Children and alcohol in their own home

[Pyrrhic]

off topic, but when I refreshed 'unread posts' the first thread that came up was 'I'm eaten too much chocolate and now feel sick! Help!'

 

[Pyrrhic]

We allow 5 year olds to have chocolate don't we? Isn't that also something unnecessary that can be over done? Most people think giving foods in moderation, and teaching healthy eating from a young age is good. Why is it different for alcohol?

People don't die from chocolate poisoning.

Any kid's die from having a single taste of alcohal....im not saying drinking it as a daily thing....but a single taste ??

Any kids die from a single puff on a fag? The argument could go on and on, but at the end of the day, it's just not necessary to give children booze. Our culture is so focused on alcohol that we feel we MUST introduce it from early on in childhood. Children can't just be children anymore these days. We seem to want to let them do everything we do.

but a single taste i have no reason not too, and as he gets older come 11-12 let him have a drink on a special occassion, instead of him going behind my back and doing it anyway.

But you're talking about an 11-12 year old.

We're talking about adding alcohol to a 5 years old juice. A 5 year old will not remember the lesson. You can explain it to them without spiking their drink. If you add so little they wont taste it you've defeated the object, and they will simply think alcohol tastes nice as they can only taste juice. If you give them enough to knock them out and make them ill then how to you expect them to equate one to the other?

WTF! Excuse me spiking there drink?? Knock them out??

You can educate a child in life without having to give them one lesson. I mean i want jacob growing up knowing the world around him. And that alcohal can be enjoyed without having to get raging drunk. And im still not speaking about letting him drink it. If you see my other post im speaking about him having a single taste if he wants it. Not with juice etc. Im not trying to 'teach him a lesson' so he wont drink later in life. I would be educating him that alcohal can be enjoyed later in life in moderation!

I wasn't speaking about you, I was trying to explain what people have been saying in the thread. The basis of this argument is someone saying they'd give their 5 year old alcohol mixed in with their juice to teach them not to binge drink when older.

 

[sparkswillfly]

I spent a lot of my childhood on the continent, where it is perfectly normal for parents to give their children a small glass of extremely diluted wine along with the meal. My parents did this sometimes, and othertimes they would just let us have a tiny sip from their glass.

In this way, alcohol was very much associated with food and family. We were taught to value the taste of different wines (and occasionally other alcoholic drinks), just as we were taught to taste cheese and olives .

I do not remember ever seeing my parents drunk. I have only been slightly drunk a couple of times in my life. My husband and I drink very occasionally, not to get drunk but simply because we enjoy the taste.

Personally I will be happy for Aaron to have small amounts of very diluted alcohol when he is older, as I feel that this is a better way of teaching him how to drink in moderation than forbidding all alcohol until he is 18 and then letting him go wild.

Many experts agree that in a household where wine is regularly served with meals, and where there is not an alcohol issue, violence or a communication problem, young people might experience some degree of protection against future alcohol abuse by being offered small tastes of wine. In my opinion, far more harm is done by our clubbing culture and the way alcohol is portrayed on television than responsible parents giving their children occasional and tiny tastes of alcohol.

I agree but it shouldnt start at five. Thats the whole point.

 

[Pyrrhic]

I spent a lot of my childhood on the continent, where it is perfectly normal for parents to give their children a small glass of extremely diluted wine along with the meal. My parents did this sometimes, and othertimes they would just let us have a tiny sip from their glass.

In this way, alcohol was very much associated with food and family. We were taught to value the taste of different wines (and occasionally other alcoholic drinks), just as we were taught to taste cheese and olives .

I do not remember ever seeing my parents drunk. I have only been slightly drunk a couple of times in my life. My husband and I drink very occasionally, not to get drunk but simply because we enjoy the taste.

Personally I will be happy for Aaron to have small amounts of very diluted alcohol when he is older, as I feel that this is a better way of teaching him how to drink in moderation than forbidding all alcohol until he is 18 and then letting him go wild.

