Starting solids and sippy cup question

[@llli*indigoelectron]

My DS is almost 6 months old and is more or less exclusively breastfed - we had a nightmare to begin with and I was in pain for the first 3/4 months, so I am very proud to have made it this far!

Anyway, he is showing signs of being almost ready for solids - he's not quite there yet but I think he will be soon, and I am getting everything ready. We have a high chair and some long sleeved bibs on order, but I'm not sure what to do about a cup. I have read in various places that sippy cups are not very good for latch/dental/speech reasons etc, but I don't know how much of this is fact. I was thinking of trying the Doidy cup and will probably order one in time, but I think it will be too messy to begin with.

So I really want to know what people on here think of sippy cups, and whether or not they are ok. We had awful latch problems and his latch still leaves a lot to be desired (he doesn't flange his lips well or open his mouth very wide, he seems to dislike having a lot of breast tissue in his mouth, and he makes a terrible mess when he has the odd bottle!), so I am very cautious about introducing anything that might make it worse.

If I do get a sippy cup, which might be the best for us? I have looked at the Nuby and Nuk ones, are they any good?

Thanks!

[@llli*mommal]

I wouldn't over think this yet. At 6 months, your baby's latch might not look fabulous but as long as it is effective- i.e. baby nurses well enough to get his nutritional needs met- then therer's probably no reason to fear that a sippy cup will wreck it. And babies who are just starting with solids actually don't need fluids other than breastmilk. So you can save the sippies for a few months from now.

[@llli*sb]

We didn't go the sippy cup route. Our pediatrician suggested a straw cup and we got the Zoli cup. It's a little pricey for a cup but it works. My son loves it and will drink his morning milk (about 4 ounces) with my baby sitter. I think it makes him feel independent. There is little waste since the straw "follows the drink" since it is weighted.

BPA and phalate free.

[@llli*stonesmom]

Wanted to jump on here because I had a similar question

We just started DS on solids (he's 7months) pretty much just for fun and experimentation--he's getting a few tablespoons a day (and some days none at all) of fruits and veggies.

I've seen a LOT of posts regarding sippy cups and it got me thinking if this is something I'm supposed to be doing because I hadn't even thought of it to be honest. I always assumed he'd just nurse and take bottles until he was ready to wean?? Is the sippy cup for breastmilk or other liquids? I also hadn't considered giving other liquids because I though milk was all he'd need until at least 12mo.

What's the norm?

[@llli*adasmom]

Wanted to jump on here because I had a similar question

We just started DS on solids (he's 7months) pretty much just for fun and experimentation--he's getting a few tablespoons a day (and some days none at all) of fruits and veggies.

I've seen a LOT of posts regarding sippy cups and it got me thinking if this is something I'm supposed to be doing because I hadn't even thought of it to be honest. I always assumed he'd just nurse and take bottles until he was ready to wean?? Is the sippy cup for breastmilk or other liquids? I also hadn't considered giving other liquids because I though milk was all he'd need until at least 12mo.

What's the norm?

I would also like to know...not sure what the deal is with sippy cups...how do they affect breastfeeding? My LO always reaches for our glasses/bottles of whatever my husband and I are drinking; is it ok to put EBM in a sippy cup just for fun? She nurses and gets bottles of EBM when I'm at work. We have a sippy cup, I'm just not sure if I should be using it? DD is 6 months, just starting solids as well.

[@llli*mommal]

Sippy cups are more of a parenting convenience than a necessary developmental step. They have 2 benefits. First, you can give a baby a sippy without worrying about the baby spilling fluid everywhere. Second, the spout of a sippy doesn't have the same "suckability" that a bottle does, so baby is unlikely to become deeply attached to sippies as comfort objects, which is something that often happens with bottles.

After 6 months, you can safely introduce a sippy at mealtimes. It's a toy that will keep baby occupied, and you can use it to get baby used to the taste of water and also use it to give additional breastmilk, if you want. (No juice or soda; bad for baby's new teeth!) A sippy is much less likely to impact breastfeeding than a bottle is.

All that being said, there is no real need to offer a sippy or really any fluid other than breastmilk until the baby is much closer to 12 months. Once the baby is 12 months, though, you want to work towards breaking the bottle habit and transitioning to an open cup or sippy. Because of the way babies suck on bottles, and the way bottles deliver fluid, bottles can allow fluid to pool in the mouth, which can be hard on a baby's teeth, particularly at night. Also, there's the judgment aspect- if your 1 year-old isn't weaned from a bottle, people will shrug and assume you're working on it. If your 2 year-old isn't bottle-weaned, they'll . If your 3, 4, or 5 year-old isn't weaned from the bottle... Oh boy, you're probably in for some scolding from nosy strangers.

[@llli*mammi]

I agree with mommal it is just another toy/convenience.
We used an open cup to offer water from about 7 months, i bought a small unbreakable cup with two handles, and it was fine. and actually very soon he wanted to use an unbreakable "glass", like mom and dad. I manly introduced it because he wanted to drink from a cup or glass. We tried sippy cups (NUK and MAM) but honestly it was not worth it, he prefered the more "adult" open cup, rejected the sippy, and learned VERY quickly not to spill from the open cup, by about 7 or 8 months. I did not fill it much, just a centmetre/finger high so would not be a disaster if it was spilled.
If this topic interests you, there is a whole "school of thought" on this, look on the web for Emmi Pikler - although i need to add that I am not an ardent advocate of all her teachings, and especially some of her criticism of baby carrying etc i find wrong, but I found a number her guiding principles which relate to letting the child explore and become mobile in their own time and feed in their own time really very useful.

[@llli*adasmom]

Thanks for the insight ladies! I was afraid a sippy cup might be easier than the bottle. I'm having trouble getting my DD to nurse at the breast because she seems to prefer the ease of the bottles that DH gives her when I'm at work. I might try a sippy cup and see how she responds. I think she would enjoy it.