Search icon

Parenting

14th Aug 2018

Mum says she’s ‘disgusted’ as friend lets 4-year-old daughter sip wine

How would you react?

Anna O'Rourke

Mum says she's 'disgusted' as friend gives 4-year-old daughter wine

How and when to deal with the idea of alcohol around children is different for every family.

Some parents are open about it while others won’t even take a drink in front of their kids – but how would you react if you saw a parent let their small child try some alcohol?

A mum has expressed her disgust at a friend who let his four-year-old daughter try some wine.

Posting to Mumsnet, the woman said that they were over visiting when the little girl asked for a sip.

“He just let her,” she wrote.

She said that she was “shocked” and quickly made her escape.

“AIBU (Am I being unreasonable) to be disgusted and upset by this?” she asked.

Mum says she's 'disgusted' as friend gives 4-year-old daughter wine

The woman further explained that she had grown up with an alcoholic mother and that she was “hypersensitive” about alcohol.

“I was uncomfortable staying there with my dd (dear daughter) as I didn’t want her to think that it was acceptable to try alcohol at such a young age.

“I just think it’s so wrong and completely pointless,” she said.

The fellow mums on the site were divided over whether the woman had been right to walk out over the incident.

The majority of them thought she had overreacted:

“A sip won’t do any harm. You’ve completely over reacted,” wrote one.

“What’s so wrong with that? My 4 and 5 year olds have often had a small sip of wine, beer etc. They’ve usually found it disgusting but we always encourage them to try a little bit of things,” said another.”

“I think disgusted and upset is a slight over reaction on your behalf. It’s not something I would have done but it’s not like they are doing tequila shots with toddlers.”

“If it’s only a sip it’s no big deal to me.”

Others, however, said she wasn’t unreasonable at all.

“Illegal, some risks depending on how much of a sip, no benefits.”

“Some people are just crap parents. And parents who allow their preschool children to have sips of wine fall into that category.”

How would you react? Do you think it’s OK to let a child take a sip of drink? Let us know in the Facebook comments or on Twitter.