Cheat Sheet: Less Plastic Sippy Cups, Bottles, and Water Bottles

from Safe Mama

It’s the next generation of cheat sheets!  The BPA Free Sippy Cup cheat sheet was one of my very first cheat sheets.  As we’ve all grown and learned more, the more I think it’s important to try and avoid plastic all together when we can.  Sure, there is BPA free plastic, and that’s better.  But plastic can still leach chemicals into fluids and foods and its better to use materials that are non-leaching, such as stainless steel, glass, ceramic, and bamboo.  I decided it was time to move past plastic on SafeMama.com and show you there are a ton of great plastic-less options. Not everything on this list is completely plastic free, but the portion that comes in contact with your fluids is. As usual not a comprehensive list so please email me suggestions for inclusion. (Last updated April 16, 2011)

Glass & Stainless Sippy Cups

I’ve used several of these brands and with sippy cups, it really comes down to personal preference.  For us, we primarily use 12oz Klean Kanteens (one with a sport cap and one with a sippy adapter).  They seem to be the best for us.  But I also love the Thermos Foogo Straw Bottles too and use one in my son’s lunchbox. Insulated vs non-insulated is something you have to think about.  Klean Kanteens are not (aside from their new insulated ones).  I use these adorable Cocoozy’s for out and about, and they fit perfect. There are also many neoprene sleeves and other jackets that fit both bottles and sippy’s.

• Foogo Leak-Proof Straw Bottle (stainless)
• Safe Sippy 2 (stainless)
• Fuel Stainless Steel Sports Bottle
• Foogo Leak-Proof Sippy Cup (stainless)
• Crocodile Creek Stainless Drinking Bottles
• Thermos FUNtainers (stainless)
• ThinkSport 12oz Stainless Water Bottle
• Klean Kanteen 12 oz Sippy (comes with a sippy adapter or a sports cap) (stainless)
• Earthlust Insulated Baby Bottle & Sippy Cup (stainless)
• EIO Kids Cup (glass)
• Pura Sippy Cups (stainless)
• Life Factory Bottles w/ sippy adaptor (glass)
• Safe Sporter Stainless Steel Bottle
• Sigg Kids Bottles (coated aluminum*)

Glass & Stainless Baby Bottle Brands

Of course there are plastic bottle options available on the market and many of them are created with BPA free plastic.  Some companies I trust more than others like ThinkBaby and BornFree because they have been BPA free intentionally from the get-go. These are great safer options too.  My objective here is to highlight some alternatives to plastic for bottle feeding.  Before anyone gets in a twist, I am a supporter of breastfeeding and think it’s an important choice.  I am also however, a supporter in allowing mothers to make the choices that are right for them, regardless of what I would do.  Everyone has their own right to mother their children the way they see fit. I refuse to judge on this issue. So without further adieu…

• OrganicKidz Stainless Baby Bottles (stainless)
• Pura Stainless Steel Baby Bottle (stainless)
• BornFree Glass Baby Bottles
• Dr. Browns Glass Baby Bottles
• Evenflo Glass Baby Bottles
• Green to Grow Glass Baby Bottles
• Silikids Glass Baby Bottles
• Life Factory Glass Baby Bottles
• Kidbasix Stainless Baby Bottles (stainless)
• Momo Glass Baby Bottles
• Nurture Pure Glass Baby Bottles
• Sweet Pea Glass Baby Bottles

Adult Water Bottles and Drink Containers (ditch the plastic!!!)

Obviously there are hundreds of stainless water bottles on the market and most are fine… you can’t go wrong with stainless steel. This is a sampling of them and a few glass options.

• Klean Kanteen (regular and insulated)
• Thermos Stainless Steel Hydration Bottles
• ThinkSport Stainless Steel Bottles
• Life Factory Glass Bottles
• Faucet Face Glass Bottles
• Bamboo Bottle (glass and bamb00)
• Takeya Glass Water Bottles
• Tazzini Reusable Water Bottle
• EcoUsable Stainless Bottles
• Sigg Bottles (coated aluminum*)

*Sigg was under scrutiny for using a coating on the interior of their bottles that contained BPA.  They have since corrected that and now line them with SIGG EcoCare® Liner which is a baked on coating. They claim it is chemically inert and does not absorb, leach or transfer odors or flavors, no matter what beverage is inside.  You can make a judgment call on this one.

PVC a Substitute for Polycarbonate (BPA) in Sippy Cups – WHAT?

from The Soft Landing



My good friend Sommer of  Green and Clean Mom called me this morning with news I never really expected to hear:  she was staring at a sippy cup marked with a #3 recycling code (PVC).

What?  Wait a minute, Sommer.  I think it must be a mistake.  Reusable plastic food containers are very (very!) rarely made with PVC.  In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever come across a PVC sippy cup in all my years of research . . .

