Hi there! If your baby is about 6 months old and ready to transition to something other than breast or bottle, then you are in the right place!
My name is Karli and I currently have two toddlers and an eleven-year-old. I've gone through so many different cups and read all the research. Did you know that sippy cups can negatively affect your toddler? Honestly, when I bought my first sippy cup, I wondered why they were ever made in the first place. Don't they just look like glorified bottles? I am all about saving money and not buying useless items. So, I did some research. Keep reading to find out what I learned and what you can use instead of sippy cups that will actually aide your child's development instead of hindering it.
The Issue with Sippies
Let's jump right into the issue with the glorified bottle. Just FYI, I am not a medical professional for humans. This information comes from the research I have done. If you have any concerns, always consult your pediatrician. With that said...
Did you know your baby uses their tongue differently when drinking from a bottle or a breast than when eating sitting up? It makes sense really. When you lay down, you need to move your tongue a certain way in order to drink and still be able to breathe. Mature swallowing involves your tongue touching the roof of your mouth and moving food and drink to the back of your mouth.
Think about your tongue right now. Naturally, it is pressed up against the roof of your mouth with the main contact point being right behind your upper front teeth. Now, with your mouth closed, try to push your tongue down to the bottom of your mouth. Doesn't that feel weird?
Remember the first time you gave your baby a puree? They try to suck it off the spoon. And as cute as it is to see their tongue out like that, eventually they have to learn how to move their tongue inside their mouth.
Lifting a sippy cup into the air still requires the suckling motion like a bottle. Moreso, a sippy cup with a hard spout blocks the tongue from touching the roof of the mouth at all. So, the muscles that are needed for eating and drinking will not be worked as much as they need to be. Those muscles not being worked as often can lead to your child not being able to swallow as well which increases the risk for choking.
Those muscles are also important for speech. The way the tongue moves has everything to do with how well your kid will be able to talk and pronounce words. Prolonged use of sippy cups, bottles, and pacifiers can cause speech delays for children for this reason.
Okay, so, no sippy cups. But, I can agree that open cups are a pain for small children or rather the creators of the small children. They made this cup several years ago called the 360 cup. Let's see if that's a good option.
360 cup: Good or Bad?
A 360 cup seemed like a good option at first. If you don't know what they are, it is a cup that resembles an open cup. It has a lid with a silicone topper that when sucked on, the liquid would escape between the hard plastic lid and the silicone topper. When you flip them upside-down, the silicone suctions to the plastic to create a "spill-proof" cup.
The cup really is intriguing. When I first looked at one, I was surprised to see how they worked. And I did buy one for my child before doing any research. Honestly, this cup seems less harmful than the sippy cup but experts still recommend against it, and here's why.
This cup claims to make the transition from bottle to open cup a mess-free breeze. However, to get the liquid out of this cup, the child must suck somewhat forcefully. This causes the lips to press down harder than normal and in the incorrect position while also jutting the jaw forward. Another issue is when the cup has a low amount of liquid in it, the child has to lift the cup higher and feels the need to suck harder which opens the airway up for aspiration.
Does it help in the transition to an open cup as marketed? Not really. The child doesn't have to worry about tipping the cup slowly. Imagine the mess that creates when you present your child with a true open cup. The lip position is unnatural and the tongue movement isn't right either.
But, is this cup the worst option? No. However, it certainly isn't a great option when used daily and especially throughout the day. The small changes in lip and jaw placement can make a big difference in the long run when used often. In a pinch, it won't hurt your child immediately. If it is all you can find when you go on a trip or when you are at an event, it will be okay like most things when used in moderation. Just don't make it a habit.
Alright, well surely there has to be an option that is accepted and recommended!
The Straw (said in Toy Story alien voice)
A straw cup and an open cup are really the only recommended options for drinking after bottle and breast. Experts even recommend introducing an open cup with a tiny amount of liquid in it starting at 6 months! To me, that was a little much. And to my babies, it was a blast! While they were in their high chairs eating, they could have an open cup. Any other time, a straw cup worked best.
The benefits of straw cups are many. The muscles that it takes to close your mouth around a straw are the same muscles used to create many different sounds. If the muscles are used in the correct way every day, your child will gain a head start in their learning to pronounce words correctly.
The straw also does not enter your mouth very far. Thus, does not interfere with tongue movement. Your child must use the correct tongue motion to get the liquid from the front of the mouth to the throat. The risk of choking is cut significantly when the right movements are being constantly utilized. Win win!
The last great aspect of the straw cup is that it doesn't affect the tooth alignment at all. My two year old might still use a pacifier, but at least I know that her teeth aren't affected by multiple factors, and that is enough for this mama.
The Buying Options
Alright so, hold your tatas because this one's gonna hurt. Remember when you were leaking milk all the time? Maybe for some that was 20 minutes ago and maybe for some that was 2 years ago. Regardless, some of these "spill proof" cups still leak EVERYWHERE! And I thought my milk leaking days were over.
I have gone though countless straw cups to find the best options and I am going to let you in on those secrets to save your sanity.
Once they have that concept down, you can switch to a cup without a valve in the straw, like this one. This cup WILL LEAK, so it is really just a training cup to get your baby to understand the use of a straw. They will figure out how to suck while facing downwards instead of lifting their head, and they will learn how to move the liquid to their throat.
It is essential to start with a cup that does not have a leak proof valve. The valve makes sucking harder which might turn your baby away from using it. We must first make it easy, then we can make it spill proof.
Next, you will want a weighted straw. The weighted straw is more for the toddler age, or the age where you will give them the cup and they will try to tilt it up like a bottle. With some encouragement, they will leave the cup down like they are supposed to. However, the weighted straw will stay in the liquid while baby is getting the hang of it so that they aren't getting overly frustrated or asking for more unnecessarily.
These cups typically do have the valve straw and take a little more sucking to get the liquid than an open straw would. But, the beauty is that it is leak-proof.... for the most part.
I say "for the most part" because these cups will eventually start to leak liquid out of the straw. Like it will be sitting on the counter and liquid will slowly move up the straw and out around the cup. I believe it has something to do with pressure and temperature of the liquid. But, basically the straw turns into a geyser and it is a bit annoying. Once your child is used to the straw concept and leaving the cup down instead of tipping it up to drink, you can move onto my favorite cups which leak a lot less and not at all.
Zak Brand
The Zak brand is one of my favorite cups. They are easy to clean and come in all sorts of designs that are fun for the kids. You can also pick them up at Target which is always a win. I do notice that the "geyser" effect does happen sometimes with these as well but not nearly as bad as the other brands. Use this promo code: 1LY18IIONV36 to get 10% off your Amazon order for the Bluey Cups!
They also have the stainless steel version which is my favorite. They keep the cold milk cold for hours which can be a life-saver at times!
Contigo Brand
Contigo also makes a great cup with a rigid straw. These cups are great for traveling or out in public in general because you can cover the spout to protect from germs. They have a button which kids think are pretty cool as well. I have never seen a leak from one of these cups so they definitely win a prize for that!
If you have a back pack that straps to the stroller, you can also clip the cup to that strap if needed.
If you've read this far, I hope you've learned a thing or two. As a mom of two toddlers, I am constantly learning what to do and what not to do and I love sharing along the way. Whether your baby is currently on sippy cups, or ready to start adding new skills, an open cup or straw cup is the way to go from here on out!
Make sure to follow my Pinterest account for new posts every Friday so you can learn along side me with minimal effort!
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