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Would you let your child drink coffee?

?

  • Yes

  • No

  • Not sure

Results are only viewable after voting.
Mixolydian

Mixolydian

Lifer
I don't mean a 4 year old, but like a 9 or 10 year old?

Why or why not?

I've been drinking coffee regularly since I was about 8 years old. My parents didn't have a problem with it; my mom used to say "It's not worse than drinking a Coke." I agree with her.
 
No, way too much caffeine. 3 or more caffeine than soda, not that soda is good.

Plus it's acidic, and not particularly good for your teeth or stomach if you eat or drink other acidic foods or beverages. 100mg to 250mg of caffeine is way too much for kids. Tea is fine at 20 to 50mg, but kids don't need energy boost and crash that comes from caffeine.

If we are talking coffee sweetened with sugar or other caloric sweeteners, that's even worse for your teeth. I wouldn't let my child (if I had a child) drink soda, juice, sports drinks, etc except occasionally, either.

I, on the other hand, drink a lot of coffee. 😀 Purely unsweetened and black, but I'm an adult.

Also, a lot of parents don't realize that some sodas like Mountain Dew have more caffeine than average (it's about half the caffeine of an energy drink) so you probably shouldn't let your kids drink a ton of that, either.
 
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I personally wouldn't want caffeine near a developing brain. Coffee also averages 1-4x more caffeine than soda.

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actually with ADHD coffee helps them. I am learning a lot and was a Pharmacy major.

I'd pick coffee over Focalin, Ritalin, and the like.
 
no, way to young for a regular cup of coffee. mid to late teens and they can start. My 3 yo son gets a taste by dipping his finger in the coffee...once in a while.
 
Since our daughter was 2 we have been giving her very little cups of coffee but it's really just a splash of coffee in a mug with creamer. She thinks it's coffee though.

She also occasionally drinks soda too (a couple of sips of our soda once in a while). Luckily her teeth have been fine so far. We make sure she brushes 2 times a day, especially after sweets.

I haven't noticed any negative effects from the caffeine she has ingested up until now (she is 3 now). The doctor said it's fine in very small doses. I'm surprised so many people think it's so bad.

Is there any solid research that shows it's damaging to developing children? The only concerns I've seen in studies is that is causes increase in heart rate and blood pressure, and can cause lack of sleep. But that is based on children that take in caffeine daily.

So I really don't think it's as bad as most people make it out to be. Too much of anything will be bad for a child, caffeine is just another example of this.
 
alkemyst said:
actually with ADHD coffee helps them. I am learning a lot and was a Pharmacy major.

I'd pick coffee over Focalin, Ritalin, and the like.
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This. Two of my sons have ADHD. The one with the more severe case never cared for coffee but it helps the other one a lot, both with his ADHD and he's just not a morning person. His magnet middle school has a coffee bar.

He usually only drinks 4-6 ounces of coffee a day.
 
Wyndru said:
Since our daughter was 2 we have been giving her very little cups of coffee but it's really just a splash of coffee in a mug with creamer. She thinks it's coffee though.

She also occasionally drinks soda too (a couple of sips of our soda once in a while). Luckily her teeth have been fine so far. We make sure she brushes 2 times a day, especially after sweets.

I haven't noticed any negative effects from the caffeine she has ingested up until now (she is 3 now). The doctor said it's fine in very small doses. I'm surprised so many people think it's so bad.

Is there any solid research that shows it's damaging to developing children? The only concerns I've seen in studies is that is causes increase in heart rate and blood pressure, and can cause lack of sleep. But that is based on children that take in caffeine daily.

So I really don't think it's as bad as most people make it out to be. Too much of anything will be bad for a child, caffeine is just another example of this.
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It doesn't appear to be terrible, except that it is often in things that are definitely bad for kids like soda--really these should be kept for special occasions. I know a lot of kids drink it all the time. I did growing up and it has been an awful habit to kick. Caffeine is a drug, though, so it cannot be a positive impact on a kid.
 
Wyndru said:
Since our daughter was 2 we have been giving her very little cups of coffee but it's really just a splash of coffee in a mug with creamer. She thinks it's coffee though.

She also occasionally drinks soda too (a couple of sips of our soda once in a while). Luckily her teeth have been fine so far. We make sure she brushes 2 times a day, especially after sweets.

I haven't noticed any negative effects from the caffeine she has ingested up until now (she is 3 now). The doctor said it's fine in very small doses. I'm surprised so many people think it's so bad.

Is there any solid research that shows it's damaging to developing children? The only concerns I've seen in studies is that is causes increase in heart rate and blood pressure, and can cause lack of sleep. But that is based on children that take in caffeine daily.

So I really don't think it's as bad as most people make it out to be. Too much of anything will be bad for a child, caffeine is just another example of this.
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As with all drugs, it's dosage that matters. Caffeine is a mild stimulant, but it's a stimulant nonetheless. And it can effect sleep cycles even when you consumer it several hours before bedtime. No one is saying the low level of caffeine in tea is bad, but coffee has too much caffeine for kids to consume on any kind of regular basis, or more than 1 to 2 cups. Especially for the caffeine sensitive. For teenagers it's a different story.

Even for adults caffeine be a problem when you have withdrawal symptoms from drinking too much coffee and then not having any for a day or two.
 
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SearchMaster said:
This. Two of my sons have ADHD. The one with the more severe case never cared for coffee but it helps the other one a lot, both with his ADHD and he's just not a morning person. His magnet middle school has a coffee bar.

He usually only drinks 4-6 ounces of coffee a day.
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Most ADHD drugs are stimulants. I think coffee (if it works for your son) is a good alternative.
It also helps with asthma and was used to treat it before asthma medications were developed. Theodore Roosevelt used to be given it when he had particularly severe asthma attacks. Supposedly he drank several pots of coffee a day when he was president.

4 to 6 ounces a day isn't too bad, effectively about or less than a cup.

Coffee does help me with my asthma (which effectively isn't an issue for me anymore also) and the rare occasions (a couple times a year) I get a migraine.
 
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Can cause ulcers. Plus caffeine is a drug. Do you really want your kids body to adapt and grow into expecting caffeine?
 
Took my 10 yr old nephew out video game shopping and we stopped at McDonald's for a buy one get one free smoothie. He picked a "chocolate looking" one. I assured him it wasnt what he thought it was... But he wanted the whipped cream and chocolate topped one anyway. I laughed and said OK dude...

Yeah 10 year old on a mocha frappe. Good times.
 
SearchMaster said:
This. Two of my sons have ADHD. The one with the more severe case never cared for coffee but it helps the other one a lot, both with his ADHD and he's just not a morning person. His magnet middle school has a coffee bar.

He usually only drinks 4-6 ounces of coffee a day.
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My bet is to get the kids off meds and just let them drink coffee.

I was never a coffee person until these children.
 
I'm not even married let alone have kids, but it wouldn't be something the kids would routinely have.

FWIW, caffeine seems to have no effect on me at all. Doesn't wake me up, my heart rate doesn't increase, and if I stop having any caffeine at all for a few days I feel no different than when I had coffee each morning. Seriously, zero effect here.
 
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