Beakers & Cups For Babies
Introduce your baby to drinking from a cup or beaker from around 6 months old, and offer sips of water with meals. Using an open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve will help your baby learn to sip and is better for your baby’s teeth.
It might be messy at first but be patient, your baby will gradually learn how to drink from an open cup.
Once your baby is 1 year old, feeding from a bottle should be discouraged.
When using a bottle or trainer cup, don't put anything in it other than breast milk, formula milk or water and do not add anything else (including sugar, cereals, baby rice or chocolate powder) to the feed.
Comfort sucking from a bottle on sweetened drinks causes tooth decay in young children.
Drinks flow very slowly through a teat, which means the sugary substance will be in contact with their teeth for longer.
Choosing A Baby Beaker Or Cup
It's important to choose the right kind of beaker or cup. A cup or a beaker with a free-flow lid (without a non-spill valve) is better than a bottle or beaker with a teat as it will help your baby to learn how to sip rather than suck. As soon as your child is ready, encourage them to move from a lidded beaker to drinking from an open cup.
Information taken from the NHS website: