Mindful Drinking & Moderation in Midlife: Low No Drinker Podcast

#97. Adults Only? Are alcohol-free drinks safe for kids?

• Denise Hamilton-Mace • Episode 97

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Today I’m diving into a question that comes up a lot — is it safe, and is it a good idea, to give alcohol-free drinks to kids?

I’m talking specifically about drinks under 0.5% ABV (so not low, light or mid-strength alcohol).

I cover the safety aspect first, but more importantly, I explore the bigger question: should we be giving them to kids at all?

I share why these drinks aren’t made for children, what message we might be sending if we do give them to our kids, and what to consider when the conversation gets a bit trickier, especially with teenagers.

As always, no judgment, just my honest thoughts. I’d love to hear yours.


0:00 Are alcohol free drinks safe for kids?
3:47 Industry intent
6:26 Adult flavour profiles
8:14 What messages are we sending to kids & teens?
11:23 Not made for the young

Also mentioned:
Mocktails*
Lucky Saint*

Best episode to listen to next:
#76 Beyond Bananas! 12 surprising foods that contain alcohol

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Speaker 1:

Today let's talk about A is it safe? And B is it a good idea to give alcohol-free drinks to kids? Hello, hello and welcome to the Low-No Drinker podcast, the only twice-weekly podcast helping you find, understand and enjoy the world of low, no and light alcohol drinks, drinkers and drinking. My name, as you'll know by now now, is Denise Hamilton-Mace, and I'm the founder, editor and host of All Things Lono Drinker. Okay, before we go any further, I must start with an apology. I'm feeling a little bit under the weather, so I might sound a little bit croaky today, but do bear with me because, even though I'm not feeling great, I didn't want to leave you without your regular Friday episode, because I love doing these and sharing my thoughts with you and getting your feedback on them, and this is a topic that is close to a lot of people's hearts and one that I've seen discussed in many places, and it's whether or not we should be giving alcohol-free drinks to kids. So, for the purposes of today, let's first of all define what type of drinks we're talking about, because, as you know, on this show we talk about low, no and light alcohol drinks, and I often talk about mid-range drinks with the same respect and enthusiasm, as I do the low no category, but for today we are only talking about alcohol-free drinks. So in the UK today we are only talking about alcohol-free drinks. So in the UK, that is drinks that are up to 0.05%, and in places like the US and other countries around the world, that is drinks up to 0.5%. The reason we're sticking with those ones is that obviously the lower alcohol demographic, the drinks that are at 1.2% and above, and obviously the light and the mid range, do contain significant amounts of alcohol, and at no point will we be having a conversation about whether or not we should be giving mid-strength alcohol drinks to people under 18. So we're talking about the 0.05 and 0.5% drinks today.

Speaker 1:

So let's start with the fact that biologically speaking, medically speaking, psychologically speaking, these drinks are safe for children to drink. They do not contain enough alcohol at 0.5% to cause any type of intoxication whatsoever. There are many, many foods in and around your own home right now that contain up to 0.5% alcohol and more, including things like the ripe banana, which you've all heard about. Other ripe fruits the sugars have started to ferment, particularly things like mangoes and pineapples, orange juices and apple juices that are sitting in your fridge that you will give to your kids. We're talking about vanilla extract that goes into the cakes that you make to give to them. So all of these things do contain traces of alcohol. I have actually done an episode for you on the everyday foods that you find around the house that do contain trace amounts. I'll link to that in the show notes for you.

Speaker 1:

And so, biologically, medically, psychologically speaking, as I said, these drinks are safe to give to kids. But does that mean that we should? Now, of course, I must stress that when I use terms like biologically and medically speaking, I am not a trained medical professional or a physician of any way, shape or form. I'm not giving you medical advice. I'm simply sharing what I know and understand and believe to be true and having a conversation about it. Any medically related concerns you should, of of course, speak to your doctor. But back to the topic. So just because these drinks are physically safe for children to consume, does it mean that they should? And I think that's the real question is should we give alcohol-free drinks to kids? And I've got a few thoughts on this subject.

