I am so excited to have found a non-leaching, safe sippy cup made by Klean Kanteen , the stainless steel alternative to plastic. Klean Kanteen makes the best stainless steel water bottles. They are odor free and do not taste like metal. We have tried other stainless steel bottles that smell horribly and are lined with epoxy. Plastic/polycarbonate bottles leach bisphenol-A (BPA), a chemical that mimics the hormone estrogen, and can cause chromosomal abnormalities. An article a friend gave me stated that baby bottles are made of the worst kind of plastic, as well as the Nalgene bottles I have used for decades. Any Klean Kanteen bottle can be turned into a sippy cup by buying the adaptor and spouts. Of course the Klean Kanteen sippy cup costs more than plastic versions, but the cost is small when you consider the benefit to your child’s health. Besides, as my daughter said, now my son is the coolest kid in preschool with his shiny Klean Kanteen sippy cup.
Here are a couple links to articles discussing the dangers of plastic food and beverage containers:
Hazards of Hydration (Sierra Club)
Bottle Racket (Grist)
The only drawback to the Klean Kanteen sippy cup is it is made in China. The company states it is “responsibly made in China”, but for a few of my friends boycotting Chinese products, this may be a tough decision. I have pledged to boycott Chinese products due to their human rights violations (especially in regards to Tibet), however I have found it almost impossible to completely avoid Chinese products. Even Melissa and Doug toys are made in China! Since signing the pledge to boycott Chinese products, I have become more aware of where the products I buy are made. On many occassions, I have decided not to buy something because it was made in China; however, the Klean Kanteen sippy cup offers the only alternative to plastic sippy cups I have found. Thus, I decided to violate my pledge by purchasing this safe, sippy cup. For more information on boycotting China, please visit Access to Awareness.
Hi Jennifer!
Sigg also makes great water bottles that are aluminum on the outside and have an enamel coating on the inside. They’re made in Switzerland. Here’s a link to their website:
http://www.sigg.ch/
Great blog.
-esther
I have seen these water bottles before, but not the kid versions. I do have concerns with aluminum food/water containers, even though the link to Alzheimers hasn’t been proven (look how long it has taken to “prove” global warming is human caused). If the lining is damaged on your Sigg bottle, you are no longer safe from leaching effects. It would be difficult to inspect the inside of a water bottle for such damage.
I read an interesting article on the Sigg bottles:
http://www.reusablebags.com/news.php?action=details&id=144
Glad to see there are more alternatives to the plastic sippy cups!
The Klean Kanteen is stainless steel! There is no lining on the Klean Kanteen bottle either! Ideally, glass would be best, but obviously you wouldn’t want your toddler running around with a glass bottle. I wonder what the other ingredients in the “water-based” lining of the Sigg bottle are, and how they hold up over time. Another benefit of the stainless steel Klean Kanteen sippy cup is you can put hot beverages in it. My daughter likes to take herbal tea to school in her Klean Kanteen bottle.
Thanks Esther!
To Whom It May Concern:
Born Free is a Bisphenol-A FREE baby feeding company. We have a full range of bottles, training and drinking cups. Please check out our products at http://www.newbornfree.com
Hope to see you soon.
Thanks Ron! It is nice to see there are more alternatives. If you have any samples, we would love to test them out.
I use glass cups a lot for my children. True they can’t run around with them, but I really don’t feel that is necessary. I offer them drinks frequently to sit at the table. I know others who have to send their children to preschool may not have this option, but many Montessori schools have the same philosophy. I try to speak out about over consumerism, but I feel myself sometimes being sucked into the consumerism of the all natural products. Don’t get me wrong, I am so happy that there are many more healthy options out there now, I just know for myself, I can easily be sucked in. I try to live as simply as I am able to, which sometimes isn’t all that simple, but I am trying! 🙂
I use glass cups a lot for my children. True they can’t run around with them, but I really don’t feel that is necessary. I offer them drinks frequently to sit at the table. I know others who have to send their children to preschool may not have this option, but many Montessori schools have the same philosophy. I try to speak out about over consumerism, but I feel myself sometimes being sucked into the consumerism of the all natural products. Don’t get me wrong, I am so happy that there are many more healthy options out there now, I just know for myself, I can easily be sucked in. I try to live as simply as I am able to, which sometimes isn’t all that simple, but I am trying! 🙂
Sitting down to drink sets good habits! We have a lot in common….I too can get sucked into consumerism of natural products. It is hard to break old habits.
In response to esther’s comment: An epoxy resin water based lining coats the interior of Sigg bottles. The reason they test them to see if they leach Bisphenol-A (a potent known endocrine disruptor) is because they contain BPA. Their test results do show no leaching, it’s true. But the test is a short term one, with new bottles and room temperatures. Since polycarbonate is known to start leaching BPA over time with repeated cleanings, it leaves one to wonder how this ‘epoxy resin’ *wouldn’t* leach BPA over time with repeated cleanings. While Klean Kanteens aren’t as cute and are heavier, they leach nothing and have no plastics, plasticisers or BPA. I hestitated for a long time to get them, but i found myself not using my plastic 2 and 5 bottles b/c I can taste the plastic over the course of the day…..and when i’m not using a reuable bottle, i (hangs head in shame) buy bottles of water. So I finally invested in 3 KK’s for the kids and I to use when out…and the Built NY sleeves that go with them (maintains temp, dampens sound when they hit things, keeps from denting) and I got one Guyot 38oz (The Standard) to store more water for when we’re out and about. It also has a built NY sleeve -the 32 oz one fits.
I agree Katherine! I question the Sigg liner, and I am very happy with our Klean Kanteens…dents and all!
Found another from Thermos called Foogo
http://www.thermos.com/product_catalog.aspx?CatCode=Foog&SubcategoryID=43
Good luck.
