In a message dated 97-08-20 16:21:05 EDT, Nancy Penney writes: << "H20 Hazardous to Infants [Lifeline]." USA Today, 18 August 97, 1D. "Federal researchers report in the August [1997] issue of the 'Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine' that it is unnecessary and potentially dangerous to give water to infants. Babies less than one month old cannot quickly filter water out of their systems, and too much water can dilute the sodium in the blood, causing altered mental states, low body temperature, bloating, and seizures. " Hmmm.... What does this say about the practice of giving water in hospitals to infants? I wonder if the same comments would apply to sweetened water, to overdiluted AMB, and even to properly reconstituted ABM?>> Hyponatremia (low serum sodium) can caused by water intoxication, which can occur when an infant has an excessive water intake. This can happen when the baby is given supplemental bottles of water, but it has also occurred when infants swallow lots of pool water during the course of swimming lessons. The presenting symptom is usually convulsion, but irritability and coma can also occur. I had a patient with this syndrome once in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit where I used to work. The parents had been giving the baby lots of water bottles because they were afraid formula was making her fat. :-( Rita