Introducing Your Child to Tea
When is a child ready for tea? There are a few angles to the question, so the more appropriate query might be - when are you ready for your child to take tea? The all encompassing answer is, "It depends."
Samples
Like most parents you've likely let your child sample your food and drinks for years since his birth. You laughed when he spit out a mouthful of soda and frowned when your partner offered him a bit of coffee (which he thankfully spit out as well.) You fretted when he decided he loved milkshakes and now you wonder if tea is the right choice. It's likely you've offered him a few sips of your tea over the years, but is he ready for a cup of his own? If he liked your tea, he probably is, at least in some format.
Introducing Tea
To properly introduce anything to a child, you must present it to him multiple times until it become commonplace. Picky eaters especially will shun something new purely on principle. Once he's seen it served a few times, however, the tea (or sprouts, or beans) will lose much of their newness and he might be willing to give it a try.
If he's hesitant about the tea or you worry the tea is too potent for him, dilute it with milk. You might serve half milk and half tea or even just a dollop of tea in a warm glass of milk to introduce the flavor in a more familiar element. Gradually increase the tea to milk ratio until he's drinking tea with a dollop of milk.
Caffeinated Tea
Much of the tea we drink is caffeinated or produces other kinds of natural energy. Young children who have not been up late studying for exams or watching television programs have no need of caffeine. In fact, no child should have caffeine as it can harm his growth. Outside of that, you don't want your three-year-old bouncing off the walls at bedtime, so prepare his drink from the decaffeinated tea variety.