- My 18 month old doesn’t want to drink water. Help!
It can be really anxiety-inducing to witness your little one refusing food or water. Your instinct as a caretaker is to make sure they are okay, and keeping them hydrated is definitely a key part of that. If you have a water-refuser on your hands, here are some things to try and not to try.
Don’t try:
- Sweet beverages ie, soda, sports drinks, fruit juices, waters with sucralose
Although it may be tempting to just get some liquid inside them, offering sugary drinks when your little ones are thirsty is starting a bad habit. Sweet beverages, including fruit juice, is a major contributor to many health concerns, including obesity and diabetes. Sweet beverages spike blood sugar levels, increase an inborn preference for sugar, and replace room in the stomach for more nutrient-dense foods.
Try instead:
- Modeling drinking water yourself
- Only offering water and having only water in the house to drink
- Infusing water by adding a floating piece of fresh fruit or cucumber slice
- Freezing water and offering ice cubes to suck on
- Trying different drinking vessels, straw cups, sippy cups, or even a grown-up water bottle which matches mommy’s or daddy’s
- Making drinking water within reach. Have safe cups and access to water available. Use a toddler’s love of independence to allow them to pour their own cup of water.
- Decorating a water bottle and put their name on it
- Supplementing with foods high in water content, like watermelon, strawberries, melons and oranges
If you just got your toddler one of those handy-dandy snack cups, it feels like you’ve arrived. Isn't it unbelievable that your little one who used to only be able to drink milk can now reach into a cup, pull out a snack and feed themselves when they are hungry? It can be quite an amazing feeling of independence actually, for both you and your child. As every next step is parenthood is both celebrated and fraught with new concerns, this leads us to the inevitable questions around snack cups, starting with what to put in them? Here are a few tried and true favorites and maybe some new ideas too:
Grapes, cut in half
Pea / Lentil crisps
Veggie straws
Cheddar bunnies
Freeze dried veggies
Cheese cubes
Mandarin orange slices
Sugar snap peas
Steamed green beans
Oat Cereal
3. What is the best straw cup for smoothies?
Smoothies are a popular nutritious choice for toddlers, but without the right cup and straw, they sure can get messy! To keep the actual smoothie in the cup and not all over the floor, we recommend the line of straw cups from RePlay. The cups come in really fun, poppy colors which get kids excited, and they can pick out their own color from a rainbow assortment. The grip on the actual cup is great to help toddlers from dropping the cup. They offer two options when it comes to straws: a bendy one and a silicone option. The bendy straw works well for toddlers who like to pull their straw out, and makes the straw more spill-proof. The downside to those are that they are trickier to clean and your toddler might take to chewing on them because they are softer. Replay also offers silicone straws which are more rigid, and therefore, some liquid can spill out when dropped, but they are easier to clean and sturdier overall. Since these cups are only three parts: cup, top and straw, they are much easier to get clean and there are no little parts that can trap mold. Also the lid screws on tight to the top, creating a nice seal to prevent any leaks. Finally, Replay makes all of its products from recycled materials. These cups specifically are made from recycled milk jugs and claim to be “virtually indestructible.” You can find them on their site here or on Amazon.
Want to read more of What Moms are Asking? Check out our previous post HERE. Got more questions? Drop us a message and we'll include it in our next What Moms are Asking post.
Leave A Comment