• Product: First Juice, organic fruit & veggie beverage, $4.99 for 32 fluid ounces at Whole Foods Market, Babies R Us, Target and http://firstjuice.elsstore.com.

• Key ingredients: purified water, organic pear, organic apple, organic purple carrot, organic peach, organic carrot juice concentrate, calcium lactate, malic (natural fruit) acid, and vitamins C, A and D3.

• The pitch: A way for parents to develop toddlers' taste preferences for natural fruits and vegetables, without the high sugar.

• Pros: This juice has 50 percent less sugar than most 100 percent apple juice brands. It doesn't contain high-fructose corn syrup, sucralose, aspartame or any other sweeteners. Research shows that children develop taste preferences in the first few years of life. One study, published in the December 2007 issue of Pediatrics, even found that breast-fed infants ate more fruit if their mothers ate fruit while nursing. The juice comes in BPA-free recyclable plastic bottles. Despite concerns about fruit juice contributing to childhood obesity, a Baylor College of Medicine study in the June 2008 Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine found that 100 percent juices are not associated with the likelihood of being overweight in children ages 2 to 11.

• Cons: A study in the January 1997 issue of Pediatrics found that consumption of 12 ounces or more of fruit juice by young children was associated with short stature and obesity. In 2001, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued guidelines saying fruit juice should not be given to children younger than 6 months, and that there is no nutritional reason to give it to them before their first birthday. After that, juice is optional, though the group favors whole produce and urges parents to limit juice to 4 to 6 ounces a day for children up to 6 years old, and to no more than 8 to 12 ounces for older children. This product is only 44 percent juice (although its makers contend it's healthier than most 100 percent juices because it contains half the sugar and calories).

• Bottom line: Young children should drink mostly water and milk, but if you want to introduce a small amount of fruit juice to your toddler's diet, this is a good choice.

Join the discussion

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.repliedToText@

@Nyx.replyAnswerText@

Reply to this Comment @Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@