My 6 Month Old Won't Drink Water or Juice.

If you let him drink his formula from his sippy cup, you could eliminate the bottle and not have to deal with the transition when he is older. My kids were all off the bottle before their first birthday. It's a vessel, not a necessity especially if he has the skills to drink from the sippy - horray for him, he mastered what many babies have difficulty with!

I agree with joanna. keep trying from time to time, but dont push it. As he gets older he will pick it up, and start to like juice or water more. My daughter is 15 months and still wont drink water. It just taks time for them to get used to new things.

If a child can hold and tip up their bottle on their own then they're ready for the transition to a cup, no matter the age. My second son was 6 months old and switched to a cup and never looked back. He never had a bottle again. Each child is different. Remember, a bottle is just a tool, for babies who need assistance in drinking. If they can hold it and tip it then it's time to switch. It's best to start with formula in the cup, and use the first cup of the day when they'll be their most thirsty. Babies at 6 months old don't need water or juice. They get all the fluids they need from their formula and foods. If the child is getting their 24 ounces a day of formula then you can add juice (mixed with water) as a snack, but it's not necessary until they get older. They need to be sure they stick with their formula to get all their nutrients and iron from that. Add the juice/water later when they're older. Stick with the formula. Try not to use the traditional sippy cups, because they still have to suck to get it out, which is a version of a bottle. Try those that have no valves so they have to actually learn to control the flow themselves, like the disposable cups with lids with just a few holes to drink through. 6 months old is still young so be sure the child is really ready for the cup. I would suggest going cold turkey from the bottles because that's a tease and they may still want those. Start with the first drink of the day with formula and don't look back. It may take a while to get used to it but they'll do fine. They won't be in college using a bottle, right? LOL

K. B
mom to 5 including triplets

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When I asked my son's pediatrician about giving him water she very strongly instructed NO water besides what is in formula (I'm formula feeding, couldn't breast feed). Babies kidneys are not fully formed until 9 to 12 months of age so she said DO NOT give water until at least 9 months old but why risk it. So besides a little here and there, just a sip or two, I'm not giving my son water until he's closer to a year-as his Dr said, why risk it.
And who told you that your baby needs to be off the bottle by a year?? Of course, that would be great but from what I've heard, by 18 months is fine and just make sure to not let your baby go to bed with a bottle (or sippy cup).

hey K.

best to just keep serving the baby formula/breast milk.

babies at 6mos don't need juice OR water. their kidneys can't really handle it just yet. also, they don't need the sugar from the juice. no need to jump the gun, though it's good that you are being proactive with wanting to get your son weaned!

your baby will be able to adjust to the sippy cup eventually, but 6mos is pretty early, still. not to worry - ours is 11 mos and we JUST now started with the sippy cup and he's doing pretty good with it. getting the hang of it, slowly!

good luck to you!

I'm a 28 yr old mom of six. There is no need to give a sippy cup to a baby until they are 1. By then the child notices that big people around them are drinking out of cups. People tell u all sorts of things but you will definitely see that when your baby is one that they will take a sippy cup, no prob. Hope this helps;).......

I would be over the moon with joy if my son ever drank formula from a sippy cup-LOL.
Once he's one I'd SLOWLY wean him over to whole milk in his sippy cup. I'd do 1oz Milk into 5oz of formula and wean him over one ounce at a time over a period of 2 weeks.
My son was very picky and this always worked for him.
Good Luck

Your 6 month old doesn't need juice. My son is 3 and we still don't let him drink juice... it is empty calories, the high sugar levels can lead to diabetes, obesity, and behavior problems, juice will fill the belly causing them to eat less foods which in turn is unhealthy because they're not eating the right things, and it is very bad for dental health. The only positive to drinking juice is that it can help with constipation - but you can achieve this in other ways as well.

Water is very important for little ones - but not at 6 months. It is good to try and keep encouraging the water, but until 12 months I wouldn't worry about it.

Babies at 6 months only need breastmilk (or formula if that is what you use.) Keep trying the water - but don't worry - you have lots of time to keep practicing. Good luck!

this may sound strange - but try a small straw. My daughter was breastfed and never took a bottle. at about 4 months old - we intruded her to a straw. Which turned out rathre well, considering she was diagnosed at age 3 with asthma. She did very well with it.

Hi K.,

I have an 18 month old daughter. When speaking with her pediatrician he said babies do not need anything to drink but milk/nursing until 12 months old. Juice is just empty calories, and water is not needed because of the water found in milk. When your son is ready to drink those things, he will let you know, I'm sure!

I sometimes worry about the bottle too, but I have met PLENTY of moms whose toddlers still use the bottle at bedtime. My daughter still does - it's really not a big deal if they do not fall asleep with it in their mouth.

