what age can babies drink tap water?

[clairabelle]

Hi
I think I gave dd bottled or boiled water until 12m and now wondering with ds when I can give him water straight from the tap?

[Davros]

I started giving mine tap water at 12 mos, same as when we switched to "normal" milk.

[Bibiboo]

Is boiled and cooled tap water okay before 12m?

[blossom2]

bibiboo - absolutely ... infact HV told us not to give bottled water from the shops before 12 months.

we gave tap water from 12 mths too....

[mummytosteven]

isn't tap water OK at 6 months?

[joanneg]

I used to boil ds water then cool it down to give him to drink. I did this until he was 1

[Heathcliffscathy]

what about fluoride in tap water: was talking to my dentist about it this morning and he thinks it is evil stuff, should be applied topically to teeth that need it (caries beginning) definitely not given in drops and shouldn't be in tap water. my dh thinks that brita filter gets rid of fluoride (and chlorine etc) is that right?

[mummytosteven]

sophable - i don't think u are meant to filter water tho as that tampers with the mineral contents and can mean that the little one gets too much sodiumn - that's why water for baby#s bottles must have been freshly boiled

[Heathcliffscathy]

uh-oh! have been filtering since birth, any more info on this?

[emmatmg]

Definatley 6 months for tap water, unless they've changed things again I'm positive about that as I've done it with Ds1,2+3.

Also Hv told me that some bottled waters are Ok for babies and gave me a list, only one I can remember is Evian though. I had to use it as my Mum has extremley hard water at her house and when DS2 was a tiny baby, about 10 weeks, it upset his stomach so I had to use bottled water when ever I stayed there. Obviously at that young age it was boiled anyway but.........

[mummytosteven]

sophable - if u have a look at this www.idfa.org.uk/faq_full.asp?id=76&cat=1

: apparently it is only some filtered water that is problematic - unfortunately doesn't list which ones. the Brita filter web site reckons it is fine to use their filter for water for babies

maybe have a chat with the HV about this at the next clinic. i'm sure that your lo would have let u know if she had problems with the water u were giving her.

[powderpuff]

My son is 3 and i still filter and then boil his tap water for drinking..bottled water has quite a high mineral content..and although i am not happy with the additives in tap water the purity is wuite heavily regulated

[ChicPea]

This is an interesting question and one I have wondered myself. I would say 12mths it is okay to have tap water unboiled and until then to boil it.
My DH disagrees with the whole bottled water industry saying it is the biggest con going (!) and that he wishes HE had come up with the idea of charging for something that is free! He is currently working on charging for air - I'm kidding! Also, bottled water is unregulated, there is no control whatsoever over what is in it, minerals, bacteria, etc. My DH also when somebody in his office drinks bottled water gets them to do a water test: he gets 2 or 3 glasses of tap and bottled and gets them to taste it blindly! Nobody has ever guessed correctly!!!!!
DH has a friend whose DD had leukemia at the age of seven which obviously was horrific - thankfully she survived this through fantastic care at Gt Ormond St - but the mother was told by the hospital to avoid bottled water at all costs due to the high bacteria! Well fancy that! Do any of us think about this when we open a bottle of water?
Re: water filters, are we really sure that they are safe for small children? I use a water filter for the steam steriliser but not for a baby/child.

[essbee]

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[hercules]

Just started a week ago giving unboiled tapwater to dd nearly 10 months. Couldnt be arsed with the boiling anymore tbh although i think it's meant to be 12 months.

[Davros]

I believe that very few places in the UK have fluoride in the tap water (other threads somewhere with people who know more than me). Tap water in London definitely doesn't have fluoride. Persoally I think still mineral water is a total rip off and our tap water is lovely stuff, never dun me no 'arm

[essbee]

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