Nursery Water...Why the Hype?

Does your baby really need nursery water? It is marketed to be good for your baby but is it really necessary? Infants do not need extra water in their diet because breast milk & formula have plenty of liquid in them. It is also not wise to give water to infants because it does not have any calories.

Nursery water is essentially steamed water with fluoride and some minerals. Infants do not need fluoride until six months old and most pediatric dentists do not recommend supplemental fluoride even then. The minerals that are added to the nursery water can be obtained through breast milk and formula and boiling the water can be done yourself. So why does your baby need nursery water? They don't. Boiled filtered water or bottled water with a low sodium content are just fine for your baby.

Beginning from birth:

• nursery water is not a necessity in your baby's diet
• infants do not need extra water in their diet because it does not have calories
• formula does not need nursery water mixed with it (see above for water recommendations)
• you can boil your own water or buy bottled water to mix with formula
• breast fed infants do not need supplemental flouride as it is bio-available in the mother's milk
• breast fed infants only need a supplemental vitamin called Trivisol (vitamins A,D & E) which are not present in mother's milk