Too much water nearly kills infant; too many judgmental people can kill the spirit
We're sure plenty of Mommas have read the nightmare story about the Tampa mother who was adding water to her baby’s formula to stretch it because money is tight. The extra water, which causes a baby's sodium levels to drop to dangerous levels, caused seizures and the baby nearly drowned.
Now, we Mommas know that too much water for an infant is bad. But we are hearing lots of folks say they never knew that it was a problem. If you have access to a pediatrician, your OB/GYN or your own Momma, that person will tell you not to give water to your infant. A little bit here and there after they are on solids at 6 months or so, but cups of it alone or in diluted formula for a child under 1 is just a recipe for disaster.
While we find this story troubling, what we really think stinks is all the people who commented on the story that this woman was crazy, didn’t use common sense and deserved what she nearly did to her child. Yep, don’t look for them under the story. They were so offensive, they couldn’t be approved.
Instead of accusing her of being too dumb to allow her child to live, why don’t we find a way to help people who fall through the cracks and can’t find the help they need? In these tough economic times, extreme poverty and lack of knowledge may put lives in danger.
In this season of giving and sharing, put your money where your snarky mouth is and dial 211. That's the nationwide clearinghouse for people in need of social services. They can also give you the numbers and addresses of places to donate formula and food for the poor in your area.
-- Sherry Robinson and Sharon Kennedy Wynne
[Times photo by Atoyia Deans of Jeri Moss, 23, her daughter Yasmine Barton, 18 months, with bottle and her son La'Damian Barton, 5 months, who suffered a seizure after drinking too much water in his diluted formua]