Drinks are one of the biggest sources of sugar in Australian diets. The Australian Bureau of Statistics found in its Australian Health Survey that 52% of the free sugars Australians eat come from drinks, led by soft drinks, energy and electrolyte drinks, fruit juice and cordial. Teenage boys aged 14 to 18 had the highest intake of any group, at an average of 92 grams of free sugars a day.
Lecturing kids about sugar rarely changes much. What works is changing the house so that water is the easiest, coldest and closest drink on offer.
How much water children and teens need
The Victorian Government’s Better Health Channel, drawing on the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Nutrient Reference Values, gives these daily fluid targets:
| Age | Girls | Boys |
| 1 to 3 years | 1 litre (about 4 cups) | 1 litre (about 4 cups) |
| 4 to 8 years | 1.2 litres (about 5 cups) | 1.2 litres (about 5 cups) |
| 9 to 13 years | 1.4 litres (about 5 to 6 cups) | 1.6 litres (about 6 cups) |
| 14 to 18 years | 1.6 litres (about 6 cups) | 1.9 litres (about 7 to 8 cups) |
Kids need more than this on hot days, during sport and when they are unwell. Healthdirect, the Australian Government’s health information service, names water as the best drink for staying hydrated and notes that sugary drinks can make dehydration worse.
Healthdirect lists the early signs of mild dehydration as thirst, a dry mouth, dark urine, dizziness and going to the toilet less often than usual. A child who is tired and cranky after school or training may simply need a drink. Severe signs such as fast breathing, confusion, cold hands and feet, pale skin or sunken eyes need urgent medical care.
Why sugary drinks win at home
Kids are not choosing soft drink because they have weighed up the options. They choose whatever is easiest, coldest and tastiest at the moment they are thirsty. In most homes, sugary drinks win on all four counts.
- Convenience. A can or a juice box is ready to go. There is no tap to reach, no glass to find and no bottle to fill. A child who cannot reach the tap or the fridge shelf will take whatever is at their height.
- Cold. Cans and cartons live in the fridge, so they are always chilled. Tap water from a warm pipe in January is a poor competitor.
- Flavour. Sweet drinks are designed to taste good, and a palate used to sugar finds plain water bland at first. That reaction fades with time, but only if water keeps being offered.
- Habit. Juice with breakfast, cordial after school and soft drink with takeaway on Friday become routines. Children copy what the adults around them drink, so a parent’s own afternoon soft drink sets the pattern as much as any rule does.
The Australian Dietary Guidelines advise limiting drinks with added sugars, including soft drinks, cordials, fruit drinks, vitamin waters, and energy and sports drinks. Changing the setup works better than repeating the rules.
Making water win instead
The aim is to flip each of those advantages so water becomes the default without an argument.
- A cold source kids can reach without help. Put a jug of chilled water on the lowest fridge shelf, or set up a cooler they can use on their own. If a five year old can pour a cold drink without asking, they will. Move the soft drink and juice to a high shelf, or stop buying them for everyday use.
- Their own bottle. Let each child pick a reusable bottle in their colour or with their name on it. Ownership matters to kids. Fill bottles in the morning, keep them in the fridge, and make refilling the bottle a normal after-school job.
- Water on the table at every meal. Put a jug and glasses on the table at breakfast, lunch and dinner as standard. When water is already poured, most kids drink it. Keep milk as the other option for younger children and save juice and soft drink for occasions.
- Fruit or mint if plain water is refused. Some kids push back on plain water at first. Add a few slices of orange, lemon, cucumber or strawberry, a sprig of mint, or a handful of frozen berries. Sparkling water can also help teenagers who miss the fizz of soft drink.
- Juice and soft drink. You do not need to ban them. The Australian Dietary Guidelines treat juice as an occasional option, not an everyday drink, because it has much of the sugar of the fruit without the fibre. Water it down by half if your kids are used to it, then cut it back to weekends. Treat soft drink as a party drink, not a fridge staple. If it is not in the house, it is not a daily decision.
The home setup
The single most useful change is a cold water source at child height. A benchtop or floor-standing water cooler with a tap low enough for small hands turns getting a drink into something a child does alone, in seconds, at any time. Coolers also keep water chilled without taking up fridge space, which matters in summer when the fridge is full. Place it where kids already pass, such as the kitchen or near the back door, and keep a row of cups or their bottles beside it.
Some families do not like the taste of their tap water, especially in parts of regional Australia, and others want to stop buying single-use plastic bottles. Home delivery of spring water in large returnable bottles solves both problems. In regional NSW and the ACT, suppliers such as Big Springs Water deliver spring water to the home in returnable 15 litre bottles with a cooler to suit. Across Melbourne and north-east Victoria, Kiewa Valley Spring Water runs the same home delivery, so a cold refill is always in the kitchen.
Whatever source you use, the test is simple. Can your youngest child get a cold glass of water without asking an adult? If the answer is yes, the setup is working.
Sport, school and summer
The habits built at home are tested most when kids are out of the house. Plan for the three situations where sugary drinks usually creep back in.
- Sport. Sports Dietitians Australia describes water as the drink of choice for children and adolescents playing junior sport. Most weekend games and weeknight training sessions do not call for sports drinks, which add sugar a child does not need. Pack a large bottle of cold water, freeze a second bottle overnight so it melts during the game, and make sure kids drink before they start, at breaks and when they finish. After training, water with a normal meal or snack is enough for most kids.
- School. Send a full bottle every day and show kids where the bubblers and refill taps are. Some schools let students keep a water bottle on their desk, so ask the teacher if yours does. A bottle that comes home full is a sign to talk about why, not to scold.
- Summer. Hot days raise how much water children need, and healthdirect notes that kids need extra fluids in hot weather. Keep the cooler or fridge jug topped up, carry water in the car, and pack a bottle for the beach, pool or park. Offer water before kids say they are thirsty, because by then they are often already behind.
A seven-day plan parents can follow
Small changes made one day at a time are easier for kids to accept than a sudden ban. Follow this plan for one week, then keep the parts that work for your family.
- Day 1: Set up the source. Put a jug of cold water on the lowest fridge shelf or set up a cooler at child height. Move sugary drinks out of sight.
- Day 2: Bottles for everyone. Let each child choose a reusable bottle. Fill them and put them in the fridge overnight.
- Day 3: Water at every meal. Put a jug and glasses on the table at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Adults drink water too.
- Day 4: Add flavour. Make a jug of water with orange slices, mint or frozen berries. Let the kids choose the mix.
- Day 5: Cut the juice. Water down any juice by half, or swap it for whole fruit and a glass of water.
- Day 6: Pack for the weekend. Fill bottles for sport, shopping and the car before you leave the house. Skip the servo fridge.
- Day 7: Check in. Ask the kids what they liked and what they did not. Keep buying soft drink for special occasions only, and refill the jug before bed so it is cold in the morning.
Water does not have to win every argument. It only has to be the easiest drink in the house, every day. Make it cold, close and ready, and most kids will reach for it on their own.
