Accidentally accessible product review: AutoSeal® Kids Tumblers - Part 1

The above image should be loading as
animated, to show the mechanics of how
the AutoSeal feature works.

It's time for another "Accidentally Accessible" product review -- those features in which I review items not specifically designed or marketed for the special needs community, but which really aught to be.  Today I'd like to introduce you to a product which is so much more than just another of the countless versions of the same variations-on-a-cup that are available, these days.

Everyone, meet the AutoSeal® Kids Tumblers.

Don't get fooled by their simple appearance, their gender-stereotyped coloring.  These cups really are innovative enough to inspire the kind of chorus-of-Angels that sighs down from the heavens in cheesy-80s movies when the male protagonist suddenly realizes he's been doing it all wrong, the female protagonist finally reunites with her one true love, or other such clichéd moments of Divine Intervention.  ...What?  I heard it when I first came across these cups!

WHAT YOU'RE GETTING:

These 9oz. cups come in sets of two, either the "boy version" or the "girl version" pictured below.  Recommended for ages 4-12, they are BPA-free, phthalate-free, and PVC-free, making them pretty darn safe for any age -- including grown-ups who don't only spill their drinks just to prove to their kids that it happens to everyone.  (*ahem*)  They are also dishwasher-safe -- top rack only -- which is good, since they seem built to last, and you're going to get a lot of use out of them, sometime during which you're bound to not feel up to standing at the sink.  They aren't recommended for hot liquids, because of the burn risk, but that's going to go for any kiddie cup.  They aren't recommended for long-term storage of liquids that spoil and get stinky quickly, but that's common sense with any cup made from something other than metal or glass.  They aren't recommended for carbonated drinks either, but that's standard for any cup with a seal that can be damaged by pressure build-up.  In other words, they aren't a no-go for anything the competition can actually responsibly offer, anyway.

The cups, which are 3" across at the widest part of lid and 6.8" tall, have a contoured shape which makes them easier for little hands to grip.  They have a non-skid bottom pad of a softer but still quite firm plastic (not that foamy rubber which tears and flakes too quickly), which grips tabletops to keep the cup in place, and softens blows should kids with poor spatial awareness get a little too enthusiastic about the fact that they can get away with waving these cups around.  They are well-balanced but lightweight, and there are no pointy, rough or sharp parts anywhere -- even the "handle" of the lid doesn't stick out significantly -- the most accident-prone would still have a hard time getting hurt by one of them.  (Exceptions made for a sibling winging something hard into their eye, an option which can make a weapon out of a cotton ball.)  The lid is one, well-connected piece, which means no parts to lose, or be accidentally swallowed if they come loose...something that did happen to my own son with a since-updated model of one brand of straw-sippy cup.  (There's nothing sticking out which can be bitten off, either, always a particular hazard with many sensory kids who compulsively knaw on things, or those with involuntary jaw-clicks.)  The one-piece lid also means you have extra incentive to wash the cup frequently and improve bacterial control, because if anything gunks up in the inner workings of the lid, it's going to be tricky to clean out well.  Of course, what makes this cup really innovative is the nature of the lid itself.  Push the button in to sip, then release it to immediately create a seal that's 100% leak and spill-proof.  It is this feature which puts the AutoSeal® Kids Tumblers on the market as the perfect cup for "Big Kids" going through that typical developmental stage where they feel they have outgrown their spout-sippy or straw-sippy cups, but who haven't yet quite grown into the completely open-topped cups that grown-ups flaunt use of.  (Although this might be according to the comfort zones of the kids themselves, or only that of their parents who feel drinks belong in thirsty tummies, not on clothing, couches, rugs, or now-fruit-punch-pink-furred family dogs.)  When you get right down to it, though, this feature is also a big part of what makes these cups perfect for many special-needs children.

The AutoSeal® Kids Tumblers come in "boy's styles" &
"girl's styles" sets.  Commonly appealing color combinations
along with varying color-shades and opacity give them
visual appeal without relying on designs that can wear off
from use and washing.  If your kid is anything like mine, you
know the frustration of being asked to replace a cup which
has nothing wrong with it beyond 1/3 of a dinosaur's head
having been scratched off the outside. Argh!!
 

