When Can Babies Have Juice?

Juice was once celebrated as being a tasty drink that babies could drink as a complement to solid foods. Its sweet taste appeals to little ones, and it was thought to be a good way to help them get their fill of vitamin C and water.

But these days, apple juice isn’t on the menu for 3-month-old babies, and even if your 6-month-old is starting to eat solid foods, they still can’t have orange juice.

“If your child is under age 1, you should avoid giving them juice altogether,” advises pediatrician Kimberly Churbock, MD. “That’s because we now understand just how much sugar is packed into each sip of juice — even the kind that comes directly from the fruit itself — and how that can impact infants’ health.”

She explains why children under 12 months shouldn’t have juice and why you should still limit it, even after their first birthday.

Why babies can’t drink juice before 1 year old

Babies under 12 months shouldn’t have any juice, even the kind that’s been diluted with water.

That’s because babies’ nutritional needs are very different from those of adults — and even from those of slightly older children. Some foods that toddlers and elementary school-aged kids can have in moderation are a no-go for the littlest among us.

“Until they’re 6 months old, babies should only be given breast milk or infant formula to drink,” Dr. Churbock states. “Anything else, including juice and water, can be dangerous for them.”

Babies’ stomachs are very small, and they have specific nutritional needs to help them meet their growth and development milestones. For the first six months of their lives, breast milk and formula are the only foods that serve those nutritional needs, so it’s important they don’t instead fill up on foods that don’t serve any nutritional purpose for them.

Babies typically start eating solid foods around 6 months old, and whole fruits are part of a healthy diet (as long as they’re in other safe forms that kids won’t choke on). But they still shouldn’t have fruit juice until they’re at least 1 year old — and even then, there are significant guidelines in terms of what types of juice to serve them and how much of it is considered acceptable.

What happens if babies have juice?

But wait! We can practically hear you asking: Isn’t fruit juice just…fruit? Alas, no. There are some big differences between the two. Namely, juicing strips out all the good fiber that’s found in whole fruits.

“Juice is typically high in sugar and low in fiber,” Dr. Churbock explains, “so it offers limited nutritional value for babies.”

In babies, fruit juice can contribute to:

• Diarrhea.
• Tooth decay.
• Childhood obesity.

Plus, many juice-like drinks (like those labeled “fruit punch” or “fruit cocktail”) have added sweeteners like high-fructose corn syrup. Even 100% fruit juice, which sounds like it should be pretty healthy, has a lot more sugar than the fruit it comes from — and all that extra sugar is bad for babies.

Is juice ever OK for babies?

There’s one time when your healthcare provider might recommend giving your child a small amount of 100% fruit juice: if they’re constipated. But it’s always important to check with your pediatrician first.

“If your infant has constipation, your pediatrician might recommend offering small amounts of 100% apple, pear or prune juice to help get things moving,” Dr. Churbock says. “Even in the case of constipation, though, the fruits themselves are often still superior to their juice forms because of the fiber. It can help get the bowels moving more than fluids alone.”

Safe juices to give to a 1-year-old

Once your child reaches their first birthday, Dr. Churbock says that you can consider giving them fresh pasteurized or reconstituted 100% fruit juice in moderation. But what do those terms actually mean? Let’s decode them:

• 100% fruit juice doesn’t have any other added ingredients. It’s just fruit juice, no extra sugar or other stuff. This is really important, especially for kids. “Children under 2 years old shouldn’t have food or drinks with any added sugar,” Dr. Churbock cautions.
• Fresh, pasteurized fruit juice (aka “not from concentrate”) comes from freshly squeezed fruits. It goes through a brief heating process to kill off any bacteria or other microorganisms that could pose health risks.
• Reconstituted fruit juice (aka “from concentrate”) goes through a process that removes and filters the water, which makes it easier to ship and store. Before it’s packaged and sold in stores, the water is added back in. This process also kills off any potentially harmful substances in the juice itself.

What about homemade juices? When it comes to feeding your kiddo, skip them. While you, as a full-grown adult, might love your at-home juicer or hitting up your favorite cold-pressed raw juice bar, these DIY versions aren’t fit for tiny tummies.

“They haven’t been heat-treated through the pasteurization process, which means they may contain bacteria and other microorganisms that kids’ immune systems aren’t able to fight off the way grown-ups’ can,” she warns.

How much juice can kids have?

Now, onto the “in moderation” part. Here’s a look at how much juice is considered safe for kids:

• Under age 1: No juice.
• Ages 1 to 3: Up to 4 ounces per day.
• Ages 4 to 6: Up to 6 ounces per day.
• Ages 7+: Up to one cup per day.

A word of caution, though: As your baby transitions away from bottles, they may enjoy drinking water or milk from a sippy cup. But Dr. Churbock notes that these aren’t the right vessels for giving juice to your child.

“Refrain from giving them juice in bottles or sippy cups, which are easy to drink from and may encourage excessive consumption,” she says.

Another way to introduce juice to your child’s beverage repertoire while reducing the possibility of excessive consumption is to dilute 100% fruit juice with water. Your kiddo will never know the difference, and you’ll help stave off the chance of them developing a sweet tooth at a young age.

And hey, if you don’t want to give your kid any juice at all? That’s OK, too. No pressure.

“It’s also reasonable (and healthy!) to continue abstaining from juice and instead, focus on feeding them fresh fruits and vegetables,” Dr. Churbock relays.

Kids ages 12 to 23 months should eat 2/3 to 1 cup of vegetables per day and 1/2 to 1 cup of fruit per day. As long as you make sure they reach those nutritional guidelines through whole foods, there’s no reason juice ever needs to make an appearance in their diets at all.