Training Bottles
Sippy cups and training bottles are meant to do one thing above all: make drinking easier for toddlers. But are sippy cups really useful — or is a regular cup enough for learning to drink?
When your baby gradually switches to solid food, it needs additional fluids alongside breast milk or infant formula. Especially as the urge for independent eating and drinking grows, so-called sippy cups or training bottles are a great option between 6 and 18 months of age. The earlier your child starts drinking normally, the faster it learns to handle the larger amount of liquid in its mouth and swallow it.
Are sippy cups useful?
Drinking from a regular glass or cup isn't actually that easy for a toddler in terms of motor skills: the glass has to be guided safely to the mouth with the hands, and the right angle of tilt has to be judged so that neither too much nor too little flows out of the glass. After that, the glass has to be set back down from the mouth without any liquid still spilling out — and finally placed safely back on the table.
Pretty tricky! And especially in the first few months of learning to drink, it's hardly possible without mom or dad's help — and without a fair amount of spills and broken glass.
Compared to a regular glass, a sippy cup offers many advantages:
The drinking spout: The drinking spout (ideally drip-free) makes the transition from drinking out of a baby bottle to normal drinking easier and is shaped differently depending on age. For the youngest, from 6 months, a drinking spout is a good option. It's wider than a bottle nipple and can easily be closed around with the mouth — so the liquid reliably reaches the mouth from any drinking position. For older children from 12 months, depending on their skill level, there are also cups with a drinking rim, a straw, or a sport spout.
The cup/bottle: The cup or bottle body is made of shatterproof, lightweight material. This is usually the plastic polypropylene (PP). The controversial substance bisphenol A (BPA) does not occur in PP bottles — so they're BPA-free from the outset. The advantage of sippy cups and training bottles made of plastic: they're unbreakable and very lightweight! Whether at home or out and about in the stroller: the sippy cup survives many a fall to the ground — without leaving behind any dangerous broken pieces.
The handles: Many sippy cups come with removable handles that help your little one grip and hold the sippy cup easily. Replacement handles are also available for some models.
Which drinks are suitable for babies?
The ideal thirst quencher for babies and toddlers is not-too-cold still mineral water or good-quality tap water. The earlier you can get your child used to it, the better — because sugar, flavorings, and coloring agents aren't ideal for healthy development. Unsweetened herbal teas are also recommended. Fruit juices should be diluted with water at a ratio of 1:2 — and offered only occasionally.
To keep a close eye on your little one while they learn to drink, a high chair is ideal.