WHY SPECIAL NEEDS PARENTS WANT TO GET THESE CUPS:

Special needs parents know that there are a lot of disabilities which can result in poor hand-eye-mouth coordination (such as Sensory Processing Disorder, on its own or as a part of Autism), poor motor control (such as Cerebral Palsy), or poor ability-so-sit-still-while-doing-ANYTHING (such as ADHD).  If a child has a disability resulting in those kinds of symptoms, the gap between personally- or therapeutically-motivated readiness to move beyond a sippy cup, and readiness to drink (without counterproductive levels of frustration) from a 'normal' cup, is one that feels huge, and can span many years.

There's a big difference between the movements needed to effectively drink from "sippies" and those needed to drink from standard cups.  With a straw-sippy, the mouth is tightly closed around a straw (go figure), and the cup is never tilted.  While the suction needed to draw liquids up into the mouth can make for great sensory input, especially with thicker drinks, it doesn't prepare anyone for what to do about methods of drinking which have the drink free-flowing towards you under power of gravity.  Most straw-sippies also have some manner of flip-top capping their lids -- this aids in keeping the actual drinking surface clean when not in use, but also adds a step, which can throw off "muscle memory" / "motor memory" and its place in making the transition from one kind of cup to another.  With a spout-sippy, you do have to tilt the cup and your head to drink, as you do from a standard cup, and closing your mouth around a spout bears a slightly stronger resemblance to doing so around the rim of a cup than does use of a straw, but the differences are still plenty great enough, and there's still the suction factor to consider.

Beyond that, sippy cups rely on valves, through which the liquid passes when sucking opens them, to make them spill-resistant when they aren't being drunk from.  Unfortunately, drinking through these valves is bad for oral-motor development.  (We first learned this from our son's original Speech Pathologist.)  Cutting the valves out of straws can prove neigh impossible with the slimmer straws, as well as damage the structural integrity of any of the straws, which is dangerous.  The removal of valves from these kinds of cups, in any case, makes the spill-resistance element moot -- you might as well move forward into the messy training on standard cups.

So, what makes these cups so user-friendly, in light of all this?  Move on to Part 2 to read about the little details that make all the difference!

• WARNING: Nûby sippy-cups with Flip-it™ Tops of the style where the part you flip is a narrow strip centered in the lid, are the kind that once choked my son.  The piece that holds the "flipping" part onto the lid proper unexpectedly popped off while he was drinking, despite showing no signs of wear, and the part that "flips" sprang into his mouth and down his throat.  He was using the Insulated No-Spill Flip-It, still shown on the company website as having that style of lid, although they have since appeared in stores with the updated style of the half-cap "flipping" part.  If you are using the older version, or any other cup with a narrow component to a separating lid, please be aware that it can be a choking hazard!!

• Feeding therapy, which covers drinking as well as eating, is generally handled by either Occupational Therapists, Speech/Language Pathologists, or, ideally, a combination of both working as a team along with a Nutritionist and the child's caretaker(s).  If adequate care of this kind -- specifically trained in and experienced with the underlying disabilities of the child -- cannot be provided by your local Early Intervention services or school system's Special Education program, you should discuss with your child's doctor a referral for a competent private practitioner, to be (hopefully) covered by your medical insurance.  Feeding issues have an obvious and direct impact on physical health, and there is NO reason why a child should be malnourished simply because they have trouble ingesting what would fuel their bodies and brains.  (Not that there's really ANY good reason for that to be allowed to happen, if at all possible.)

  Craig Selinger is one Feeding Therapy resource in the NY Metropolitan area.  He operates out of two offices in Park Slope, Brooklyn, NY, and services the Manhattan and Brooklyn areas.
   

• I received these cups, for review, from ThinkGeek.com.  My opinions, however, are my own, and no part of the arrangement.