Sippy Cup Vs. Normal Cup - the debate...reasons Why You Did Either?

I just wanted to say that the stage one cups are bad for you kids teeth. Biting down on the hard top is bad for the growth of teeth. I have a better suggestion. Since you daughter knows the cup concept there is a cup by playtex calls the Drink Up Cup. It looks a regular cup but has a spill proof top on it to prevent spills. There is also another cup called the Cool Sipster. It is a spill proof tumbler (looks like moms travel cup but spill proof.)The magic trainer is also an excellent chioice.

Hmm. I haven't heard the developmental argument before, but every adult in my office and on the train on the way to work carries the adult version of a "sippy cup" and it doesn't seem to have done them any harm.

As for the physical dangers . . . I'm not a doctor, but I just don't see the logic of it. Unless your child carries the cup around all day sucking on it, how could a total of 5 minutes a day drinking from a sippy cup possibly hurt their development??

The usual argument I hear about sippies is similar to the argument I hear about pacifiers - for some reason, some adults get spazzy on these topics. Go ahead and let your child have their paci or their cup - it will be a good way to filter out the busybody moms you don't need in your life anyway (joke! kind of.) I truly think this one is much ado about nothing.

They may not help oral development, but in a normal child I don't think they hurt anything either. My 2 1/2 y.o. just stopped nursing, I started him on a sippy when he was about 6 months, although he didn't really start drinking out of it for real until he was closer to a year. He still uses a sippy sometimes when he wants a drink to carry around with him. He was slow to learn how to use a straw, but now he can do any of these and also drinks out of a regular cup as well.

We used the playtex cups when he got older, but used the Nuby ones at first as they are soft and flexible, more like a cross between a bottle and a sippy.

There's a sippy cup debate? Really? I started a sippy cup at about 9.5 months. Filled it with formula or water (by this time I had stopped breastfeeding). I continued with bottle feedings too though. By 13 months my daughter was used to sippy cups and we traded in her bottle for a sippy full time. We used playtex cups, I think??

My daughter is now 3 and uses a regular plastic cup or paper ones. Sometimes I still use her toddler sippy cups (ones with straws). She usually gets to choose what she wants...makes her feel like she's got some power!!

Good luck!

Ok - I will swear by Avent Magic Trainer. First visit teh website www.onestepahead.com they have amazing products for babies and toddlers. In the search just type sippy cups. Avents magic trainer will come up. View the product and also read how other moms rated this product before you buy it. My son had these up intill his first birthday. Then I switched him to Pottery Barn Kids cooler mugs with a straw. They look like daddy's cooler mugs fitted with a straw. They are easy for kids to use - and you can freeze them. Let me know what you think of the website and feel free to ask me any questions.
M. - mom of one 4 yr old boy

Call me lazy, but I didn't want ONE MORE THING to break my baby of....=)

Sippy cups are very similar to bottles/nipples and therefore, while they are ok to use for the first 18 months or so in most children, it is beneficial to switch to straw and regular as soon as possible. Children with speech delays are encouraged from making the switch sooner or from not using sippy cups at all.

Using them for longer periods is probably not harmful as long as the child is still being taught to use a regular cup.

Sippy cups have their purpose - great for the transition time and excellent to prevent spills.

I started my son on the sippy cup (avent) and he had no problem. When I was drinking, he would always grab for my glass. I let him try it and he learned how to drink from a regular cup very early. I am glad that he can do both. I won't have to wean him off of the sippy, but it is nice that he will take one. They are convienant and do prevent spills.

I have a friend that never tried to give her son a regular cup, he always had a sippy. One day I was babysitting him and gave him a small plastic cup of water at lunch time. He had no clue how to drink from it. He was 3 years old.

I think being able to do both is best.

Hello,
Just thought I'd add my 2 cents. My first son's speech therapist has a strong preference to avoid sippy cups altogether because they "all" can interfere with normal oral motor development. Breastfeeding helps develop normal oral motor function and if you want to avoid spills using a straw is considered much better than a sippy cup. Note: this was not what caused my son's problem (he had a stroke in utero). That being said, his therapist does not have kids and with my 2nd child (now 14 months) I made a point of introducing an open cup before a sippy cup and he now drinks very well from an open cup. Also, one other thing to keep in mind is that our dentist recommended never giving juice from a sippy cup (only water) due to an increased risk for tooth decay.

Oh my gosh....

All the debate over small stuff. This is crazy!!! What did our parents do when we were young. We survived!
We have these high paid people out there with nothing else to do except try and find ways to make us consumers to spend our money on more and more products!
Think of it this way. How many kids have you come across that have a speech problem?? I am pretty sure it's not from a cup that this has happened! I am not a doctor (they are called a practice so....they practice on you as well.) I just go with what my instincts tell me about my children. I used sippy cups, when the kids wanted a drink of mine they used my cup they learn everything they learn because you teach them when the appropriate time arises.

Best of luck to you!

Hi C.,

What is the debate? Just curious. My daughter never really took to a bottle - I nursed for the first year, but at 6 months started her on a sippy cupas well and it was an easy transition. We used several kinds - the ones I liked best are really inexpensive - they're from First Years. They are assorted colors and I believe 6 in a package. Target, Dominick's, Babies R Us all have them.

I do not mean to sound condescending, but.... do not sweat the small stuff! It does not matter! Do what works best for you and your daughter.