Olivia Howell?s son, Weston, was four months old when her grandmother told her to give him a bottle filled with water to cool him down when it was warm in the house. ?I guess she gave water to her own babies,? says Howell. Howell wasn?t sure giving her formula-fed baby a bottle of water was a good idea, but she didn?t know for sure that she shouldn?t, so she went ahead and offered it to him. But Weston didn?t really go for its bland taste after he?d come to expect formula.
Howell was right to question her grandmother?s advice: Up to six months of age, babies get all the water they need from breastmilk or formula. And while you might think a bit of cool water on a hot day won?t do any harm?after all, we know it?s the healthiest drink for kids and adults?it can be detrimental to your infant?s health. ?Giving a baby water at that age interferes with feeding and can lead to poor weight gain,? says paediatrician Catherine Pound, the chair of the Canadian Paediatric Society?s nutrition committee. With breastmilk or formula, they get the calories and nutrients they need, but if you fill up their tummies with water, there won?t be enough room left for proper nutrition. Keeping your baby hydrated
Becky Blair, a public health dietitian who represented Dietitians of Canada in writing the most recent nutrition guidelines for infants, says this recommendation holds true even when it?s hot or humid outside. But, she adds, dehydration is a serious condition, and if you think your baby isn...