sippy cup training, when do you start and how?

Question

I have a 8 month old....how do you introduce sippy cups....

Answer 1

Right now is a great time to start sippy cups. It is going to be a very useful object in your childs life, so start it early, like at 8-10 months. It is much better for them to get used to sippy cups sooner than later. Also, when he/she gets to be about 11 months old, start holing up a regular plastic cup to their mouch and let them have a couple sips of water or milk from it. (you should be holding it at all times only let them sip for a couple of seconds- you dont realize how much water cums out of a regular cup compared to their little, small-holed sippy cups

Answer 2

I would go ahead and try to introduce it. I started my babies from 6 months and they were on the sippy cup totally WELL before a year old. The reason-I didn't want their teeth to get messed up from having the bottle too long, and the sooner you can get them off the bottle, the easier it is. Just try it and see how your little one accept it. If it doesn't go over very well, then don't push it, wait a while and try agian. Put something in the cup that he/she surely loves. They will have to learn to suck it because it's different from the bottle, but if you leave out the valve just long enough for him/her to get the idea of what's in the cup, it should help-just be sure to replace the valve so your little one doesn't get choked. Hope this helps!

Answer 3

When my baby was nearly 6 months old I introduced solid foods and the ta-ta-dum! the Sippy cup with plain water. He sputtered a bit the first time because it was thinner than the milk he was used to drinking. Water is good to introduce with solid food because it cleanses the mouth somewhat of bacteria. They also need extra fluid intake to help their little bodies process the solids or they can get constipated. I held the sippy cup for him at first, then a few months later I showed him how to wrap his hands around the cup, and now he holds it all by himself (He's 10 months now). The trick is consistancy. My babe only gets a bottle when I'm not available to nurse. He gets my milk before sleep times and water from the sippy cup all other times.

Answer 4

I started sippy cup training at about 7 months. My daughter is now 9.5 months. We found that initially, the ones with valves were too difficult to use. She couldn't co-ordinate the sucking with tilting the cup and managing the handles. She's fine with them now, but at 7-8 months, the best ones were the First Years disposable sippy cups. They usually come 6 per package, quite inexpensive. They were light enough for her to hold and learn to tilt back. They were also spillproof. I still only put juice and water in her cups. She is still mostly breastfed and will only drink formula from a bottle, not a cup.

Answer 5

I have a 2 1/2 year old and an almost nine month old. I started with the sippy cups with handles and put water in them first so it's not a big mess to clean up what dribbles down their chin while they're learning. I think I started them both around 6 months. It took them both a good couple of weeks to get the hang of it. I like the Playtex sippy cups because they're the easiest to clean (in my opinion).

Answer 6

I introduced a sippy cup to my son when he was about eleven months old. he was drinking juice more often and it just made it easier to teach him using the cup with juice.

He didn't totally use the cup until he was a year old. he was completely off the bottle by then.

Answer 7

My daughter started using a sippy cup when she was almost a yr old. I started giving her water or juice at first, just a little bit. Then as she wanted a cup and not a bottle I then gave her milk in it also.

Answer 8

Now is a good time to try sippy cups. I bought a sippy cup that was also a bottle but it had a sippy cup nipple, it was really easy to get my daughter to take to that.

Answer 9

When we first introduced my son, we got "soft" sippies. The company Avent makes some really nice ones. They are spill proof but the top is like rubber, it's feels more like the top of a bottle, as opposed to going strait to the hard plastic. (though shaped like a sippy so they learn to drink from one) You can buy them at Target and Babies "R" Us, and they're not any more expensive than the rest.

It worked really well as a "transition" sippy for my son.

Answer 10

get a free flowing cup (or throw out the valve)
start with formula or water
just tip up the cup to let the child drink just like you would with a regular cup

if you decide to give juice (you cannot ever use a cup with a valve) dilute it 1:1 with water and not more than 4 oz of juice a day

if you give juice in sippy cups it causes nursing bottle syndrome http://doctorspiller.com/images/Pedo/nursingBottleSyndrome(large).jpg