Disclosure :: This post was written by Dr. Anita Gouri of Lafayette Pediatric Dentistry.
What’s The Best Sippy Cup? A Pediatric Dentist’s Perspective
The multitude of cups on display in the store these days can be overwhelming! Did you know that certain types of sippy cups can be detrimental to your child’s oral health and development? Fortunately there’s only one sippy style we recommend: the straw sippy cup. Just a simple straw, with no valves inside that require the child to bite down first, is truly the best for your child’s oral and facial development. Here’s why:
Like many other milestones, the way your child sucks and swallows matures as they grow. We switch from crawling to walking, babbling to speaking. Similarly, infants have a different suck/swallow pattern than toddlers. Around age 1, infants need to be able to raise their tongue to the top of the mouth, behind their top front teeth, to achieve a mature swallow pattern. This is where the tongue makes a “wave” like motion to move the liquid towards the throat for swallowing. A straw cup encourages this pattern. The design of a “spout” style sippy cup, whether it’s hard or soft, is prohibitive to tongue-raising. It keeps the tongue depressed to the bottom of the mouth, just like a bottle, maintaining a more immature, wave-less suck/swallow pattern.
The addition of spill-proof valves inside the spout adds another dimension of inappropriate muscles movements. These cups require the tongue and sometimes the lower jaw to “thrust” forward to help obtain the liquid, which sometimes causes your child to have their tongue resting perpetually forward in their mouth throughout the day. Studies have shown that these improper patterns can affect the development of your child’s speech as well as the growth of their jaws!
Whenever we can afford to make a mess, it’s also important to have your child drink from a plain open cup as much as possible, which also promotes the mature swallow.
When we need some spill protection, and I tell many parents about the straw sippy, I often receive a look that says “Yeah ok Dr. Gouri. You do you but I have no time to clean up the mess!” Fear not! There are plenty of spill proof straw cups on the market now that do not have the valves inside the straw to work around! We recommend these:
Dr. Brown’s wide neck sippy straw bottle
Thermos Kids’ FUNtainer (for older kids—it’s heavier)
Many children have difficulty with straw sippies and prefer the spout. We understand this issue. It’s important to keep trying the straw cup—it takes some getting used to. If difficulty persists, there may be an underlying issue with your child’s tongue that we can certainly help with here at Lafayette Pediatric Dentistry.
As always, with ANY style of cup, be it straw or open or bottle or spout, what’s INSIDE the cup matters. Studies show that children who frequently sip on juice or sweetened liquids at night or throughout the day get decay! Please avoid putting anything other than water in your child’s cup for prolonged or frequent sipping.
For more information on sippy cups or if your child is having difficulty transitioning to a straw cup, don’t hesitate to reach out to Lafayette Pediatric Dentistry! 337-443-9944!
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Other Dental Related Topics that May Be of Interest ::
- Why Does My Child Have White Spots on Their Teeth?
- What if My Kid Freaks Out at the Dentist?
- Tips on Weaning Your Little One From Thumb & Finger Sucking
- Sleep Disordered Breathing: More Common Than You Think!
- Why Take X-Rays Routinely at the Dentist?
- Teething Toddler Woes: Tips and Tricks For Relief
- The Most Common Causes of Cavities
- Four Reasons Moms Should Reconsider Fruit Snacks
- Why Is My Child Grinding Their Teeth At Night?
- The Truth About Tongue and Lip-Ties
- The Most Common Causes Of Discolored Teeth
About the Author
Dr. Anita Gouri, a pediatric dentist, has been practicing in Lafayette for 10 years and is the owner of Lafayette Pediatric Dentistry. She graduated from LSU School of Dentistry in 2006, receiving honors including Outstanding Achievement in Pediatric Dentistry, Honors in Research, and the Carl A. Baldridge Academic Scholarship. She completed her residency in pediatric dentistry at Children’s National Medical Center in Washington DC in 2008 and became a board certified diplomate of the American Board of Pediatric Dentistry in 2009. In 2010, her research on dental pain assessment was published in Pediatric Dentistry. She also has specialized training in treating babies and children who have tongue and lip ties. She is a member of the Academy of Laser Dentistry, American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, the Louisiana Dental Association, the Southwestern Society of Pediatric Dentistry, American Dental Association, as well as the C. Edmund Kells and Omicron Kappa Upsilon Dental Honor Societies. Dr. Gouri, her husband, and their two children enjoy travel, Saints football, good food and good friends.
