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At what age can children drink coffee: advice from a nutritionist
10.02.2025 12:46
Coffee, which helps adults accomplish great things, is contraindicated for a child’s fragile body.
Therefore, not only coffee, but also all products containing caffeine are not recommended for children under 4 years of age. But what about older children?
Nutritionist Lyudmila Petrova told Moskva 24 at what age a child can drink his first cup of coffee.
Coffee and children
A child can try his first cup of full-fledged coffee no earlier than 12 years old.
Until this time, low body weight and an immature nervous system make the child more sensitive to caffeine.
In young children, coffee can cause increased excitability, anxiety, insomnia, and increased heart rate.
In addition, coffee has a negative effect on the gastrointestinal tract, causing pain and heartburn.
Also, let's not forget about problems with calcium absorption, which is unacceptable during the period of formation and active growth of the skeletal system.
Caffeinated drinks
Caffeine is present in black and green tea. Depending on the type of tea, one cup contains up to 20-50 mg of the substance.
A can of cola contains up to 30-40 milligrams of caffeine.
Energy drinks contain from 70 to 200 milligrams, which is considered dangerous for children.
At the same time, a bar of dark chocolate is about 30 mg, and a cup of cocoa is about 10 mg of caffeine.
There will be no problems if a child aged 4-6 years consumes no more than 45 mg of caffeine per day (a cup of weak tea).
At the age of 7-9 years, the norm increases to 62.5 mg.
Teenagers aged 10-12 are allowed 85 mg of coffee per day, and those aged 12 to 18 years should limit their caffeine intake to 100 mg per day (one cup of weak coffee).
