As non-alcoholic drinks become more popular, experts at Swinburne University have addressed whether children should be drinking these beverages too.

According to Swinburne dietician Dr Nina Imad, while these drinks are often labelled as alcohol-free, most contain less than 0.5% alcohol by volume, similar to kombucha, fruit juice and some breads.

So, from a physical health perspective, she says, the alcohol content is very low and unlikely to cause intoxication. 

“However, the more important issue is not what’s in the drink – it’s what the drink represents,” she says.

“Research suggests that early exposure to beverages that mimic adult alcohol might increase the likelihood of alcohol use later in life, serving as a gateway, as children model what they see adults do.

“For younger children especially, a better approach is offering festive drinks that don’t look like adult alcohol. That way they feel included without receiving the message that grown-ups use special drinks to relax.”  

Swinburne bioethics expert  Dr Evie Kendal says the results of different parenting strategies varies.  

“In some cases, normalising alcohol and alcohol-like beverages took away the novelty and enticement of something ‘forbidden’, avoiding unsupervised drinking that was more likely to be dangerous,” she says.

“However, for others, developing a taste for even a very small amount of alcohol served as a gateway for heavier drinking. For the latter reason, in 2022 the Alcohol and Drug Foundation called for restrictions on ‘imitation alcohol’ for children, suggesting it may lead to risky drinking later in life. 

“One of the biggest challenges for parents in this area is the lack of evidence-based guidance on the effect of non-alcoholic wine and beer consumption in childhood on later drinking habits.

“While Australia’s drinking culture continues to cause a myriad of health problems for the population, clear messaging on the risks of unsafe drinking should be a priority for all age groups.”