From bottle to cup

When to introduce a cup?

• At six months, if possible, encourage parents to introduce their baby to a lidded beaker (preferably without a valve) and it will be much easier to move them on to a cup over the next few months
• Drinking from a cup or beaker is much better for a baby’s teeth and also helps with speech development 
• They should aim to wean their baby from bottles completely by the end of the first year as bottle-sucking can become a habit that’s hard to break 

How?

The following tips can help make the transition easier:

• To avoid distraction, keep bottles out of sight when drinks are offered from a cup
• Try replacing one bottle with a cup at one meal in the day when the baby is not tired. Try water or diluted fruit juices at mealtimes
• The baby should be seated upright at a table before being offered something to drink. This encourages a good drinking position and puts the cup at the right starting height
• Once they get used to using a cup for one meal during the day, replace another daytime bottle with a cup
• Replace the bottle the baby is most reliant on last. For most babies, this will be the last bottle of the day before bedtime

Types of cup

• Non-spill lidded beaker (these have a valve in them to prevent any spills and therefore still require the baby to suck) 
• Free-flow lidded beaker
• Child-friendly cup (small and unbreakable)