She had ordered hundreds of the sippy cups as a promotional item for a non-profit program, but only after carefully confirming with the manufacturer that the cups were BPA-free before ordering.
Phthalate-free PVC is Safe, Right?


No. Even phthalate-free PVC still isn’t a safe plastic because of the other harmful chemicals often used during production. CHEJ names the following possible concerns with PVC:

• May contain dioxin (a known carcinogen)
• May contain volatile organic compounds (VOC’s)
• May contain organotins
• May contain lead, cadmium and other metals
• Heat and humidity can increase the release of these chemicals

So here we have a reliable manufacturer (based on my own personal experience), trying to do the right thing by using BPA-free and phthalate-free plastics in their cups, while still keeping them extremely affordable.  And while I was initially surprised at their choice of PVC as a substitute, I do understand where they’re coming from – especially in light of the fact that PVC isn’t recognized as a toxic plastic by the average American just yet . . .

Okay, so it’s not the end of the world. But needless to say, we recommend you stay on the alert and pay attention to the types of plastic being used as substitutes by manufacturers – whether BPA-free or not.

Product Review: EIO Kids Cup

We’ve tried just about every sippy cup there is, but when I saw the EIO Kids Cup I was immediately anxious to see what it was all about!  Unlike a traditional sippy cup, The Kids Cup is a spout-free, valve-free cup made without BPA, Phthalates and PVC, and is designed to transition young children properly from bottles to real glass dinnerware. Sippy cup spouts and valves necessitate a bottle-like sucking motion, but EIO’s unique cap promotes correct sipping, quickly and with less mess!

The Kids Cup is made with glass and surrounded with a silicone sleeve available in three colors (orange, purple, and green).  The cup feels just like a jar with a lid, and in fact the twist on cap does fit on ANY 8oz canning jar!

EIO says the following about their cup:
EIO’s cap is specifically designed without small parts, like the easy-to-lose valve. According to the ADA’s recommendations for better dental development, children over the age of one should drink from a cup without a valve.* Spouts can also be detrimental, as they tend to become chew toys. EIO encourages a healthy, natural transition to cups.
*From The Journal of the American Dental Association, Vol. 135, No 3, 387

Another great feature of the Kids Cup is that you can use warm or cold beverages and smoothies as well (without getting build up in the lid). 

The one thing to note about the Kids Cup that is VERY different from any other cup – it is NOT spill proof!  Due to the fact it has no valve, liquid flows freely from the cup.  My just turned two year old just loved using this cup, because he loves drinking from a regular cup but this allowed him to do it himself (I always have to have my hand on the cup with a regular glass).  Yes, there may be some spilling, but it teaches him how a real cup works (liquid comes out quickly) and he loves to drink from it all by himself!

That said, this is not the cup you want to hand to your toddler in the back seat of the car.  This is, however, the perfect cup for mealtime when you are teaching your child mealtime skills.

The EIO Kids Cup is currently available in select retail locations and online at the EIO website, The Soft Landing, Mom 4 Life, and other sites.  Check out the list of other retailers HERE.

Tommee Tippee From UK to USA

taken from www.lilsugar.com

Cheerio old pal! Generations of babies grew up with Tommee Tippee cups sitting on their high chairs. They could push the cups over, but they'd always pop back up to a standing position, eliminating any unwanted spills. A new generation of lil ones is about to be introduced to the leading British infant and toddler feeding company's latest innovations when the Tommee Tippee line makes its stateside debut at Babies R Us stores later this month.

…I eagerly tested the company's Closer to Nature line of baby bottles, which are designed to help babies seamlessly transition between breast and bottle feeding. The extra-wide design of the BPA and phthalate-free bottles ($16 for a two-pack) fits right into the palm of the hand, allowing mom to position it like a breast in a baby's mouth. The soft, flexible nipples are so lifelike that I was almost embarrassed to use them in public. They naturally stretch, just like a breast, while their built-in valve helps reduce air intake. Colicky babies will benefit from the line's Sensitive Tummy bottles ($18 for two) that feature a vent tube to prevent air and vacuum back-up. For formula-fed babies, the line includes formula dispensers that ingeniously screw right into the bottles for easy bottle preparation on-the-go.

Once tots move beyond the bottle-feeding years, Tommee Tippee greets them with the Explora line of products. Among my favorite pieces in this big-kid line is the spill-proof trainer cup ($8 for two) that is truly easy to drink from. Anyone who has tried to drink out of their child's sippy cup knows that many require a suck similar to a vacuum in order to get a drop of liquid from them. This cup requires almost no force, making it great for younger kids.

The line's Easi-Mat, which grips to both the table and a bowl, will also be welcomed by parents who spend most of their mealtimes picking dinnerware up off the floor.

But my favorite part of the entire Tommee Tippee line are the Closer to Nature Milk Feeding Bibs ($6 for two). Their extra-absorbent collar catches all of the milk that usually makes its way down to the baby's neck during both breast and bottle feedings.