Skipping the sippy cup?

[kareniswaiting]

I have a 9 month old and am interested in trying to skip the sippy cup entirely. Obviously, this is a new(er) invention and women have not always used them so I am looking for advice on ways to skip using them and go right to a cup. My son is exclusively breast fed and eating some solids. He only takes a bottle at daycare and then sparingly. They give him a sippy cup every once in a while. I don't mind, they have to watch more than once kid at a time! 

A friend of mine told me to just give him a small cup with a little water in it and let him experiment. Apparently, over the course of a few weeks, he will learn.

I appreciate your advice in advance! I am not looking for people to tell me I am crazy for wanting to do this etc. 

[Youngfrankenstein]

You certainly don't need one but you'll have to supervise.  My kids got open cups at the table for meals but I don't mind if they carry their "juice" around in a sippy cup.  If you don't want to use one, he will learn not to just dump it but I wouldn't let my kid walk around with an open water cup because it would just be dumped constantly. 

[lifeguard]

We did regular cups with water & later milk, from about 6 months on. It took a little while before he would do it on his own (as opposed to asking me to hold the cup). We kept glasses of water around but generally he only drank at meals (plus bfing). We used a water bottle with a sippy top for the car & in bed (after we nightweaned) with a strict water only rule so we never had to worry about it getting misplaced.

[katelove]

We use sports drink bottles (camelbak) whenever we don't want to be cleaning up spilt water all the time (they're great for in the car or out anywhere). At home she drinks from either an open cup or her drink bottle. We never specifically taught her to use a cup, she just copied us. I think the first drink she had from a cup was probably bath water from one of her pouring cups 

[kareniswaiting]

Thanks for the support and good ideas! I actually just got him to drink out of his new little cups today! It's just a small amount of water but he is already learning :)

[coldandsleepy]

We didn't do a water bottle until my son was much older and on the go a lot-- well after he already knew how to use a regular cup.  When he started drinking water around a year, we put it in shot glasses for him.  Not a lot to start with, like a tbsp or less.  The glass was small enough for him to hold and the quantity of water was small enough that if/when he spilled or sloshed it, it wasn't a big deal.

[eabbmom]

My doc and I both don't like sippy cups and are doing just regular cups. My baby lives drinking out of his mug and it does get messy but he is learning!

[Blanca78]

My baby (also 9 months--hi! You should stop by our DDC thread!) likes playing with the sippy cup but doesn't really get drinking out of it--with the valve in she doesn't get anything out and with the valve out she just dribbles it everywhere. So we've actually had more success getting her to take water out of little plastic cups. Like Katelove, I realized this would work when she started drinking bath water out of her pouring cups :)

So far, I just hold the cup for her and she laps at it. If I gave it to her it would be instantly all over the floor.

[Asiago]

My opinion is that you can certainly skip sippy cups. I have found that the only time I give one is when I am too lazy to closely supervise, I find them a great convenience for the parents, not sure if they were intended as such.

[Nazsmum]

Never used a sippy cup!!! I'm not saying that it was not messy at times but it was worth it. Never had a bottle either.

[katelove]

What is the disadvantage of using a sippy cup? Does the same apply to sports drink bottles? TIA

[Snapdragon]

we never used a sippy cup or a bottle. I just started giving him drinks in a regualr cup and holding it for him, I cant remeber at what age right now! He is 22 months now.

I think the disadvantage of using a sippy cup is dental- if they get  drinks through that small spout the sugar in the drink just sits on those same teeth in the front- different than it spreading around to the whole mouth. Also I found it seemed like an awkward way to drink- un natural. Like it forces the mouth into an un natural position- also a potiential dental positioning problem.  We tried bottles for a little while- like a week or so- when ds was little- but it led him to bite more when nursing so I stopped that right away! I just figured why bother w- the sippy- and also he never ran around with is own drink- I would just offer him drinks a lot in the kitchen and supervise him.

Even now at 22 months I still mostly supervise his drinking thuogh he does it really well he sometimes forgets he is holding it and spills or something!

[azhie]

When can a baby start drinking from a cup well? I'm not using bottles, so sometimes I give her water with a spoon. But I'm wondering when she can start using a cup. I'd also like to skip the sippy cup if possible.

[Nazsmum]

The best "suck" is the breast then a straw. It is more natural.  A sippy cup is different suck from a bottle. Most people think that it is the same as the bottle.  I think that most people use it to stop the mess. But is it better for the baby? Not as far as teeth and dental work? Like Snapdragon said. 

I started giving cups around the same time as solids. 7 or 8 months?

[Youngfrankenstein]

I think a sippy cup is just another choice.  Over-use of any tool can have a bad outcome.  Unless you are always giving one filled with something other than water, I don't think it will negatively affect anything.

[Blanca78]

Yeah, I personally am not concerned about it as a hazard or negative influence or anything like that--I just find it's hard to get her to drink from one; she seems to take better to a regular cup. When she's older I don't think I'll have any problem giving her a sippy cup in order to minimize messes but for now she's just not quite up to it. She does love to play with/chew on it, though.

Originally Posted by Youngfrankenstein 

I think a sippy cup is just another choice.  Over-use of any tool can have a bad outcome.  Unless you are always giving one filled with something other than water, I don't think it will negatively affect anything.

[bookwise]

i have a baby girl (also 9 months old) and we just started her with a those sippy cups with a straw in them. she's never used a bottle or a pacifier, so i didn't see any reason to start with a bottle now or the regular sippy cups. she'll often take little sips of water out of our cups, too. so far, so good.