[kittywitty]

Depends on the age. I consider my 2 yo a toddler and I'll let her take a tiny sip of my half coffee/half milk I make for myself on rare occasions. Not much different than hot chocolate with caffeine intake, IMO.

[meemee]

since my dd was 3 months old she is allowed a 'pinky dip' of everything i drink. alcohol, soda, mizo ANYTHING. taste is a VERY important sense for my dd. even today. as a child she would even taste lotion and my lipsticks.

now that she is almost 8 she gets tiny sips of coffee.

however from what 4 or 5 she got lots of milky coffee. a pinch of instant coffee in her milk with sugar. that's coz i didnt drink coffee then. but today i do - not for the caffiene but for the taste. i love the bitter taste of coffee with milk and sugar in it. couldnt drink it straight. neither can dd drink it straight. i gave her a sip when she was 4 and she has refused it ever since.

i have never stopped her from having tea though. black tea with milk and sugar. i used to make tea and share a cup with her too. or chai. since she was what 4 or 5. she would love to have her own cup but never drink beyond a quarter cup or so.

dd loooooooooooves chai, ginger tea, thai iced tea, 'good' coffee with tonnes of milk and sugar (yeah she rejects bad coffee ) and 'good' whiskey (looooooooves Laphroaig but hates JD). her personal favourite though is peppermint tea with coconut milk, soy milk and honey in it.

[scottishmommy]

Originally Posted by JollyGG

I voted yes, but I feel I must explain my yes. I give my preschooler coffee because she gets migraines. We are experimenting to see if caffeine helps when she's having one.

But otherwise my kids don't get coffee. Of course, I'm not a big coffee drinker myself. When we started the experiment I actually had to run to Starbucks for a coffee (I do now have some in the house).

I'm not trying to give you unsolicited advice, but in addition to caffeine, have you tried taking your dd to a chiropractor? My dh had horrible, debilitating migraines until he started going to the chiro. He doesn't get them anymore unless we get lazy about adjustments. It's been a miracle for us!

[CrazyCatLady]

I don't drink coffee, ever. So it never came up. I think my answer would be "no" though. I'm not about anything that may make my kids more crazy. Decaf would be fine I guess, but I don't think my dd would even like it anyways.

Alcohol on the gums was no big deal for me during teething though.

[chaoticzenmom]

I have always given my children coffee with lots of milk when they've asked for it. We drink coffee all day long though, so it's kind of normal in my house.

[Minxie]

I do but I drink decaf at home so the caffeine is not a concern. What I usually do is fill a cup 2/3 milk, 1/3 coffee, no sugar. He drinks about half of it; it's really more of a flavored milk.

[Flower of Bliss]

No, I don't give my toddler coffee, and no, I don't give DD1 coffee either. However, DD1 was constantly stealing my coffee when she was a toddler. She knew it wasn't for her, and I really tried to prevent it, but she did manage sips of my coffee here and there - mostly ice coffee and frapuccinos I was drinking with a straw.

DD2 (only 12 months) is already trying to get at my coffee as well (I think it's the shiny silver thermos cup I drink it out of). I won't be surprised if she manages a few sips over the years too.

However, it will be a long long time before I would hand my DDs coffee.

[MountainMamaGC]

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lydiah View Post
My DD loves to steal sips from my mug. So now I make her own "coffee" every morning. Its Caf-Lib (roasted barely and chicory hot beverage) with lots of milk. She slams one back every morning. There is no real coffee in it but it has the same roasted flavour that coffee does. She calls it "cuppee".

THat's a great idea! My DS1 loves coffee, he would probably like that too!

My DD really likes it. Its our own special morning ritual. We both drink our cuppee together.

[MadiMamacita]

Originally Posted by kittywitty

I'll let her take a tiny sip of my half coffee/half milk I make for myself on rare occasions. Not much different than hot chocolate with caffeine intake, IMO.

i've seen a few other people say this as well.
are we comparing a sip of coffee to a cup of hot chocolate? sip for sip?
FWIW the average cup of hot cocoa has 5mg of caffeine. the average cup of drip coffee has 115mg.

Originally Posted by sapphire_chan

But what about me? If it came up, I would let dd have a sip, but it never comes up.

I would but I don't, y'see?

so if you would, then yes.

[aeiou]

I don't know when I would let my dd have a taste of my coffee so I didn't vote, but I didn't see anyone address the idea that the foam from a cappuccino is basically warm milk and isn't really the same as a toddler drinking coffee.

[karika]

poll needs more answers

I would not let a child drink caffeinated coffee. I drink water process decaf, fair trade, organic coffee occasionally. Dd2 must have been a coffee hound in her last life because she went crazy at the sight of a mug as early as 8 mo. I sweeten mine with unprocessed raw sugar and lighten it with homemade almond milk or So Delicious coconut milk (no dairy here). So yes, she drinks my kind of coffee and loves it. So does dd1 now too. I would not allow them to have any other type of coffee though, I feel the same way about mainstream soda. It is not good for anyone to ingest it IMO.

[Pumpkin_Pie]

Hmmm... I voted "no", but I guess it should have been "yes". DS has had two sips of coffee in his life. He was throwing a tantrum over it once, so I let him have a sip, expecting him to hate it, and he LOVED it and asked for another sip. I thought he was just being silly, so I let him have a second, and then I had a tantrum on my hands about the fact that he couldn't have his own cup of coffee. No more coffee since then at all.

[Drummer's Wife]

Originally Posted by karika

I would not let a child drink caffeinated coffee. I drink water process decaf, fair trade, organic coffee occasionally. Dd2 must have been a coffee hound in her last life because she went crazy at the sight of a mug as early as 8 mo. I sweeten mine with unprocessed raw sugar and lighten it with homemade almond milk or So Delicious coconut milk (no dairy here). So yes, she drinks my kind of coffee and loves it. So does dd1 now too. I would not allow them to have any other type of coffee though and find that abusive without meaning to be towards children. But I feel the same way about mainstream soda. It is not good for anyone to ingest it IMO.

So, do you consider letting children eat chocolate abusive, too?

[~cassie]

We aren't a coffee drinking family, so no they don't have it. But they do get hot tea, iced tea(maybe a few times a year when I want some) and they also have chocolate and candy as well as a few sips of caffeinated soda every now and again. If I drank coffee, I would have no problem with them drinking it.

[luvmybaby333]

I just want to point out that while chocolate does contain caffeine, the amounts are not comparable to coffee in any way. Chocolate milk and solid milk-chocolate have very small amounts of caffeine... comparable to decaffeinated coffee (which has around 5mg.) Dark chocolate has a higher caffeine content at around 20mgs (per ounce.) But IME, most people don't regularly offer their children dark chocolate, as the taste is often too strong for younger palates... and, in any case, the caffeine content is still FAR less than regular home-brewed coffee.