The American Academy of Pediatrics has some new advice about juice: Kids should resist the urge to drink it.

If you’re craving something fruity and refreshing, try eating a piece of fruit instead. If you’re thirsty, you can wash it down with some water.

Sure, juice has some things going for it. It can be an excellent source of vitamin C, vitamin A and potassium, among other nutrients. It also contains antioxidants, which may help ward off cancer and cardiovascular disease.

All those things are true about fruit as well — plus it contains fiber. That’s good for you because it helps keep your blood sugar in check, reduces cholesterol and cleans your colon. And it can help prevent unwanted weight gain, since it takes much longer to eat a piece of fruit than it does to drink the juice it contains.

Fruit also beats juice when it comes to fighting tooth decay. When kids carry around sippy cups with juice — or worse, take it to bed with them in a bottle — their teeth are continuously exposed to carbohydrates. That leads to cavities.

Despite all this, juice remains a popular beverage for kids and teens. For Americans between the ages of 2 and 18, almost half of the fruit they consume is in the form of juice.

That needs to change, pediatricians say. The Academy’s position statement, released Monday, boils it down succinctly: “Fruit juice offers no nutritional advantage over whole fruit.”

Infants Younger Than 6 Months

No juice at all. Zip. Zilch.

For about the first six months of life, the only thing that should pass an infant’s lips is breast milk or infant formula.

“No additional nutrients are needed,” the statement says.

If caregivers substitute juice for milk or formula, babies risk missing out on all the protein, essential fats and nutrients like calcium, iron and zinc that their growing bodies require. So not only is juice not helpful, it actually can be harmful, the pediatricians warn.

Infants 6 Months to 1 Year

Babies in this age group start eating solid foods, and fruit — often mashed or pureed — should become part of their diet. But in most cases, liquids should be restricted to breast milk, formula or water.

“It is optimal to completely avoid the use of juice in infants before 1 year of age,” the statement says.

If parents opt to give their babies juice anyway, the pediatricians say limit juice intake to 4 ounces per day. Serve juice in a cup, not a bottle, and do not put babies to bed with juice that they can sip throughout the night.

Toddlers and Children

The Academy warns parents that they start out at a disadvantage when it comes to keeping juice away from toddlers and preschool-age children.

“Fruit juice and fruit drinks are easily over-consumed by toddlers and young children because they taste good,” the statement says. “In addition, they are conveniently packaged or can be placed in a bottle or transportable covered cup.

But parents should not give in. They should continue to encourage their kids to eat whole fruit instead. If parents insist on serving juice, they should limit it to 4 ounces per day for children between ages 1 and 3, and to 6 ounces per day for those 4 to 6.

By age 7, children typically consume less juice. Even so, they should not drink more than 8 ounces of juice per day.