Many experts agree that in a household where wine is regularly served with meals, and where there is not an alcohol issue, violence or a communication problem, young people might experience some degree of protection against future alcohol abuse by being offered small tastes of wine. In my opinion, far more harm is done by our clubbing culture and the way alcohol is portrayed on television than responsible parents giving their children occasional and tiny tastes of alcohol.

I agree but it shouldnt start at five. Thats the whole point.

Agree with both of these posts.

 

[asacia]

One thing, the laws states that it can be given under five on Doctors advice. Is this a reason for the age? Do 5+ Over the Counter medicines contain alcohol, and ones for younger children don't? Or is the law specifically about drinking for enjoyment?

 

[CamoQueen]

Wow, that's crazy. I remember my parents letting me have a taste of some things, but even then I was like 10 or 11, and it was just a sip. At any rate, I don't think I would for my son... if only because DH's father was a hardcore alcoholic and junkie, and it's unsure whether or not LO would have a natural propensity towards alcoholism. I realize a sip wouldn't do anything, but who wants to risk it?

Still, it's worrying to think of the parents who would abuse the law.

 

[Pyrrhic]

One thing, the laws states that it can be given under five on Doctors advice. Is this a reason for the age? Do 5+ Over the Counter medicines contain alcohol, and ones for younger children don't? Or is the law specifically about drinking for enjoyment?

Its because in the very early 1900s, alcohol was used as an anaesthetic in cases of acute injuries at home as many people couldn't travel to a doctor very easily. The law hasn't been revised since then. Nothing to do with enjoyment.

 

[freckleonear]

I agree but it shouldnt start at five. Thats the whole point.

I don't really remember a "first" time that my parents let us taste alcohol, but I'm pretty sure my brother can't have been much older than five or six, and I would have been about seven or eight. Whilst I agree that five does sound rather young in most cases, I don't think that seven or eight is too young, so where do you draw the line?

 

[Wobbles]

I would never in a million years give a 5 year old an alcoholic drink however small. Infact I would wait until they were 14-16. Five years old seriously... why would you do that?

I personally think it helps them appreciate it more when they are older and not kick the arse out of it

OMG Im gonna have to come back read this thread later!

5 ....no way why do I want them to 'appreciate' drink infact not everyone grows to like an alcoholic drink.

Can't get over 5 being acceptable!

 

[asacia]

Wow, that's crazy. I remember my parents letting me have a taste of some things, but even then I was like 10 or 11, and it was just a sip. At any rate, I don't think I would for my son... if only because DH's father was a hardcore alcoholic and junkie, and it's unsure whether or not LO would have a natural propensity towards alcoholism. I realize a sip wouldn't do anything, but who wants to risk it?

Still, it's worrying to think of the parents who would abuse the law.

The parents who abuse it, would they really obey a the law, if it were different?

On a mor personal note, I don't know how to handle alcohol in our family, as there is a small family history of alcohol.

 

[moomin_troll]

alcohol in medicine is very different to a drink of wine in their juice.

 

[Pyrrhic]

Medically, children should not have alcohol. Their bodies are very different to a teenagers, or adults.

“The ability of children at five years to metabolise alcohol is limited, due to the immature enzyme activity in the liver,” Loftus says. “But after the age of 14 years, the rate of blood alcohol concentration decline is the same as in adults.”

However, other factors put babies and children at even greater risk. They get hypoglycaemia (low blood sugar levels) more easily when there’s alcohol in their systems, as well as hypothermia (low body temperature), and can also fall into a coma more easily. These three conditions usually occur when the BAC of a child exceeds 0,05 – 0,10g%. In addition, there is dehydration, and the nausea, vomiting and breathing difficulties common amongst all intoxicated individuals.

Loftus explains that low blood sugar occurs because alcohol inhibits glucose production. The drinking of alcohol also affects the glycogen (the main form in which carbohydrates are stored) stores in the livers of young children. Low body temperature is the result of exposure and the dilation of the peripheral blood vessels.

In children who haven’t eaten for several hours, the risk increases. A relatively small amount of alcohol (30mg) could be a lethal dose.

Acute alcohol intoxication in infants and toddlers is usually accidental, and may include ingestion of an ethanol-containing substance such as perfume, or over-the-counter medication. Other substances in the ingested fluid may also have additional toxic effects.

