Is the high-priced "baby water" really healthy or a "tax on IQ"? The secret is revealed for you →

Those who have children at home may find that there are a wide variety of toys and daily necessities in the current children's market, and there is even "baby water" specifically for infants and young children to drink.

The price is not cheap, about 4 times more expensive than ordinary mineral water!

Although the price is a bit "hurtful", the sales volume of baby water is indeed not low.

Is there something special about this baby water? Or have we all been deceived by the merchants?

01

Is baby water really good?

The "baby water" sold on the market is advertised by merchants as being most suitable for infants and young children. Its main advantages include being low in sodium, sterile, and easy to absorb.

But is this baby water really that good?

In September, the Shanghai Consumer Protection Committee inspected several well-known brands of "baby water" sold on the market with the words "suitable for infants and young children" and "suitable for pregnant women and babies".

By comparing the calcium, sodium, magnesium and other mineral elements in ordinary water of the same brand, it was found that there is not much difference in their content.

Comparison of the ingredients in three different brands of "baby water" and ordinary drinking water of the same brand. The first row in the table shows the tested ingredients, the second row shows the baby water of the same brand, and the third row shows ordinary drinking water of the same brand. Image source: Shanghai Consumer Protection Committee

In other words, the low-mineral water promoted by merchants as being more suitable for infants and young children to drink does not actually have many advantages over ordinary water. This is just a self-proclaimed gimmick of the merchants .

In fact, no matter what kind of water it is, its composition is H2O, and the difference in minerals in water is mainly caused by the difference in water quality due to the different geographical environment of the water source.

At present, my country does not have any industry standards specifically for drinking water for mothers and infants. The national standard GB 8537 for drinking natural mineral water does not include specific rules for infants.

The "sterility" standard is the minimum standard that must be followed in all food production. As long as you purchase drinking water through formal channels, it is safe and guaranteed.

02

Is baby water actually a “gimmick” of merchants?

"Nutrients in Drinking Water" compiled by the World Health Organization (WHO) mentions that the sodium content of drinking water suitable for infants and young children should not exceed 20 mg/L; in 2020, the China Health Supervision Association issued the "Drinking Natural Mineral Water (Suitable for Infants and Young Children)" group standard, which also mentioned that the sodium content in drinking water for infants and young children must be ≤20 mg/L, and the potassium content must be ≤10 mg/L , etc.

The above-mentioned brands of "baby water" evaluated by the Shanghai Consumer Protection Committee just meet this requirement. Therefore, although the promotion of "baby water" does use marketing means and plays a word game, it is at least safe and can be drunk by babies.

However, parents should also note that not all brands of "baby water" meet this requirement, so if you need to buy "baby water", you must carefully check the content of various minerals to see if it exceeds the standard.

After all, for infants and young children, their physical growth and development are not complete, and their metabolic functions are not mature. If they consume too many minerals, the infants will not be able to completely metabolize them, which will increase the burden on the liver and affect liver function.

03

How can babies drink water more healthily?

Generally speaking, it is recommended that both adults and children boil water for one minute before drinking it. At this point, the bacteria in the water have been effectively killed .

There is no need to buy special water for babies, tap water is fine. However, please note that if the water storage equipment is not cleaned regularly or the water pipes at home are old, the water quality will inevitably be affected. Therefore, it is recommended to install a water purification system at home. If conditions do not allow, buy bottled water for your baby.

Secondly, the minerals provided by water only account for a small part of the nutrients needed for the growth of infants and young children. The vast majority of nutrients still come from milk and other complementary foods. For infants and young children, as long as the source of the drinking water is guaranteed and the ingredients are safe, they can drink it.

Especially for babies under 6 months old, there is no need to drink too much extra water, as the body will be replenished with water during the milk drinking process.

In addition, purified water and distilled water basically do not contain any minerals and are not recommended as the main drinking water for babies.

In general, "baby water" is actually a marketing strategy of merchants. It meets the psychological needs of parents for food safety or high-end diet. It seems to be a scientific and cautious concept, but in fact it does not play much of a role.

For new parents, it is understandable to want to provide a better life for their baby. Whether to buy this kind of "low value for money" product can be considered according to your actual situation. If buying "baby water" has brought you a lot of financial pressure, why not relax a little and switch to ordinary water~

Review | Wang Guoyi, Postdoctoral Fellow in Nutrition and Food Safety, China Agricultural University

Source: Digital Beijing Science Center