Take care and good luck,
L.

I put formula into a straw cup when my daughter was six months. Not sure why you don't want to but it doesn't matter how they drink it.

Hi, K.,

Actually, it's better to introduce the sippy cup with formula. A 6 month old is too young to be drinking juice; juice should be avoided until a child is a toddler because of its high sugar content (bad for teeth and it's mostly empty calories), and then limited for older children. Nutrition-wise, milk is the most important drink a 1+ year old should be getting. Introducing a sippy cup with water makes it very likely that the child will later not accept milk in the sippy cup, and that can be a much trickier problem to solve.

H.

He is only 6 months old, keep trying don't push it try here and there. As he get a bit older he will should want it. My youngest is 5 so I don't remember the age but at 6 months he should be eating fruit and veggies so he shouldn't need the juice so much at this point.

I wouldn't worry about taking the bottle away, my kids stopped the bottle at just over a year and I didn't have to hid it, they wanted the cup.

6 months is still young, maybe he is not ready. When we started my DD at 9 months she would not use the hard plastic top sippy cup. The brand Nuby makes a silicone sippy top that she would drink from.

I know for some this is a huge no-no, but my son is 16mos. old and I just took away the last bottle! He was still getting about 5oz of whole milk before bedtime.
I started giving him a sippy at about 9mos. old. Maybe 6mos is a little too young for your son, every baby is different. Formula should be the main source of their calories for the first year anyway, so don't worry about it. Maybe eventually he will be one of those who transitions right to a regular cup. Messy but happens! :)
Just don't give a bottle WITH a meal, make it before or after so he doesn't get used to a bottle in the highchair. He will start using a sippy more maybe when he is eating finger foods instead of just baby foods. Also, I would start with water and maybe then do half water half juice in a sippy.
Good luck and you have nothing to worry about right now! :)

Hi K.,

Six months still seems a bit young. He may not be ready for the sippy cup yet. I would suggest giving him a break for a while and try again in a month or two. Best of luck!

M.

K.,
My daughter wouldn't use a sippy cup either...but she likes to drink out of a straw. Try lots of different cups and if nothing works, try again in a few months. They do recommend taking the bottle away at 1, but it's not a "must do" thing.

What's the rush? I think you are WAY too early introducing either to him and the sippy. He's telling you he's not ready! My daughter didn't ge the sippy cup until right before her first birthday. Then, we replaced the formula with milk and replaced one bottle (feeding) at a time with a sippy. If she was hungry, she took it, even if she complained at first.

6 months is too young. My son started at 9 months and by the time he was 1 year was using sippy cups or sipping from a regular cup quite well. Never used a bottle.

According to not only my girls' pediatrician, but also the WIC office--children should not be given juice until they are atleast 1 year old. Water should be totally fine, but honestly--I would wait before pushing too much on him. The first year of life should have the majority of the diet supplied by either breast milk (THE best) or formula. Baby foods/juices are all just "practice" foods and should not be relied upon as a main source of nutrition. Honestly--6 months is still rather young. Give him time. He'll get used to it :)

It's great that you are trying to introduce a sippy to your 6 month old but it is a little early to expect him to be able to master drinking from any kind of cup. It is completely normal for liquid to be running out of his mouth...it doesn't neccessarily mean he doesn't like what you're offering.

It is entirely too early for you to be taking away his bottle or trying to replace formula with juice or water since his main soure of nourishment at this stage of development comes from formula.

My advice is to provide him with formula in his bottle only and water or juice in his sippy cup only. It may take him a very long time to actually drink from the sippy but keep trying because eventually he will drink water and juice from it. You may also have to try several different kinds of sippy cups before you find one that he likes.

What works for alot of people is to provide juice and water in one type of sippy and then when it is time to wean from the bottle (at about a year) put milk in a different kind of sippy.

your goal at this time should be to introduce him to a sippy cup and get him used to drinking from it.. not to get him to drink from it exclusively and it isn't important for hi to have alot of water or juice either.

You're on the right track!! babies do things at their own pace and the only thing you can do is keep trying and follow their cues...it'll happen when he wants it to..not necessarily when you do.

Nuby makes a sport bottle that is similar to a bottle...they also have a sippy with a soft silicone straw..you could try those since they are bottle like. They sell them at Walmart.

Good Luck!!!

Patience. It might be too soon. Not many babies fit the guidelines perfectly or like mine not even close. Be calm take your time and by the time they go to 1st grade it will be all worked out. I'm not making slight of your problem patience and persistance is my real answer. You are a young mom. I am an old mom (40's) and its all the same. Just love that baby and enjoy!