If you walk through a supermarket, you’ll see a flood of drink products. A rainbow of juice blends, teas and soft drinks competes with milk and fruit juices.
- Water. This is the best drink to help an active child replace lost fluids. Spice it up by adding a little lemon or lime juice.
- Skim milk. Your child needs calcium every day to build strong bones and teeth.
- Sugar-free and caffeine-free drinks. Serve drinks such as sugar-free Kool-Aid®, Diet Sprite® or Crystal Light®. Or, brew caffeine-free tea and sweeten with a no-calorie sweetener such as Splenda®
- Pure juice in moderation. Orange and grapefruit juices (without added sugar) offer taste and lots of vitamin C. Limit juice to one six-ounce serving per day, as even pure juice is high in sugar and calories.
- Regular soda, coffee and tea. Their caffeine keeps your child’s body from absorbing some of the water in the drink. Sugary sodas also fuel cavities and weight gain.
- Juice blends. Check the labels and you may be surprised at the sugar added to drinks that aren’t 100 percent juice.
Strawberry-Kiwi Spritzer
1 kiwi fruit
1/2 cup strawberries
About 3/4 cup of plain seltzer
(club soda without sodium)
Ice cubes
Peel the kiwi and mash it in a strainer over a glass or small bowl. You should get about 2 tablespoons of tart juice. Wash and stem the strawberries and mash the juice through the strainer. Pour juice mixture over ice in a fancy glass. Top with seltzer and enjoy.
Makes one serving that contains about 30 calories, 1 gram protein, 0 grams fat, 10 grams carbohydrate, 2 grams fiber and 1 milligram sodium.
Blueberry Banana Smoothie
1 frozen ripe banana
1/2 cup frozen blueberries
1 cup skim milk
Bananas that are getting past ripe work perfectly in smoothies. Peel them, wrap them in plastic and freeze them. Later, cut the banana into pieces. Put ingredients into blender and purée till smooth. Pour into glasses.
Each serving contains about 122 calories, 5 grams protein, 0 grams fat, 24 grams carbohydrate, 3 grams fiber and 63 milligrams sodium.