Speaker 1:

Now I think the first and foremost thing to recognize is what is the industry intent with these drinks. As you know, I've spoken to a lot of founders on this podcast and there is only one founder that I can think of that I've spoken to, from a brand called Mush, which make a mushroom elixir functional beverage. They make both an adult version of their drink and a children's version of their drink. Apart from them, I don't know of any other brand who even considers children in their production or their marketing and, to be honest with you, I think that whilst the mush drinks are absolutely delicious, I do think it causes confusion in their communication when you are including something intended for children alongside something that's intended for adults in a space that is very much adult-led but still, as I said, a lovely drink. Go and check out the episode with Matt, but I haven't spoken to anyone else who, as I said, considers children in their production and in their marketing.

Speaker 1:

The industry, as I know it, are making drinks for grown-ups who want drinks for grown-up occasions that can mimic, whether they're creating like-for-like alternatives or something completely different. These are drinks that are being created to mimic adult drinking experiences and occasions. So, wines that have tannins and legs, beers that have that hoppiness and that strong beer-y aroma, spirits that can have that heat and that almost burn that you get from an alcohol-full spirit. When you look at the branding, when you look at the bottles, when you look at the branded glassware, these are all adult signifying markers that let us know that these drinks are made for evenings with adults or daytimes with adults who want to enjoy that adult drinking experience.

Speaker 1:

To my mind, when it comes to these drinks and whether they are appropriate for kids, I think kids have already got a lot of stuff that's already been made for them. I mean, bloody hell, I've got a five and a seven oh, soon to be eight year old next week but I've got a five and a seven year old and I never want for different things to find to put in their pack lunch when we're going down the aisles of the supermarket. Whether or not they're healthy for them, that's a different matter. But you know you've got everything from smoothies to fruit juices to squashes and water. Kids make sure you're drinking your water, but they've got plenty that's out there for them. They're not missing out on anything.

Speaker 1:

These drinks are made for adults who don't want to miss out on those adult drinking occasions. And let's talk a bit more about that because, also, the flavor profiles that these drinks are being made with are not flavor profiles that are being designed to appeal to children's palates. Children have a very, very different palate to adults. If you've ever tried to get your kids to eat some vegetables, you will know exactly what I mean. But most kids will hate the flavours of these adult beverages.

Speaker 1:

Alcohol-free adult drinks are made, as I said, to mimic that adult alcohol drinking occasion and they will be bitter or dry or herbaceous or maybe even a little bit funky. You know, if you're having a shrub that's got a vinegar base, you know you're having flavors that are quite intense sometimes. And I don't know about your kids, but I know that my kids definitely don't go for that super intense dry, tannic acidity that you get in adult drinks. They're not looking for something that's savoury and earthy and complex. They want drinks to be sweet or fruity or just really, really easy drinking, and that's why adult alcohol-free beverages, while safe for children, are not designed for children. They're about adults who want to feel like they are part of the moment.

Speaker 1:

These drinks are part of the ritual, whether that's a barbecue or a toast or a dinner party. It's about inclusion and I know that I would feel a lot less included if the drink that I'm drinking is exactly the same as the drink that I gave my kids earlier on. I don't want to be teasing with something that looks like a fruit shoot no offence to fruit shoots but it breaks the illusion, doesn't it? And it takes away that sophisticated adult feeling. And we've also got to talk, I think, about the elephant in the room and that's the message that it sends to kids when we start letting them drink these adult beverages that are designed to mimic other adult occasions.

Speaker 1:

You know I don't often talk about parenting on this show. As a mother to two small kids, I know that how one chooses to raise one's children is very personal, and I don't want anyone to ever come away from one of my episodes feeling judged or that they're doing something wrong. But what I would say is that we have to consider the message that it sends to kids If we are choosing a drink that looks like full alcohol and we are telling them that that is okay for them to consume as well. Now I know that kids like to feel a little bit grown up and that they want to feel like they're part of things. So, by all means, you know, if you're having a family occasion or something, make their drink a little bit fancier for them. But for kids, making something fancy means giving them a really colourful bendy straw, which for me, definitely doesn't have the same impact. Now, with that, obviously, we're referring to younger kids.

