Is Alkaline Water Good for Babies? A Science-Backed Answer

Last updated Nov 29, 2021

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Is alkaline water good for babies? If you own a water ionizer, alkaline water filter pitcher, or other alkaline water filtration systems, you’re most likely interested in knowing the answer to this question.

In today’s guide, I share all the information you need to know before you decide to give your little bundle of joy alkaline water.

Is Alkaline Water Good for Babies can babies drink alkaline water

Since the answer to this question is more complex than a simple “yes” or “no,” I’ve decided to break my guide into several parts starting with the most important.

Now, let’s begin.

Is alkaline water good for babies?

For the first six months of your baby’s life, he or she should drink breast milk or formula only. There’s absolutely no need – and you shouldn’t – give your baby alkaline water.

To highlight: For the first 6 months of your baby’s life, he or she should not drink water, especially alkaline water since it doesn’t benefit your baby’s health in any way.

Once your baby is past 6-months-old, he or she can start to have tiny sips of water. Even then, it’s best to give your baby purified neutral pH water, not alkaline water.

Remember, the reason adults drink alkaline ionized water is to reverse the effects of years – or even decades – of excess acidity in our diets.

I began drinking alkaline ionized water to reverse a nasty case of heartburn that wouldn’t go away, and it worked. To this day, I drink alkaline ionized water every day because I love the way it tastes and makes me feel.

The point is that your baby is not suffering from too much acidity. For this reason, purified neutral pH water is best for a baby.

The Best Water to Mix Baby Formula

If you’re taking the baby formula route instead of breastfeeding, it’s recommended to avoid water with fluoride in it.

Alkaline or ionized water is not a good choice for mixing baby formula.

A reverse osmosis water system is a better option since it removes all minerals, including fluoride, from your tap water.

Also, distilled water is a common choice among parents. You can pick up jugs of distilled water in most supermarkets.

Can babies drink alkaline water?

Babies up to 6-months-old need all the nutrients they can get from breast milk or their formula.

When a baby drinks water, his or her little tummy fills up faster than an adult’s, which makes a baby feel full.

If a baby drinks too much water, the baby’s sodium levels drop, which makes it difficult for the baby to absorb nutrients. This can lead to serious health consequences.

The key takeaway: It’s best for a baby to receive a steady stream of nutrients from breast milk or formula without any interference.

Should pregnant or nursing women drink alkaline water?

This question is trickier than the one for babies.

I’m no doctor, but I say no to this. It’s best to err on the side of caution for everything when it comes to your baby’s health.

However, during my research on alkaline water products, I’ve come across several reviews written by expectant mothers who drank alkaline water without any complications.

Here are some points to consider:

  • A lot of tap water is slightly alkaline, and surely pregnant women all over the world are drinking it without any problems.
  • Water that is slightly alkaline between pH 7 and 8.5 is safe for everyone to drink because it’s a normal pH for water.
  • Always remember, it’s just water! Clean water with a slightly alkaline pH isn’t going to hurt anyone.
  • The key is to drink pure water that’s free of contaminants: bacteria, viruses, cysts, VOCs, heavy metals, and other nasties we don’t want to drink.

How to Use Your Water Ionizer While Pregnant

Do you own a water ionizer? If you do, perhaps you’re accustomed to drinking alkaline ionized water with a pH of 9.5.

Pregnant and nursing women can simply lower the pH to between 7 and 8.5 on their water ionizers.

All quality water ionizers give you the option to adjust the pH of your ionized water.

All quality ionizers also come with a purified water setting that has a neutral pH. This water is safe to drink for everyone.

The great part about premium ionizers is they come with premium water filters. You can be sure that you’re drinking water that’s super pure when you own a premium ionizer.

For example, the three top brands I recommend – AlkaViva, Tyent, and Life Ionizers – have all posted lab results for their water filters.

You can read my in-depth reviews for all of their ionizers by going to the top of this page and clicking “Ionizer Reviews.”

AlkaViva’s filters remove 172 known water contaminants to virtually undetectable levels.

Tyent’s filters have a .01 micron filtration level, which is the same level used in kidney dialysis machines.

The point is that a water ionizer is still great to have around for pregnant women, women who are nursing, and babies once they’re old enough to start drinking water.

