Kids and (drinking) tea?

[skybie]

Is it a no go,or an occasional ok?

Last week DD1 (5) was complaining of a sore throat so at night before bed i made her a watered down tea with honey and lemon, she loved it.
Last night she asked for a cup of tea before bed, i wasnt too keen on giving her one with honey in it again, as i think the sugar content led to her taking forever to go to sleep last week! so i gave her a watered down peppermint tea instead.

the bag was out of a gift set that i got and didnt have the sugar content ext on it. she really really liked it and keeps asking for it, but i keep saying no as im unsure if its a good thing for kids or not.

Thought and experiences much appreciated

[Nai]

DD1 (5yo) has had very milky tea about once a week since she was about 3. She enjoys it and I don't think the occasional cuppa does any damage. If she is drinking it daily then maybe not - and herbal is different again. I think peppermint tea would be fine, especially if it's very weak.

[Phteven]

I don't let my kids drink caffinated teas so they can't drink black, green or white tea but they can have herbal teas like camomile, peppermint and so on. Camomile is great for settling and calming.

[Epacris]

My DD drinks a small cup of tea every few days, or she’ll finish my tea if I don’t drink it fast enough. I/we don't have sugar.

[Jakabella]

My DD has been having watered down tea in her small tea cup since she was 1.5... she loves it - she maybe has one or2 a week... I dont see any harm at all!

[TeniBear]

I think I started having tea with my Nan around four(ish), so in my book it's perfectly fine


Sent from my iPhone so forgive the speelung misstacks

[nothing2lose]

I don't let my DD have caffeine so tea is a no no for me. It is also a diuretic and I reckon it's hard enough keeping a child hydrated!!

[Feijoa Mum]

kinda off topic a bit but I had to laugh at my sister yesterday as she told me she makes her dogs a weak cup of tea in the morning too. I cracked up and said no wonder they think they are humans they dont have sugar though cause she doesnt want to make them fat!

[Glamourcide]

My girls drain the dregs of my cups of tea (mostly herbal, sometimes I have an Earl Grey or other black tea), it doesn't worry me. I've actually considered making chamomile or something a regular part of their routine just to see if I can get them to bed any earlier than usual lol! I do rouse at them if I catch them sipping from leftover coffee cups (I drink a LOT of coffee and never seem to finish a whole one, it goes cold too quick and I end up making a fresh one!), because I make them really strong and they're bouncy enough already without getting a caffeine hit, but I don't mind so much if they drink a bit of tea. I try not to encourage it though, as I worry about them forgetting that tea is generally served boiling hot and scalding themselves with a fresh cup that I'm not keeping an eye on!
I don't think it's a big deal if it's an occasional thing - all things in moderation, imo

[Butterfly Dawn]

My boys get it as a treat maybe once aweek. I have tried herbal tea but they dont like that, they love ice tea!
I try limit it to once a week because caffine can inhibit calcium absorbtion (Im sure alittle is fine)
Here I see 3 year olds walking round with 600ml cokes all the time!

[~Kim~]

My kids do.

[Ozstar]

Skye Miss Z loves tea. I love Rooibos tea and she has sips of that.

[Rouge]

Caffeinated Tea is bad for kids, I can't remember why. Gah. It stops them from absorbing something... is it calcium? I can't remember. My kids don't drink tea. Not unless it's herbal tea. People often think that green tea has no caffeine when it does.

But in saying that I don't let me kids have soda and they've never had cola pass over their lips

[MissEm]

I don't believe children should be given caffeine, which is a stimulant drug.

Personally my children don't have tea, and if they did it would be a herbal, caffeine free blend, such as Rooibos

[littlelara]

My kids don't, but you can buy decaffeinated tea at Coles.

[Kimbles01]

Lipton make a decaf tea which is actually quite tasty - it's what I drank while pregnant.

[Jakabella]

Lipton decafe tastes the same as normal. DD get her tea made with the tea bag after I have made mine and with most milk and a little hot water, wouldn't think there would be that much actual tea left! FWIW my MCHN. Said it's fine.

[NaeNae]

I don't let my DD have caffeine so tea is a no no for me. It is also a diuretic and I reckon it's hard enough keeping a child hydrated!!

^^ Yeah that ^^ caffine is a big no no in my house for DD who is 22 months.

Saying that though Mayaness makes a gorgeous home brew of Chai with 98% caffine free black tea in it and she mixes honey in and DD loves it. I only let her have the occasional sip and its not something that I make specifically for her to have. When she has had colds I have made her lemon and honey (fresh lemon from the garden) in boiled water and she might have a few sips of that.

Why not make her a warm frothy milk before bed? if you want to put "something" in it what about Malt? you can get little hand frothers if you don't have a coffee machine. It will be better for her too

Nae x x