Some people say they don't need water for 4 to 6 months because of breast feeding.

What do you think about this? And at what age they should be given water?

"Does my breastfeeding baby need bottles of water?"

Breastfeeding babies do not need extra water, though formula-fed babies often do. Your breastmilk contains enough water for your baby, even in hot, dry climates. Formula contains higher concentrations of salts and minerals than breastmilk does, so that extra water is often necessary for the kidneys to excrete the extra salt. Also, because of less efficient metabolism, formula-fed infants lose more water. In breastfed babies, not only is extra water unnecessary, giving bottles of water to quench baby's thirst may also lessen the desire to breastfeed. This will interfere with the balance between mother's milk supply and baby's demand. Bottles of water are also likely to cause nipple confusion. A baby who is too warm or thirsty, but not hungry, can satisfy his need for more water by feeding more frequently and just enough to get the watery foremilk, but not necessarily the creamier hindmilk. Breastfeeding babies are great self-thirst-quenchers.

Beginner Juice
When, what, and how much juice to give your infant depends a lot on your feeding philosophy and your infant's individual tastes. Here are some healthy starter tips:

When? Resist the juice temptation until your infant is at least six months of age, preferably nine months. Introduce juice when your infant is able to drink from a cup. Juice doesn't contain any nutrients that your baby won't get more of from breastmilk or formula. Consider juice as a delivery system for extra water, which your baby needs once she is eating solid foods, since extra water helps baby's kidneys handle the extra salt from solids.

What? White grape juice is the most intestinal- friendly juice, since it is better absorbed and the sugar profile is easier on growing intestines.

How much? Best not to exceed these amounts:

6-12 months: 4 ounces per day
1-4 years: 6 ounces per day
4-12 years: 8 ounces per day
To avoid filling your child up with juice and displacing more valuable calories, dilute the juice at least with an equal amount of water.

Water for infants? Older kids?

At age of 4 months , water is not necessary, but also not harmful. In other words: yes, it’s fine to give him sips. Starting solids doesn’t mean you have to start water, although it can help treat the constipation that might result from the solids. A common mistake that parents make is to give extra water on a hot day in lieu of breastmilk. This can lead to electrolyte imbalances in a young baby.

When the baby is older and starting to use a sippy cup, I prefer parents fill the cup with water, and not juice. Toddlers and older kids need to drink several cups of water each day – not several cups of juice. Kids get too much sugar as it is. A little juice is a nice treat, but I think it is important that when kids are thirsty, they ask for water – a healthy habit that will last a lifetime

Thanks Dr.Alhakim for the answer. From your post I understand that new borns don't need water if the baby is depending on the breastfeeding, but if he/she is also given powder milk in addition to breastfeeding then a water is required.

I also came a cross this article which suggest that a water is a must for infants, looking forward to your comments and others also.


The following article "Water - A must for new born babies"was produced by the Sai Sanjeevini Foundation (SSF) and copied on this site with SSF's permission. Sai Sanjeevini Foundation is a public charitable trust engaged in community service activities related to health and healing - of human beings, animals and the environment. SSF is committed to contributing to the spiritual, mental and physical upliftment of society. The Foundation's health and healing activities are centred around Santhana Sai Sanjeevini a spiritual healing system to awaken the body's own healing power.


Water - A must for new born babies
Produced by the Sai Sanjeevini Foundation

In India and in some other countries, mothers of new born babies are being given the dangerous advice that the baby must not be given any water for the first 6 months. This can result in irreparable damage to the baby's kidneys.

To live, 3 things are essential :

Air
Water
Food
Air and water are absolutely essential. Only Rishis and Yogis can do without these. Mother's milk is a complete FOOD but it cannot be a substitute for water and air.
Our mothers gave us water - that's why we are alive today.
The baby cries in atleast 4 distinct ways when it wants to tell the mother what it needs:

1. Crying for food (milk)
2. Crying for sleep or carrying
3. Crying in pain
4. Crying for WATER.

Every grandmother KNOWS and most mothers soon get to know these 4 ways of crying. The baby has no other way of communicating with you except by crying. God made it so. Human knowledge - even that of doctors - cannot replace what God made.

Please use your own common sense and your instinct to decide what is good for your baby.
Remember : There are millions of cells that die every day in the body and millions of new cells are born to replace the dead ones each day. This is true of all living creatures including little babies. These dead cells have to be flushed out by the body EVERY DAY. If they remain in the body they produce TOXINS i.e. POISONS.
The only way these dead cells or toxins can be flushed out of the body is if the baby drinks adequate water.

Source of this dangerous"advice" and the reasons behind it.
When asked, most doctors are very vague as to the source of this "advice" being given to mothers of newborns. Most are equally vague about the reasons for this "advice". However we understand that two reasons are most often given both of which, as we explain below, do not make any sense:
that mother's milk is complete - no water is therefore needed.
Yes - mother's milk is a complete FOOD but it cannot substitute water and air. Besides, mother's milk also contains toxins passed on by the mother and only water can wash these out of the baby's body. (In very much the same way that cow's milk contains DDT and other pesticides that the cow takes in, the toxins that the mother takes in and also those which her own body produces, are passed on to the baby in the milk)
that water is often contaminated and can cause "infection" in the baby.
This is a most ridiculous reason since bacteria is every where! The baby puts its own hands and fingers into the mouth and these are LOADED with bacteria picked up by the baby from the environment.
What happens when there is lack of water in the body?
Our body is made up of 80% water. Every few hours our body throws out poisons from the body in the form of urine. If there is insufficient water, the toxins become concentrated and can result in severe "clogging" of the kidneys, resulting in dangerous kidney disorders AND EVEN KIDNEY FAILURE.

