September 24, 2008

Healthy Drinks For Children? – Test Your Knowledge

Is water a healthy drink? What about milk? Should my children be drinking juice? How often should kids be drinking fizzy drinks?

West Coast District Health Board Healthy Eating Healthy Action (HEHA) Manager Kim Sinclair says it's understandable that parents get confused when faced with conflicting messages about the healthiness of children's drinks.  This confusion is reflected in a new Health Sponsorship Council (HSC) survey of about 1100 parents and caregivers, which found about seven out of ten New Zealand households with children have full sugar, fizzy drinks available in them, with fruit juice being available in about nine out of ten homes.

HEHA Coordinator - Education, Andrea Kendrick said, "Most kids like sweet drinks, but water and milk are best for their growing bodies. Drinks such as full-sugar fizzy drinks, powdered drinks and cordials can contribute to overweight children and dental decay, good reasons why water and milk are best."

"Water is freely available on tap, has no added sugar and is great for quenching your thirst."

Milk is another great choice, as it's good for building strong bones and teeth and is rich in nutrients. 

"Water is usually free and while fizzy drinks are often cheap milk has added health benefits, including building strong bones."

Tips on getting children to drink more water and milk:

• Offer water, not sweet drinks, with meals.
• Be a role model and make sure you drink water with meals.
• Put a jug of water on the table for the whole family to share.
• Keep a jug of cool water in the fridge.
• Serve milk after or between meals.
• To save money, try using milk powder in baking. It is usually much cheaper than fresh milk.

For more information please contact

Bryan Jamieson
Community Liaison Officer
West Coast DHB
PO Box 387
Greymouth 7840
Phone (DDI): (03) 769-7665
Mobile: 027 245-9595
Email: