May 17, 2012

Are Herbal Teas OK For Kids?

I have no idea why it happens, but whenever the kids and I have a tea party, which always  includes real herbal tea in our teapot, I get this niggling, naggy feeling bouncing around in my cerebrum that I shouldn’t be giving them tea. It sits there and annoys me the entire tea party, watching my kids swilling back tea like sailors drinking grog.

So when I was asked about this, I jumped on the chance to sit down and investigate online. That’s how my articles usually come about; some one inquires about a subject, my neurons start firing and I remember that at one point, I wanted to research that subject. It probably was scratched down on a piece of paper and promptly recycled, and there is no way my mind would retain that memory by itself.

So once again, here are a few tidits gleaned from the ‘net regarding kids and herbal teas.

  • This is a no brainer. Make sure they are caffeine free. I mean, honestly, if you want to punish yourself, can’t you think of another way?
  • I would avoid teas that are used medicinally, such as St John’s Wort, or Comfrey. It is sometimes forgotten or overlooked that herbal remedies can still do damage to ones body depending on the doses given, and with children you never can be sure how their bodies process it.
  • The following teas seem to be safe for children to drink; red teas with rosehips and hibiscus, lemon balm, ginger, lemongrass, chamomile, mint, honeybush, rooibos and tulsi.
  • The general consensus regarding children and herbal teas is that they are completely safe and a much better alternative to giving them fruit juice, which I agree with. A herbal tea with a smidgen of honey is far better than sugar laden (natural or not) fruit juice for hydrating your child. I also think that its a great idea to introduce their palettes to the taste of teas early on in life as well.

    Incoming search terms:

    Comments

    1. Arachne says:

      Thanks!!!

      We love peppermint (aka “candy cane” to DS) tea. Also lemon with honey or “hot lemonade”. Glad to know there are lots of other teas we can add to our repertoire.

    2. Arachne says:

      Thanks!!!

      We love peppermint (aka “candy cane” to DS) tea. Also lemon with honey or “hot lemonade”. Glad to know there are lots of other teas we can add to our repertoire.

    3. Linda says:

      I like a herbal tea sweeted with some juice. Like a red zinger with grape juice for example! I used to only give my kids watered down juice… like really watered down 3 to 1 and my three year old got a cavity on his front tooth! Horrors. I am hoping switched to tea instead of watered down juice will help.

    Speak Your Mind

    *