Dear all, Thanks so much for all the input that I've gotten since I wrote in. I must say that I've learnt alot from the discussions and couldn't help but feel guilty of all the confusion and chaos this topic has caused. Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinion and I feel that we should learn from each other instead of tying to see who is right or wrong. Pam MazzellaDiBosco wrote: "...the whole body signals--ability to sit alone (unsupported), losing tongue thrust, unable to satisfy at breast even after increased feedings ( to allow for growth spurt), etc. This usually puts the baby closer to the six month mark than four...because the digestive system is not ready to use the nutrients from solids even if the body is able to tolerate them." I just want to say that I couldn't agree with you more...that was exactly what I told my pediatrician friend but I was given a reply that if all the babies that he sees was to start solids at 6 mos of age, then his clinic would have been full of malnourished and skinny kids...was that a joke or what?!! Anyway, after showing him the article from the AAP Journal guidelines of December 1997...he was speechless. I guess there should be some balance in everything. When Kathy stated that 6 mos should not be the absolute rule for ALL babies, I was also agreeable to that fact becuase we have to look at every infant individually as a whole but I believe that 6 mos. should be the guideline for all the "normal" infants. I have mothers that come to me and say that they are going to start solids at 31/2mos. just because their pediatrician tells them to start at 4 mos. so to them, "it's just another 2 weeks before the 4 mos, so why not start 2 weeks earlier?" See the danger there? Pam MazzellaDiBosco wrote: Question: Re: The post about not offering other liquids besides breastmilk-- even with the introduction of solids--at what age is it appropriate to offer water and juice. It was my understanding, that with 6 mos. being the guide for solids, water was appropriate with meals as well as breastmilk. Is it better to delay water as well as juice? Well, I remember learning from my lactation course that breastmilk is already 75% water in itself, so there is no need to give extra water as this will load the immature kidneys which are not able to filter out the extra water? Please correct me if I'm wrong. Infants on formula feeding need the extra water because of the low water content in formula. I think that the best time to start introducing water is when the infant starts on his solids. Kathy Dettwyler wrote: The original post that got this started was the newcomer (whom we probably scared off) who posted that she couldn't convince her pediatrician that all babies were fine on exclusive breastfeeding until 6 months of age or longer. Well, don't worry Kathy, I'm not going to be scared off that easily!!! I actually learnt alot from the discissions, so once again, thank you all. Yvonne Lyn BSN,RN Penang, Malaysia *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html