Dr. Paul Smolen has been practicing pediatrics for 32 years as an attending physician at Carolinas Medical Center, an Adjunct Associate Professor at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine-Chapel Hill, and a private practitioner. To learn more about Dr. Smolen, click here
A teaspoon of sugar may make the medicine go down but frequent consumption of sugary drinks can ruin your child’s health. Get Doc Smo’s input on the subject with some practical advice on how to manage soda in your home.
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SmoNotes:
An interesting article from the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17Sugar-t.html?emc=eta1
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1 soda = 3 pancakes!? Yikes! Great info, DocSmo. We never give the girls soda, but I certainly will think twice before I order a 20 oz fountain drink next time I’m out to lunch!
My boys do drink milk with all their meals and also drink plenty of water throughout the day. My question is now that they are 14 and 12 years old and would like to have the occasional soda, should they drink regular soda that has too much sugar or diet soda? I am concerned about the fake sugar in diet soda.
Doc Smo:
Dear Kathleen,
Good question. Here is my opinion. I think you should let your boys have a REAL soda once in a while; on special occasions. If you make them TOO forbidden you may get the opposite response; they may crave them all the more. Treat soda like a desert that you drink. When they do have soda, keep the portions small. I don’t feel that diet soda is a good alternative. Yes, it doesn’t have all the sugar that real soda has but it may actually stimulate your boy’s appetite and also expose them to unnatural chemicals, the
consequences of which we may not understand until many years from now.
Some experts feel that diet soda may actually promote obesity! Google diet soda and see what you find.
Thank you for your reply. Until recently, my boys did not like soda at all, but my one son recently tried it again and said he would like to have it sometimes. That is when I was torn on regular soda versus diet because of the sugar versus the chemicals. So far he has been having the occasional Sprite with pizza or burgers on the grill, but we do keep it to just a few times a month which he is fine with. I am trying to limit him having it when we eat out becasue of the huge glasses they serve. Hard to control the portion in that situation. Thanks again!