Are your kids drinking too much juices?

If your toddler has recently lost his interest in food, do check if he is drinking too much juices. Too much juices can spoil a kid's appetite, at the same time not good for digestion. Read this:

Avoid fruit juice drinks because they contain a lot of sugar. Sugary drinks and juice can fill toddler's up and decrease their intake of more nutritious foods. Limit juice to about 125mL (½ cup) per day. If fruit juice is given it should be diluted with water and only in small amounts. Choose 100% fruit juice and avoid sugary fruit drinks.

Juices fill kids with empty calories. Fruit juices can fill kids up so that they're not hungry at the dinner table and are too full to eat more nutritious foods. Certain juices are associated with tummy troubles. Some fruit juices -- including apple, pear, and prune -- contain sorbitol, a naturally occurring but problematic sugar alcohol. Because sorbitol is not completely absorbed in the small bowel, it makes its way to the large bowel where it ferments and produces gas. In addition, many of the juices that contain sorbitol also have an imbalance in the ratio of the sugars fructose and glucose, which may reduce fructose absorption. These factors can lead to cramps, diarrhea, or loss of appetite in a child. Several studies have reported this malabsorption, or incomplete digestion.