Drinking a glass of 100 percent fruit juice has long been
thought of as a healthy habit for both adults and children.
Recently, however, people have been confused about juice — how
much to drink, how much to serve their children — partly because
of the natural sweet taste of fruit juice. According to Theresa
Nicklas, professor of pediatrics at the Baylor College of
Medicine, parents should be confident serving their children
appropriate amounts of 100 percent fruit juice. Appropriate
amounts, as defined by the American Academy of Pediatrics, are
no more than 4-6 ounces per day for children 1- 6 years old and
8-12 ounces per day for children 7-18 years. Dr. Nicklas’ latest
study, published in the October issue of Pediatrics, evaluated
data from a national sample of preschool children and determined
that consumption of 100 percent juice was not associated with
body mass index (an indicator of overweight) among preschoolers.
The analysis done by Nicklas and her colleagues was based on the
largest, ongoing govern