Straw Cup vs All-Rounder Cup: What's the difference?

Did you know that newborns are born with reflexes that help them feed until they are able to perform these movements on their own? Within the first year of life or shortly after, the majority of these reflexes "integrate" or vanish. This makes it important to help develop their oral motor skills so they can control liquid flow and feeding.

Whether or not you continue to nurse during the toddler years, Dr Jessica Khong from Royce Orthodontic & Paediatric Dental Centre recommends weaning from the milk bottle between 12 and 18 months, as prolonged use of a milk bottle might affect jaw development and result in a persistent immature swallowing pattern. Bottle-feeding, especially to sleep at night, can also greatly increase the risk of decay, particularly in the upper front teeth. Prolonged bottle-feeding might also lead to crooked teeth, such as a posterior crossbite or an anterior open bite.

Transitioning from a milk bottle to a straw cup or open cup allows your baby to practise using their face muscles, tongue and soft palate, all of which are related to speech and feeding. Cup drinking also enables children to become more aware of their face and mouth, learn to hold the cup on their own, and expose their taste buds to different sensations like temperatures, flavours and liquid textures.

The use of cups can begin as early as 6 months. A straw cup introduced as early as 6 to 9 months old can help with the proper development of the jaws by training the muscles around the jaw and encouraging a mature swallowing pattern.

Different Cups for Your Child’s Development

WHAT IS A STRAW CUP?

A straw cup is the first step in introducing your baby to a regular cup, since both rely on a fundamental sucking motion. The straw cup helps position the tongue correctly, so that using a regular cup becomes much simpler.

Though it may vary depending on the infant, the ideal time to switch to a straw cup is between 9 and 15 months of age. You can even start training your baby from as young as 6 to 7 months if you want! A straw cup is an ideal choice when you want to encourage a chin tuck, tongue retraction and lip seal while drinking.

Straw cups allow children to take small volumes of liquid into their mouth, which makes drinking easier.

ADVANTAGES OF A STRAW CUP

• Strengthens oral muscles by encouraging sucking and swallowing, which involve lip, tongue and cheek muscle movement
• Encourages correct tongue positioning, which supports speech and the production of early consonant sounds

If a straw cup is your choice, the Hegen PCTO™ Straw Cup, a 330ml/11oz PPSU milestone cup designed for babies 9 months and up, offers even more benefits. Besides encouraging natural sucking for faster development of oral motor muscles, the Hegen Straw Cup also offers a safe and effortless drinking experience for toddlers from a young age. The Hegen Straw Cup comes without a bite valve to promote natural sucking and seamless drinking. It is an easy-to-sip straw that helps your baby learn how to suck in an upright position, preventing choking.

WHAT IS AN ALL-ROUNDER CUP?

Open cup drinking brings several developmental advantages for babies, such as visual sensory development when drinking liquids, which prepares their brain for safe drinking, and facial muscle and bone development, resulting in improved speech, feeding and swallowing skills.

Unlike a straw cup, which promotes sucking, open cup drinking teaches children a more mature pattern: controlling the liquid flow and volume, forming a bolus and transferring it inside. Over time, it teaches toddlers to avoid spilling and also spares them the palate irritation that straws can cause.

The Hegen PCTO™ 240ml/8oz All-Rounder Cup PPSU is the go-to trainer cup to help your child transition from a feeding bottle to open cup drinking like a grown-up. Hegen’s All-Rounder Cup comes with the world’s first patented Press-to-Close, Twist-to-Open™ design, offering one-handed closure with no screw thread for even more ease of use. Suitable for children 12 months and up, the Hegen All-Rounder Cup helps promote healthier teeth development while nurturing the oral motor skills needed to drink from an open cup independently and confidently.

ADVANTAGES OF THE HEGEN ALL-ROUNDER CUP

• Easy sipping, with reduced gagging and air intake, thanks to a soft silicone disc that regulates water flow effectively
• Reduced spillage when your child tilts the cup over, thanks to the soft silicone disc
• Dust cover for hygiene protection, and adaptable to various bottle sizes
• The Hegen Sqround™ (square + round) bottle shape helps nurture your child’s motor skills for holding a cup, without the need for any additional attachments

How to Transition to a Cup

Dr Jessica Khong advises that choosing a suitable cup is the first step towards encouraging your child to transition to either a straw or open cup. Choose a cup that is easy for your child to hold, such as one with an ergonomic design and a stable base to prevent spillage. Demonstrate drinking from the cup and make it a fun activity that you can do with your child. Don’t worry if spills happen; after all, it’s a learning process for your child.

Ready to transition your toddler to the Hegen All-Rounder Cup? Shop now.