The pH of Breast Milk

Here’s another reason why your baby shouldn’t drink high alkaline water and doesn’t need it.

I found an interesting study involving 52 women who delivered at term and fed their babies breast milk for at least the first ten months.

The average pH of their breast milk started at 7.45 before dropping to 7.04 by week 2.

Up until month 3, their breast milk stayed between pH 7.0 and 7.1.

Here’s the interesting part: Starting after 3 months, the pH of their milk slowly raised to 7.4 by month 10.

I think this is a great reference for women to follow when considering the best water pH for their babies.

The results of the study show that babies prefer a neutral pH or slightly alkaline pH.

Another interesting takeaway is the participants’ breast milk didn’t go below pH 7 or a neutral pH.

This reinforces the idea that humans aren’t meant to drink water with a pH below 7.

Why You Should Avoid Alkaline Water Pitchers and Countertop Systems for Babies

Earlier in the article, I mentioned how reverse osmosis water and distilled water is best for mixing formula because it’s fluoride-free. Reverse osmosis water is free of all minerals.

Why is this important?

There are several reasons why you should avoid giving your baby alkaline water from a filter pitcher or countertop system:

  • These types of filters add minerals to your water to raise the pH. The TDS (total dissolved solids) reading of water filtered through these types of filters is most likely too high for babies.
  • It’s difficult to control the pH of your alkaline water with these types of filters. Depending on the pH of your tap water, you don’t know what the resulting pH could be from these filter types. I’ve seen several pitchers that raise the pH to 9.5 or higher, and this is definitely too high for babies and pregnant/nursing women.
  • Most of these filters don’t remove fluoride. Fluoride removal is tricky and controversial since some people want it while others don’t. Since you don’t want to mix water with fluoride with your formula, there are better options.

While I do think these types of alkaline filters are good for adults who want to test how alkaline ionized water makes them feel, they definitely aren’t good for babies – or necessary.

That’s one of the main advantages of owning a water ionizer: you can control the pH of your alkaline water. This feature becomes even more important for babies.

Bottom Line: Avoid alkaline water filter pitchers and other types of alkaline water filtration systems that aren’t ionizers for babies and toddlers. The mineral content and pH could easily be too high for babies and toddlers.

At what age can your children start to drink alkaline water?

Remember, water that is slightly alkaline is 100% normal.

It’s once you go above pH 8.5 that water becomes more alkaline than what’s found in nature.

For example, Evamor artesian water is bottled at the source and has a natural pH between 8.8 and 9.1.

Do you think water found in nature could possibly harm someone? I know I don’t.

I’ve spent many hours and late nights researching alkaline ionized water, and I have yet to read a report written by a real person who experienced negative side effects.

However, there are plenty of skeptics out there who will tell you that alkaline water is dangerous. Water will become dangerous when pigs fly.

The point is that once your children are old enough to drink water, slightly alkaline water won’t harm them.

The EPA recommends a pH of between 6.5 to 8.5 in its National Secondary Drinking water Regulations, and this is only a recommendation, not a rule.

In other words, it’s safe for your children – who are older than 6 months – to drink pH 8.5 water.

I drink alkaline ionized water every day that has a pH between 8 and 9.5. Water in this pH range did the trick for me to reverse my heartburn.

Since babies rarely have reflux disease, it’s best for them to stay closer to a neutral pH.

Final Thoughts

Is alkaline water good for babies? Can babies drink alkaline water? While the answers to these questions are open to debate, all roads in my book point to no.

The one conclusion I stand behind 100% is that acidic water isn’t good for anyone, including babies.

The breast milk study was enough to prove that to me.

There’s no reason for babies to drink alkaline water for the health benefits that adults are after.

Remember, most adults who drink alkaline water for its health benefits are trying to reverse years (or decades) of accumulated acidity and toxins in the body.

Acidic problems can occur because of an acidic diet (low in fruits and veggies) and years of drinking acidic tap water or bottled water.

Conclusion: Once your baby is old enough to drink water (older than 6 months), don’t go above the EPA-recommended upper limit of pH 8.5. Personally, I wouldn’t go above 8 because I like to play it extra safe for babies.

Plus, remember, a baby isn’t going to experience the same alkaline water benefits as an adult.

By this point, I think you know everything you need to know about alkaline water for babies.