# What can a 6 month old drink?



## teachma (Dec 20, 2002)

I will be introducing a cup to my little one at 6 months (in preparation for my return to work when he's 8.5 months old). He will be exclusively breastfed until about 5 mos, at which point I will likely introduce a few first foods like avocado, sweet potato and bananas. I have no interest or desire to pump, and I will continue to nurse on demand when I am not at work (so, he'll be able to nurse from 4 pm until 7:00 am). So, I am not concerned about nourishment so much...but I do want him to *enjoy* drinking from the cup in my absence. What tastes good and is also safe/healthy for a 6 month old child?


----------



## mysticmomma (Feb 8, 2005)

breastmilk only. I wouldn't even give water at that age.


----------



## hix (Mar 16, 2006)

Spring water...is all we do. My 2.5 yo. loves water and often prefers it.


----------



## mysticmomma (Feb 8, 2005)

I'm sorry, and you're planning on him having only solids from 7a-4p? That doesn't sound like a good idea.


----------



## peacefulT (Oct 23, 2008)

well my 7 month old LOVES coconut water .. I only give her little sips .. in fact she learned how to drink it from a straw the first time I gave it to her .. straight from the coconut  Its very healthy, has tons of potassium, little, if any sugar, and is tasty. But of course nothing is needed now except breast milk, this is just for experience .. and of course I cant drink it without giving it to my dd, she wont allow it  Of course we live in Brasil, were its very cheap and readily available everywhere .. but in the US .. you can find it in health food stores .. but quite pricey !

ETA .. this is not to be confused with coconut milk, coconut milk is much too strong for a little ones body !


----------



## Megan73 (May 16, 2007)

I introduced water when my son started solids.
Here's a good fact sheet from the BFing expert Dr. Jack Newman on what to feed baby when mom is working. He thinks solids and water during the day is fine if baby is reverse-cycling - although this wouldn't have worked for my baby who didn't get interested in solids until 9 months.
http://www.nbci.ca/index.php?option=...tion&Itemid=17


----------



## teachma (Dec 20, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *mysticmomma* 
I'm sorry, and you're planning on him having only solids from 7a-4p? That doesn't sound like a good idea.

Not worried about it at all. My 8 year old and my 5 year old both completely rejected the bottle, and I went back to work full time when they were 4 months and 5 months old, respectively. They ate/drank NOTHING for the hours I was at work. However, they made up for it ten-fold by nursing every 1.5-2 hours from late afternoon until morning. Neither one had a weight-gain issue, or any issue whatsoever. They were lovingly attachment-"grandparented" in my absence, and I was unconcerned about their emotional safety. My pediatrician assured me that while some babies of their weights/ages were sleeping through the night for up to 8-9 hours, they were, effectively, sleeping through the day and doing all of their nursing in the afternoon/evening/early morning hours. My expectation is that he will have very few "solids" while I am gone, and he will continue to receive most of his nourishment from nursing when I am home. But since he will be older than the other 2 when I go back to work, I would love for him to be able to eat and drink a little something while I'm away, unlike the other two.


----------



## teachma (Dec 20, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *peacefulT* 
well my 7 month old LOVES coconut water .. I only give her little sips .. in fact she learned how to drink it from a straw the first time I gave it to her .. straight from the coconut  Its very healthy, has tons of potassium, little, if any sugar, and is tasty. But of course nothing is needed now except breast milk, this is just for experience .. and of course I cant drink it without giving it to my dd, she wont allow it  Of course we live in Brasil, were its very cheap and readily available everywhere .. but in the US .. you can find it in health food stores .. but quite pricey !

ETA .. this is not to be confused with coconut milk, coconut milk is much too strong for a little ones body !

Oooh, I like that idea. The expense wouldn't bother me, as I wouldn't be feeding him very much of it!


----------



## ambrosia77 (Aug 7, 2008)

I've seen some mamas here recommend herbal teas and I'm thinking of trying it for my 6mo. Will check with my pediatrician first but it sounds like something he might enjoy (like the fruity teas).


----------



## KD's Momma (Oct 24, 2004)

I started my LO with water in a sippy, loved it and would demand his cup at meal times, I didn't really give him much else for about a month and then occassionally he would have a little rice milk here and there. At a year old now he still mainly drinks only water from a cup, we don't really do juice (prefer to give pieces of fruit or veggies), he still gets a little rice milk but only a few onces here and there.


----------



## _betsy_ (Jun 29, 2004)

Just because your other two would tolerate doesn't mean #3 will as well. Just something to keep in mind. Weren't they awfully cranky for the caregiver?

My 6 month old is EBF and nurses every 1.5-2 hours all day and all night. Just saying.

We've intro'd a sippy of water - I think she's tried it twice. Nothing makes it into her mouth as far as I can tell, but she sure does have fun with the cup, and thank goodness it's summer because she gets soaked!


----------



## teachma (Dec 20, 2002)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *_betsy_* 
Just because your other two would tolerate doesn't mean #3 will as well. Just something to keep in mind. Weren't they awfully cranky for the caregiver?

They adjusted very well, which is somewhat surprising. But as I mentioned, they were cared for by grandma, who in my mind was "the original attachment parent!" She held them, interacted with them, and lovingly nurtured them all day. Moreover, with each of them, she continued to try the bottle for MONTHS (we'd first started trying when they were 3 weeks old), a little bit every single day, because she thought there was a chance that they might accept it one day. We tried only breastmilk and, eventually, water. By the time they were 9 or so months old, their repertoire of "liquidy" foods such as applesauce and soy yogurt, along with food that I made and mixed with breastmilk, was quite expansive. By 11 months old (I know, a month early...) my son LOVED cow's milk out of a sippy. Dd never did, and she still isn't much of a drinker now at 5 years old!

You are right that my others' refusal to accept a bottle doesn't mean this little one will do the same. However, I don't really want to use a bottle with him between now and the time I return to work (January) because it doesn't seems necessary just to "prepare" him, and by that point he will be so able to use a cup...Pumping for my others was such a negative experience for ME (mostly b/c I only used so little for the food I made them, and they would never drink the rest, but also b/c as a teacher the schedule was super crazy!) that I'd rather not go there this time.


----------



## CHoney (Dec 30, 2008)

Pumping didn't work for me, so when I started solids, I just put a little water in the sippy cup to sip with his meals. DS is still BF, but enjoys some solids as well, and really likes drinking water! We haven't tried any other beverages yet.
It was difficult finding a sippy cup that worked well for him, but I finally found a slimmer cup that he can hold himself without handles, and he loves it. Good luck!


----------



## baglady (Jul 13, 2009)

I just had the water conversation with my ped. She said a six month olds kidneys can hadle water but not before six months. She said they don't need it if breastfed, but it is okay to offer to get them used to a cup.


----------



## Honey693 (May 5, 2008)

DD loves ice water. Not warm, not tepid, not cold. Ice water. She's a picky one







.


----------



## misswerewolf (May 7, 2008)

I second the coconut juice. My daughter LOVES it. We also give her some ground up coconut meat, or mix it with other fruits in smoothie form.

The only other thing she'll drink with any kind of regularity is, shockingly to me, nasty prune juice.


----------

