When to Introduce Other Fluids

Have you introduced the sippy cup? My pedi suggested at 6 months to introduce the sippy cup with water. No juice is really necessary at all. Juice is pure sugar - there is no such thing as natural sugar. One glass of orange juice contains the equivalent of 8 oranges worth of sugar and orange juice is one of the healthier ones. I would give fruits in the form of baby food. Juice is an advertising scheme made up by companies. Gerber is owned by Nestle. If you start your baby on good water drinking habits, he/she will be good water drinkers later down the road. Once in awhile some pear juice mixed with water is good for constipation. Take a look on the back of juice cartons and look at the amount of sugar it contains!

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you can give you child water at any time. i would give it him in a sippycup so that when you are ready to get rid of the bottle it is a smother transition.

No juice, your doctor and dentist will tell you that it is horrible stuff and why introduce it if it is not necessary. At 6 mo I give a sippy cup with water at every meal.

M.,

My son if 6 mos and I give him a bit of apple juice (50% juice 50% water) from time to time if he is constipated. I do give him very small amounts of water if we are outside a long time in the heat. I have heard though that you can overhydrate babies so I would ask your doc.

my two sons are 19 and 13 and they never had juice as babies/toddlers. They only had breast milk, formula, 2% milk or water. I always asked their doctor, he told me that they didn't need any juice! so, don't worry and just double check with the doctor next time you go in!!!

Hi M.,

I have a now 17 month old son. I don't give him anything other than his milk or water. According to his pediatrician, he doesn't need it. Most juices are loaded with sugar which will be bad for their teeth. Our son loves water just as much as his milk. Water is great for these hotter days so they stay hydrated too. You should stay on the formula though until your son is a year old and then you will switch to whole milk per your doc's recommendations.
Don't feel bad about calling your doc and asking - that's what they are there for - trust me on this one! Also, water helps with any constipation that your child will encounter later down the road...
B.; Romeoville.

My daughter is a little older........11 months, but I give her a cup with 75% water and a splash of juicy juice, while she is eating.

You can give them water at any time, just don't give a large amount cause it will take away from the amount of formula she drinks and BM/formula should be the primary nutrition source for the first 12 months. You don't need to use that nursery water either.

Take the ped recommendation on nutrition with a grain of salt. Babies can be eating table food by six months as long as it is very soft...and of course try only one new thing at a time to watch for allergies. Those "stages" on the baby food jars don't really mean much.

Water is great for a baby at any time. I would recommend bottle water with out any of the extras city tap water can have. My son enjoyed pear juice at 6 months. I would purchase 100% pear juice and add a little water to tone down the strength. But it is total up to you if you don't want to give him juice then don't.

S.

You can give a little water if you are giving formula. A friend of mine who is a dietitian said water or milk for the first three years. Don't be in a rush to give juices, real fruits is the best way to get fiber and nutrients.

For some reason when I had my last child in 2002, the hospital said it was not good to give the babies water. I don't remember why, or if it was a certain age baby you don't give water to...I did give my oldest ones water and they were born in 1990 and 1994, and nothing bad happened to them. If you do start on juices, I always watered it down 50/50. It cut the sugar in half which was better for their future teeth. Juice is probably the next thing on the menu. Didn't your doctor give you a book that gives you a guideline as to when to start feeding certain foods?

C. T.