All about water
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), until your baby starts eating solid foods, he’ll get all the water he needs from breastmilk or formula.
If you choose to formula feed, you may wonder what type of water is best to use for mixing—should it be boiled? Bottled? Or come right from the tap?
If sterilizing water is recommended by your baby’s physician, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) advises that you:
- Run cold tap water for at least 30 seconds before using it. This precaution may help flush impurities that have collected in the standing water inside the pipes.
- Heat the water until it reaches a rolling boil, continuing to boil for one to two minutes, then letting it cool.
Additionally, you could mix formula with bottled water specially designed for infants. The American Dental Association states that infants fed formula prepared by adding water with fluoride may be getting more fluoride than they need. In some cases this might lead to a condition called enamel fluorosis. And the AAP states that babies do not require fluoride supplementation during the first six months of life.
An appropriate product choice is GERBER® PURE™ infant water, which contains no added fluoride. It undergoes a stringent purification process to ensure it’s clean and safe to mix with your baby’s formula.
