Question
How often is it best for a baby to drink fruit juice? For a 25-day-old infant, I was previously giving him baby-appropriate apple juice, but someone said it wasn’t fresh enough. Later, I decided to buy fresh apples myself and use a blender to make juice, about 40 milliliters each time, and dilute it in water. Today, I gave him two servings because each apple can only be juiced in half, so I gave him half in the morning and half in the afternoon. Is it okay to have two servings a day like this? The juice from the blender is quite thick, similar to apple puree scraped with a spoon. I gave some of it to my son, and I heard that this way he can absorb the essence of the juice. Can I continue to give him apple puree scraped with a spoon? I’m worried that he might not be able to eat much, but he seemed to be able to have some today. Additionally, besides apple juice, what else can babies drink? It’s not good to only drink apple juice every day; is watermelon juice suitable, or what about pear juice?
Answer
According to my understanding, infants should ideally start drinking juice at around six months old. Firstly, the carbohydrates in fruit juice may not be easily absorbed by infants, and excessive consumption could lead to frequent bowel movements, which might affect weight gain. Frequent bowel movements may also cause diaper rash. Secondly, early exposure to sweet drinks may lead infants to prefer sweet foods, losing interest in other nutrient-rich foods and potentially leading to malnutrition. Lastly, early consumption of fruit juice may be associated with obesity or failure to gain weight later in life.