From Breast or Bottle to Cup: Helping Your Baby Learn to Drink with Confidence
Transitioning from breast or bottle feeding to cup drinking is an important milestone in your baby’s feeding journey. Whether your baby has been breastfed, bottle fed, or a combination of both, learning to drink from a cup requires a new set of skills. Understanding how babies learn to manage liquids-and why cup choice matters-can make this transition smoother and more successful.
As a paediatric speech and language therapist specialising in feeding, I often support families through this stage. In this blog, I’ll explain why flow rate is so important, why open (free-flow) cups are beneficial, and how you can gently teach your baby to drink from an open cup.
Why Transition from Breast or Bottle to a Cup?
Most babies are developmentally ready to start learning cup drinking from around 6 months, alongside the introduction of solid foods. This is not about stopping breast or bottle feeding immediately, but about introducing a new skill.
Learning to drink from a cup supports:
Development of mature oral motor skills
Better coordination of lips, tongue, and jaw
Progression away from sucking-based feeding patterns
Healthy feeding and swallowing development
Breastfeeding, bottle feeding, and cup drinking all use different oral motor patterns. Cup drinking needs to be taught and practised.
Understanding Flow Rate: Why It Matters
Flow rate refers to how quickly liquid comes out of the breast, bottle, or cup.
When babies breastfeed, they actively control milk flow by coordinating sucking, swallowing, and breathing. Bottle feeding often provides a faster, more continuous flow with less effort. Many cups—especially “training” cups—can also deliver liquid too quickly.
When flow is too fast:
Babies may gulp, cough, or splutter
Swallowing can become poorly coordinated
Babies rely on passive drinking rather than active control
A slower, controllable flow allows your baby to:
Take small, manageable sips
Pause between swallows to breathe
Learn how to control liquid in their mouth
Why an Open Free-Flow Cup Is Beneficial
An open cup (with no lid, valve, spout, or straw) allows your baby to experience drinking in its most natural form.
Benefits of open cup drinking include:
Encourages active lip closure rather than sucking
Promotes tongue elevation and control
Supports development of a mature swallow pattern
Allows your baby-not the cup-to control the flow
For breastfed babies in particular, open cup drinking can support the transition to managing liquids without relying on a sucking mechanism.
“But Won’t They Spill?” – Yes, and That’s Okay
Spilling is a normal and expected part of learning. Babies need opportunities to explore, make small mistakes, and adjust their movements. Messy practice is not failure-it’s learning.
With the right strategies, spills can be kept minimal while still supporting skill development.
How to Teach Your Baby to Drink from an Open Cup
Here are some practical, therapist-approved strategies you can try at home:
1. Start Small
Use a small open cup and add just a small amount of liquid-enough to reach the lips, not flood the mouth.
2. Support, Don’t Pour
Hold the cup with your baby and gently tip it until the liquid touches their lips. Avoid pouring liquid into their mouth-allow them to close their lips and take the sip themselves.
3. Pace the Sips
After each sip, tip the cup back down. This pause gives your baby time to swallow and breathe and helps them learn that drinking happens in small amounts.
4. Focus on Positioning
Make sure your baby is:
Sitting upright
Well supported at the hips and trunk
Calm and alert
Good posture supports safer swallowing and better control.
5. Use Familiar Liquids
Start with breast milk, formula, or water-whatever your baby is already comfortable with. Familiar tastes can reduce stress and hesitation.
6. Model Drinking
Babies learn by watching. Drink from your own open cup during meals and show slow, small sips so your baby can see how it works.
7. Keep It Pressure-Free
Learning to drink should feel safe and positive. If your baby turns away or becomes upset, stop and try again later. Short, regular practice opportunities work best.
What About Sippy Cups?
Many sippy cups and spouted cups still encourage sucking and often release liquid too quickly. While they may seem helpful, they don’t always support the oral motor skills needed for mature cup drinking.
If an open cup feels too challenging at first, a free-flow cup without a valve may be used briefly—but the goal should always be to move toward open cup drinking when your baby is ready.
Final Thoughts
Transitioning from breast or bottle to cup is a gradual process. Every baby develops at their own pace, and with the right support, they can learn to drink safely and confidently.
If you have concerns about coughing, choking, prolonged reliance on breast or bottle feeding, or feeding difficulties, support from a paediatric speech and language therapist can be invaluable.