Caffeine and a 6-year-old

I will put this out there right now: I never have, nor do I ever plan on, watching the show Toddlers and Tiaras.  I'm sure there is plenty of controversy out there over the show itself.  I watched an interview today on Good Morning America, though, with the little girl named Alana, and I was outraged about her situation.

Alana's mom has made her something called "Go Go Juice", a concoction of Mt. Dew and Red Bull.  How disgusting!  Not just the mix itself, but the idea of it!  David and I drink coffee and tea, and the occasional Pepsi product.  We even let our children have a few sips.  But shoving this "juice" down your child's throat?  Completely uncalled for. 

My first beef is that caffeine is proven, in large amounts, to seriously affect the developing brain of a child. Why put your child through that and risk her life for a walk down a runway?  Second, one of my pet peeves is kids who say, "I'm hyper!  This or that made me hyper!"  What a terrible thing, when a parent gives his or her child an excuse for bad behavior.  That is exactly what happened with Alana and her mother.  Alana didn't come up with the word "hyper", and I question whether she even has any extra energy, or if her mother fed her that line, too.  Alana hears, so Alana does. 

The last thing that had me quite enfuriated was watching little Alana squeeze her baby fat on her tummy as if it were some sort of prize.  The girl is tiny - she's allowed to have some pudge!  But for her mom to tell her it's something to be proud of, and for Alana to make a big deal out of it, is extremely unhealthy.  I don't think a 6-year-old would know she had to have the "got it, flaunt it" mentality if someone didn't tell her that. 

This may not have made a lick of sense.  I certainly don't plan to vent over such topics on a regular basis, but this one just got me going!  I certainly hope that when others see our daughter, they don't see a "hyperactive is the way to get the spotlight" kind of girl, but rather a quiet, sensitive, and sweet spirit.  May God help us to raise her (and our son) to glorify Him and rely on Him for strength rather than caffeine or any other kind of drug!