Drinks and cups
Solid foods and milk for your baby
You should continue to breastfeed or give your baby first infant formula until they're at least 1 year old.
Breastfeeding will continue to benefit you and your baby for as long as you carry on.
As your baby eats more solid foods, the amount of milk they want will decrease.
Once your baby is eating plenty of solids several times a day, they may even drop a milk feed altogether
Beakers and cups for babies
Introduce your baby to drinking from a cup or beaker from around 6 months and offer sips of water with meals.
Using an open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve will help your baby learn to sip and is better for your baby’s teeth.
It might be messy at first but be patient, your baby will gradually learn how to drink from an open cup.
Once your baby is 1 year old, feeding from a bottle should be discouraged.
When using a bottle or trainer cup, do not put anything in it other than breast milk, formula milk or water, and do not add anything else (including sugar, cereals, baby rice or chocolate powder) to the feed.
Comfort sucking from a bottle on sweetened drinks causes tooth decay in young children. Drinks flow very slowly through a teat, which means the sugary substance will be in contact with their teeth for longer.
Choosing a baby beaker or cup
It's important to choose the right kind of beaker or cup.
A cup or beaker with a free-flow lid (without a non-spill valve) is better than a bottle or beaker with a teat as it will help your baby learn how to sip rather than suck.
As soon as your child is ready, encourage them to move from a lidded beaker to drinking from an open cup.
Drinks for babies and young children
Not all drinks are suitable for babies and young children. Here's what to give to your child and when.
Breast milk
Breast milk is the only food or drink babies need in the first 6 months of their life.
It should continue to be given alongside an increasingly varied diet once you introduce solid foods from around 6 months.
The World Health Organization recommends that all babies are breastfed for up to 2 years or longer.
Breastfeeding up to 12 months is associated with a lower risk of tooth decay.
Formula milk
First infant formula is usually based on cows' milk and is the only suitable alternative to breast milk in the first 12 months of your baby's life.
Follow-on formula is not suitable for babies under 6 months, and you do not need to introduce it after 6 months.
First infant formula, follow-on formula or growing-up milks are not needed once your baby is 12 months old.
Cows' milk can be introduced as a main drink from 12 months.
Non-cows' milk formula
Goats' milk formula is available and produced to the same nutritional standards as cows' milk formula. It isn't suitable for babies with cows' milk protein allergy and shouldn't be given to these babies unless recommended by a health professional.
You should also only give your baby soya formula if a health professional advises you to.
"Good night" milk
"Goodnight" milk is not suitable for babies under 6 months old. This type of formula is not needed, and there's no evidence that babies settle better or sleep longer after having it.
Water
Fully breastfed babies don’t need any water until they’ve started eating solid food. Bottle-fed babies may need some extra water in hot weather.
For babies under six months, use water from the mains tap in the kitchen. You will need to boil then cool the tap water as it's not sterile straight from the tap.. Water for babies over six months doesn’t need to be boiled.
Bottled water is not recommended for making up infant formula feeds as it is not sterile and may contain too much salt (sodium) or sulphate.
Cows' milk
Cows’ milk doesn’t contain enough iron and other nutrients to meet young babies’ needs. That's why it shouldn’t be given as a drink to babies until they are 12 months old. Whole milk and semi-skimmed milk can be given to children from 1 years old.
Unpasteurised milk
Young children shouldn't be given unpasteurised milk because of the higher risk of food poisoning.
Goats’ and sheep’s milk and drinks made from oats
These are not suitable as drinks for babies under one as, like cows' milk, they don’t contain enough iron and other nutrients babies this age need. As long as they're pasteurised, they can be used once your baby is one year old.
Soya drinks and other milk alternatives
You can give your child unsweetened calcium-fortified milk alternatives, such as soya, almond and oat drinks, from the age of one as part of a healthy balanced diet. Toddlers and young children under the age of five shouldn't be given rice drinks, because of the levels of arsenic in these products (see more below).
If your child has an allergy or intolerance to milk, talk to your health visitor or GP. They can advise you on suitable milk alternatives.
Rice drinks
Children under five should not be given rice drinks as they contain unsafe levels of arsenic. Arsenic is found naturally in the environment and can find its way into our food and water. Rice tends to take up more arsenic than other grains.
Don't worry if your child has already had rice drinks. There is no immediate risk to them, and there are unlikely to be any long-term harmful effects. But to avoid the possibility of them taking in any more arsenic, it's best to switch to a different kind of milk.
Fruit juices and smoothies
Fruit juices, such as orange juice, are a good source of vitamin C. However, they also contain natural sugars and acids, which can cause tooth decay.
Babies under six months old shouldn’t be given fruit juices. Diluted fruit juice (one part juice to 10 parts water) can be given to children with their meals after six months. Giving fruit juice with mealtimes (rather than between) can help reduce the risk of tooth decay.
From age five, it's OK to give your child undiluted fruit juice, but stick to no more than one glass (about 150ml) a day served with a meal.
Squashes, flavoured milk, 'fruit' or 'juice' drinks and fizzy drinks
These are not suitable for young babies. These drinks contain sugar and can cause tooth decay even when diluted. For older babies and toddlers, these drinks can lead to poor appetite, limited weight gain and, in toddlers, diarrhoea. Even drinks that have artificial sweeteners can encourage children to develop a sweet tooth.
Watch out for drinks that say 'fruit' or 'juice' drink on the pack. These probably won't count towards your child's 5 A DAY and can be high in sugar.
Fizzy drinks are acidic and can damage tooth enamel so they shouldn't be given to babies and toddlers. Diet or reduced-sugar drinks aren't recommended for babies and toddlers.
'Baby' and herbal drinks
These usually contain sugars and are not recommended.
Hot drinks
Tea and coffee aren’t suitable for babies or young children. They can reduce the amount of iron absorbed from food, especially if they're given with meals. If sugar is added, this can lead to tooth decay.
Last Updated: 08/03/2024 13:56:00
The information on this page has been adapted by NHS Wales from original content supplied by
NHS website
nhs.uk