It is a frightening thought that vested interests are behind this move to make kidneys fail. We hope and pray that that is not so - that this "advice" is at best a mistake and a misunderstanding.

How much water does a baby need?
There is no standard quantity. When the baby needs water it cries for it in a particular way - from the throat - you hear a sort of double sound indicating a cracking of the voice due to dryness. The baby will only drink as much as it needs - no more.

How to give water to a baby?
If your baby is a new-born, boil the water with a few grains of sauf (fennel seeds) and one or two whole pepper balls. Strain, cool and give to the baby in a baby bottle. Some babies prefer a few drops at a time given from a silver spoon. (For breastfeeding mothers it is best to avoid using a baby bottle because of the possibility of nipple confusion resulting unwanted weaning. Instead use a regular household or medicine spoon. Shirley)

Silver has traditionally been used in India for feeding the baby. There is good scientific reasoning behind this. Silver inhibits the survival and growth of all kinds of germs.

If your baby is over 3 weeks old and you have so far not given any water, then try the above method - if the baby rejects it (since it is an unfamiliar texture and taste), then add a touch of honey. (Be careful about giving honey to infants because honey is known to cause botulism in babies. Shirley)

FEEDING AT A GLANCE: Birth - 24 months
]
Age Food Sequence Food Presentation Developmental Skills, Implications for Feeding
Birth to 6 months Breastmilk and/or iron-fortified formula satisfies all nutritional requirements. Solid foods not nutritionally needed, but infant may want Breast and/or bottle Designed to suck, not chew
Rooting reflex; searches for food source
Tongue-thrust reflex pushes out solid foods
Sensitive gag reflex

6 months Starter foods:

bananas, pears, rice cereal, applesauce Strained, pureed Fingertipful Spoonful Tongue-thrust and gag reflexes lessen; accepts solids Sits erect in high chair Begins teething
7 to 9 months avocados, mashed potatoes, peaches, barley cereal, carrots, squash, teething biscuits, pear and apple juice May drink from cup
Finger foods begin
Pureed and mashed foods Holds bottle
Thumb-and-forefinger pickup begins
Fascination with tiny food morsels
Begins mouthing chokable food and objects (parents beware!)
Bangs, drops, flings
Reaches for food and utensils
Munches food
9 to 12 months

lamb, veal, tofu, poultry, noodles, bagel, beans, rice cakes, peas, egg yolk, yams, cheese, oatmeal, yogurt Lumpier consistency
Finger foods mastered
Bite-sized, cooked vegetables
Melt-in-mouth foods
Holds trainer cup Self-feeding skills improve
Holds bottle and cup longer
Points and pokes, smears, enjoys mess
High-chair gymnastics increase
Tries to use utensils, spills most

12 to 18 months /SIZE]

whole milk, papaya, cottage cheese, apricots, ice cream, grapefruit, whole eggs, grape halves, beef, strawberries, tomatoes, fish (salmon, tuna), pasta, graham crackers, broccoli, wheat cereal, spinach, honey, cauliflower, pancakes, melon, muffins, mango, kiwi Participates in family meals
Eats chopped and mashed family foods
Begins self-feeding with utensils Has prolonged attention span
"Do it myself" desire intensifies
Tilts cup and head while drinking, spills less
Holds spoon better, still spills much
Begins walking – doesn't want to sit still and eat
Picks at others' plates

[SIZE=4]18 to 24 months

Eats toddler portions of sandwiches, stews, nutritious puddings, sauces, smoothies, shakes, pate, dips, toppings, spreads, soups
Toddler food "language:" avocado boats, cooked carrot wheels, cheese blocks, broccoli trees, o-shaped cereal, toast sticks, cookie-cutter cheese melts, sailboat salads, peanut butter Grazes – deserves title "picky eater"
Nibble tray
Weans from bottle
Uses spoon and fork Molars appear – begins rotary chewing
Spoon-feeds self without spilling much
Learns food talk, signals for "more," "all done"
Wants to eat on the run—needs creative feeding to hold attention at table
Has erratic feeding habits

excellent topic...

thank you al-hakim for the provided information.

u reminded me of a breast-feeding specialist..... she said no water no food for babies till 4th month.

IceTea, it's an old school vs new science issue. Like you I have a new born child and so far the boy has been fed nothing but breast rmilk since his birth three weeks ago. My mother and my wife's mother and all the older women we know all say that you should start giving the baby water from now. However every single child care book we've read said if you breastfeed a baby then water isn't required. We asked the doctor and said that in the old says maybe they gave their kids water here in Oman because it was very hot and there was no airconditioning so there was a risk of dehydration. He said unless you're planning to raise your son in the wahiba sands you will not need to give him water just yet. However, having said all that, he said it won't harm him at all if you do give water. Any excess fluids that the body doesn't need will be passed straight through.