 

[lesleyann]

at 14, well them i should be F*kd lol my grandad always gave me wine with a sunday dinner not 5 but before i was 12 lol and his reasons where "id rather her have a little drink now then when she turns 18 get drunk and get taken advantage of"

When i go on holiday i always have a drink 5 no i would not give alcohol but i still think it needs to be spoken about or tested before 12 since its more of the population aged 13+ are out drinking than there are not drinking at that age

 

[Pyrrhic]

at 14, well them i should be F*kd lol my grandad always gave me wine with a sunday dinner not 5 but before i was 12 lol and his reasons where "id rather her have a little drink now then when she turns 18 get drunk and get taken advantage of"

When i go on holiday i always have a drink 5 no i would not give alcohol but i still think it needs to be spoken about or tested before 12 since its more of the population aged 13+ are out drinking than there are not drinking at that age

I also read articles that linked introducing children to them actually binge drinking when older, as opposed to teaching them not to.

Ultimately, I feel it doesn't make a difference. You have to do you best to be a responsible parent and set boundaries.

 

[helen1234]

5 yrs olds have enough on their plates without having alcohol explained to them.
you give them a gulp 20 mins later they'll be off playing and wont remember, you'll gain nothing but put alcohol through an immature liver .

as parents you have to deal with things as they arrive or you can see its about to arrive you have to watch teens like hawks, i know i got a loveable rogue teen. if you have your eyes open and nip things in the bud you dont need to start 13 yrs before a possible event. because you child will think your a nag and switch off

 

[helen1234]

i can picture Rosie on the park if i'd let her drink bits of alcohol willy nilly.

can of lager in one hand bottle cheap vodka in the others saying. "its ok i can handle my drink i been doing it since i were 5".

 

[Tiff]

I wasn't speaking about you, I was trying to explain what people have been saying in the thread. The basis of this argument is someone saying they'd give their 5 year old alcohol mixed in with their juice to teach them not to binge drink when older.

When I read that, for some reason it popped into my head that it would be like to have a kid smoke a joint, so they know to not do it later???

I dunno, seems counterproductive, eh? Let's give you something now, so you won't do it later on! I don't think a 5 year old has the mental capacity to learn the life lesson of alcoholism?

Maybe I'm naive, but wouldn't a 5 year old just retain "alcohol bad" or something?

 

[Tiff]

i can picture Rosie on the park if i'd let her drink bits of alcohol willy nilly.

can of lager in one hand bottle cheap vodka in the others saying. "its ok i can handle my drink i been doing it since i were 5".

That made me literally LOL

 

[Lil_Baby_Boo]

Can i just ask would anyone on here drink in front of a child?

Is that not sending a message that is ok?? I mean when im around my cousins etc (12 years younger) i drink but only because they've have been explained the effects of alcohal. But if im around a child that doesnt know the effects i feel weird about it.

Its like you see these kids that have the pretend fags because they think its 'cool'

Wouldnt it be best to educate a child from a young age on the effects of alcohal and everything else. So they grow up wiser about the world around them.

And a single taste of alcohal is enough to put a child off it anyway. Did anyone remember there 1st drink?? You didnt exactly say " wow , i love that i want to drink it everyday!?" You only drunk it cause you wanted to seem 'cool' well i know i did.

I've never drunk in front of Noah, I'm not saying I never will but ATM it make me feel very uncomfortable!!

Can't stand when children have pretend fag's - it makes me feel sick

Also toy guns, knives anything violent are stricly baned from our house. I hate it when we go anywhere and a child points a toy gun towards people. My mum thinks its stupid but its just too real now it scares me.

 

[Wobbles]

Those sticks we got when younger were awful and the chocolate puffs YAK - Ive not seen them for years and hope never to again.

I think theres a difference between having a drink and giving them a drink though well at 5. When I was younger I was allowed a babycham on my birthdays and Christmas but again not at 5 - I recall swigging my Dads beers though I've seen a dipped dummy before & never thought about it but placing a glass infront of a 5 year old for apprieciation is wrong other than that no comment or opinions on other peoples ways of whats acceptable in their household.