We recently bought that one too and like it. Our’s is a funtainer which is the same as the foogo but with paint and is not dishwasher safe like the foogo. They also have a straw which our daughter likes. We only bought it because we were able to find the funtainer at a store. They have them at target and academy. We also bought a born free but it is not spill proof. It is so nice to finally have something that I feel is safer 🙂
I was worried about the SIGG lining too but went to the OKO Test (?) site and the SIGG site and they both claim to leach nothing no matter what drinkable liquid is in it. They only recommend not leaving liquids in longer than 12 hrs due to fermentation. I read SIGG used to use PVC so I’m wondering how long they did the testing on the “new” lining. Also, how long is this lining supposed to last? They say as long as the lining is undamaged, the container can be used indefinitely but it doesn’t say HOW the lining can become damaged. I don’t know, I don’t feel comfortable buying any product with BPA in it whether it’s been shown to leak or not so I’m hesitant to buy a SIGG.
That being said, can warm liquids be put in the Klean Kanteen? My kids like their hot chocolate or warm milk but if the container gets too hot, that won’t work…
The new Sigg lining is BPA free; however, I share your concerns about the lining holding up, and I think it would be hard to inspect it. I do put warm beverages in my children’s Klean Kanteens, but you have to be careful, as the bottle will get hot (it is metal), so cool the beverages to warm before placing them in your KK.
The draw back to the KK cups is that they leak from the spout and adaptor. The companies response is to send new parts instead of fixing the problem. They are too expensive to deal with the leaking all the time, especially when there is milk thrown all over. The Born Free cups are great, I used them when my son was younger but they are not leak-proof. When the kids get old enough, they like turning them upside down and wathcing teh liquid go everywhere. I do plan on buying their bottles for my next baby due next year. I now have several of the Sigg bottles now thta my son can drink from a sports top.
I had not heard about bisphenol-A, before reading this post. Thank you for the information. I’ll certainly do more research about this. We have a son who is almost five and has an attachment to his sippy cup. This looks like a more healthful alternative.
Can the bisphenol-A effect adults?
Yes, BPA can affect adults, in fact I have read that some of the fertility issues couples face could be caused by it. Children are more susceptible though, just like everything else.
Hi Guys,
There is a lot of confusion in the marketplace right now. The bottom
line is that any aluminum bottle is lined with epoxy which is a
plastic resin. The Klean Kanteen bottles are a really good choice. To the best of my knowledge it
is the only wide mouth stainless steel bottle on the market which has
the same threads as a Nalgene. Please check them out at
http://www.guyotdesigns.com.
I have not seen the KK with a wide mouth thread similar to Nalgene. In fact, I have had to keep a Nalgene bottle to use with my ceramic water backpacking water filter, but I pour the water from the Nalgene into my KK.
In response to Katherine’s comments. One of the reasons that Epoxy Resins are used is to prevent the various liquids in the container from corroding the container itself. Epoxy resins are used in Soda Pop cans to prevent the soda from eroding the Cans.
I have been using a Kleen Kanteen sippy for my son since Mar 08. Since the plastic tops are an Avent product adapted to the Kanteen, and Avent was one of the big BPA users…..Does the top of the sippy still contain BPA??? It doesn’t say otherwise on the Avent package they come in.
Thanks
I believe they Advent lids are bpa free. You can ask the folks at ZRecs. They’ve done extensive research into bpa free products.
http://zrecs.blogspot.com/2008/02/z-report-on-bpa-in-infant-care-products.html
I checked out the zrecs page and they list Avent as a poor choice for addressing consumers concerns regarding products containing BPA. They are listed as having few or no products that are BPA free. The model number of the spout is SCF147. Here is the page for the toddler spouts that Klean is using.
http://www.consumer.philips.com/consumer/en/us/consumer/cc/_productid_SCF147_82_US_CONSUMER/Magic-Toddler-Spouts–12m–+SCF147&compare=true
(Not sure if my link will be clickable)
If you google that product number and BPA free there are no matches that I can find. Although I have limited knowledge of what kinds of plastic contain BPA (maybe because it is not clear I am not to worry) I also want to be sure.
Thanks
There’s also a stainless steel sippy called the Safe Sippy. I like that one because it comes with handles. I got it at http://www.peppyparents.com/servlet/the-156/toddler-safe-sippy-cup/Detail
If you are looking for Klean Kanteen’s Sippy cup in the UK visit:
http://www.littleacornstomightyoaks.co.uk
Always good to know I’m not alone in all this madness! Thanks for the excellent resources. I work for EWG as an online parent organizer – so please be in touch if I can be of assistance, that’s what I’m here for – and wrote about this BPA-free sippy cup dilemma on Enviroblog a week or so ago: http://www.enviroblog.org/2008/08/the-quest-for-bpafree-sippy-cu.htm.
Please have a look at our site. Our goal to inform people about heathy choices for our enviroment and their bodys.
We are trying to get our School Fundraising to take off by enabling children to promote Enviroment benifiting products and get great money for thier schools.
We have multiple options for Stainless Bottles and new things like the Wrap-n-Mat for a garbage free lunch for the kids.
When the kids fundraise with our products we can give them great info on how much carbon, plastics and chemicals they have diverted from landfill with thier fundraiser.
Let us know what you think. We are a small company and would love an email just to let us know we are on the right track!
Thanks
Corey
http://www.envirobottles.ca
After all the stuff in the news about BPA, I switched my toddler to stainless steel sippys from Klean Kanteen. He really likes it and I love how easy it is to wash and the fact that I feel totally safe letting him drink from it.
Right now, they’re available on “>ReusableBags.com for 45% off with a special coupon good thru Feb 1. Here’s the code: SALE20.
So I’m going to pick up a couple more!