Speaker 1:

It does get, I think, a bit trickier when you're talking about older children, when you're talking about teenagers. I mean, let's face facts. Most of us started our drinking careers before we reached well, 18 here in the UK or 21 in the US. Most of us who have now come to the conclusion that drinking less is the better way to go have come to this because we've had a long and varied career in the drinking of full strength alcohol, which may have started at 14, 15, 16, you know, different for everybody. So teenagers are going to be experimenting, they're going to be curious, they're going to be wanting to feel more grown up, they're going to be going out, and part of that, whether you like to admit it or not, includes consuming alcohol. Now, what I'm grateful for is that this generation seems to be far less impressed by the drinking of alcohol than mine was. So it gives me some hope for Logan and Isla in terms of how they will grow up thinking about alcohol.

Speaker 1:

But at the late teen stage, it might be that you have come to the point where you need to start thinking about how you're going to have these conversations with your teenagers about alcohol and alcohol-free alternatives and start thinking about when you might let them experiment with alcohol-free drinks and how that's going to manifest for them as time goes on. Only you are going to know that, because it's going to depend entirely on how you parent and what kind of kid you have and how much you communicate with them, how much you trust them. All of these things are to be taken into consideration, which is why I don't talk about parenting very much, because it is a very, very nuanced skill or art. I don't know which one it is, I'm still trying to figure it out but my point is that alcohol-free beverages the adult ones that you see on your shelves in the supermarket, online, when you're looking at retailers like Wise Bartender and Dry Drinker on your socials, when you're following accounts like Lucky Saint and Mocktails these drinks are not made with young people in mind. You don't see young people in their marketing or in their advertising in their language that they use. They're not targeting the youth. They're not using the colours and the fonts that are going to make it appealing to kids. These drinks are made for adults, and that is who should be drinking them.

Speaker 1:

Now I have seen some articles in the press recently, in the last few months, that suggest that alcohol free drinks given to children could be seen as a gateway to drinking full alcohol drinks. Do I think that that is likely? Not particularly, but this is my very unscientific, unresearched opinion. Drinks offer the youth of today the opportunity to recognize that grown-ups can go out and have a grown-up time without succumbing to full levels of intoxication that might lead to unwanted grown-up consequences. So it's up to you, of course, how you decide to manage your relationship with your children and what you do and don't let them do. All I would say is that, speaking on behalf of the industry that I have come to know and love so much, that these drinks are not intended for younger people to find their way to their brands. These drinks are intended for mature adults who have recognized that they want to make a change in the way that they drink, whether that be just for one night, whether that be for a dry month, whether that be for a lifetime and want to have quality, uncompromising, delicious drinks that can help them do that, and that's who we should be giving these drinks to.

Speaker 1:

It's a short one for me today, because I don't think that this is a topic that needs a long, deep dive into it.

Speaker 1:

I think it's one that is worth considering, but I personally think that the answer is pretty straightforward. You, however, might disagree, and I am always open to your comments and your feedback on any of these topics. So if you do have a thought on this that you want to share, then let me know, because I want to hear it and I'm always interested to hear what Lono Nation thinks of the topics that we discuss on this podcast. So you can do that easily. The best way to do it is to jump on my mailing list, which you can do at the website when you make your way over to go and grab the latest issue of Low no Drinker Magazine, the leading global magazine for sober, curious and mindful drinkers, which you can do at lownodrinkermagazinecom. Forward slash, subscribe, and that will get you onto the mailing list as well, and we can continue the conversation there or anywhere else. Okay, that's it for me. As I said, until next time, cheers to a life less intoxicated.

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Denise Hamilton-Mace

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