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Home › Articles › Toddler Nutrition › Ceasing the Sippy Cup

Ceasing the Sippy Cup

Tips for Making the Transition

By Renee Roberson

Pages:  1  2  3  

  • For a toddler who is a little older (such as 2 years or more) parents can start preparing the child for the "loss" of the sippy cup. First the parent has to stand firm with removing the cup and start telling the toddler that "pretty soon, the sippy cup will be all done and you'll have a new cup!" Give the child choices as to what kind of regular cup they prefer to use, such as using one with a favorite character on it. This choice gives the child the feeling of being listened to and being respected. When the sippy cup is finally removed and the child asks for it, the parent can say sympathetically, "I know you would like your sippy cup, but now you have a new cup," to help make the transition a little more upbeat.

    • "My daughter is 17 months old and we are now starting to let her drink out of regular cups with a small amount of liquid so she can 'drink like a big girl'," says Connie Barbour from Smithfield, N.C., whose daughter started using sippy cups around 1 year of age.

    For the parents of toddlers who are still using sippy cups, Hunke recommends that unless the cup is being used at mealtime, the cup should only contain water to help reduce the risk of cavities. And at naptime or bedtime, the cup should also only be filled with water.

    By using the sippy cup merely as a transitional tool from bottle to regular cup, parents can help prevent their toddler from becoming attached to a sippy cup and developing possible speech problems and unnecessary dental decay. As with most phases of development in your child's life, a little understanding and a lot of love can help make the move much easier on everyone involved, and your toddler will soon be using a regular cup like the grown-up boy or girl they're destined to become.

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