For a baby starting baby-led weaning, choose a cup and an age-appropriate drink rather than a commercial milkshake in a glass bottle. The NHS advises continuing breast milk or first infant formula until at least 1 year old and offering sips of water with meals from around 6 months, using an open or free-flow cup without a valve. For an older child, check the flavoured drink’s ingredients, sugars and any minimum-age statement on its pack.
The child’s age and the drink they can have matter more here than whether a milkshake comes in glass.
When solids begin at around 6 months, the NHS advises continuing usual breast milk or first infant formula and offering sips of water with meals. An open or free-flow cup without a valve is a more relevant purchase than a milkshake bottle.
For a child aged 1 year or over, the NHS discourages continued bottle feeding. If you are considering a flavoured milk drink, check its ingredients and age guidance separately from your choice of cup.
A child who must avoid cow’s milk needs an ingredient check before any milkshake is served. The cited Yazoo, FRijj and Mars products list milk or milk-derived ingredients; a different flavour or pack needs its own label check.
Decide on the drink and cup for the child’s age before comparing milkshake packaging or flavours.
| Priority | What to check | Your needs |
|---|---|---|
| Drink for the child’s age | The NHS advises continuing breast milk or first infant formula until at least age 1. From around 6 months, offer sips of water with meals while solids are introduced. | I’m starting solids and need a drink that does not replace my baby’s usual milk feeds. |
| Learning to use a cup | Look for an open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve for sipping practice from around 6 months. The NHS discourages bottle feeding once a child is 1 year old. | A cup my child can practise drinking from matters more to me than whether a milkshake bottle is glass. |
| Milk ingredients | Read the current ingredient and allergen label. The cited Yazoo, FRijj and Mars drinks contain milk or milk-derived ingredients; check each product and flavour individually. | If my child must avoid cow’s milk, I need to identify milk ingredients before serving a drink. |
| Flavoured-drink label | For an older child, check sugars per 100ml, sweeteners, serving size and any stated minimum age. Tesco lists a lower age limit of 3 years for its Mars No Added Sugar 400ml drink. | I don’t want to assume that a milk drink, or one labelled ‘No Added Sugar’, is suitable for my child’s age. |
| Packaging | Confirm the material on the particular pack if glass matters to you. Tesco identifies its listed 471ml FRijj Chocolate bottle as plastic; bottle material does not change the NHS advice on drinks and cups for babies starting weaning. | I want to choose the drink and drinking method first, rather than treating a glass bottle as a sign of infant suitability. |
Glass packaging does not make a commercial milkshake an alternative to a baby’s usual milk feeds. The NHS advises continuing breast milk or first infant formula until at least age 1.
For a baby starting solids, choose a cup for sips of water with meals and continue the usual milk feeds.
The cited Yazoo Strawberry and FRijj Chocolate drinks list sugar among their ingredients. Tesco’s Mars No Added Sugar drink contains sweeteners and carries a lower age limit of 3 years.
For an older child, read the whole label, including ingredients, sugars per 100ml, sweeteners and age advice, rather than relying on a front-of-pack phrase.
A bottle does not provide the cup practice recommended by the NHS from around 6 months. The NHS also advises discouraging bottle feeding once a child is 1 year old.
Offer an open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve when introducing sips of water with meals.
Tesco advises shoppers that food products can be reformulated, so a listing may not describe the pack you have in hand.
Before serving a drink, read that pack’s ingredients, allergen information, nutrition, age statement and any safety warning.
These examples show why a product-level label check matters; a brand or retailer name does not establish that a drink is suitable for a baby starting weaning.
Yazoo sells flavoured milk drinks, including Strawberry.
Müller lists a 330ml UHT FRijj Chocolate drink; Tesco also lists a separate 471ml FRijj Chocolate product.
Tesco lists a 400ml Mars chocolate-flavoured milk drink labelled No Added Sugar.
Tesco lists ready-to-drink milkshakes alongside other milk and milkshake products.
Sainsbury’s lists milkshakes and milkshake mixes, including FRijj and Yazoo products.
These are cup options for a baby learning to sip, not glass-bottled milkshakes. The difference between an open rim and a valved trainer cup matters if you want to follow the NHS preference for an open or free-flow cup without a valve.
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Its open rim makes this a cup-practice option for sips of water with meals from around 6 months. The 3+ months product label does not change NHS guidance on when to start weaning. Supervise use and allow for spills while your child learns; check the care instructions before using the cup with heated liquids.
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This trainer cup is an option for a child aged 6 months or over practising sipping. Its pressure-sensitive valve differs from the open or free-flow cup without a valve favoured by the NHS for learning to sip. Supervise use; vigorous tipping may cause drips.
Choose the drinks recommended for this stage instead of using a commercial milkshake as a weaning drink. The NHS advises starting solids around 6 months alongside usual breast milk or first infant formula, continuing those milk feeds until at least age 1, and offering sips of water with meals.
The NHS recommends introducing an open cup or a free-flow cup without a valve from around 6 months so a baby can learn to sip. Whether a milkshake bottle is made of glass does not address that cup choice or make the drink suitable for weaning.
The NHS says cow’s milk can be introduced as a main drink from 12 months. That does not make every flavoured milk drink suitable for a young child: read its ingredients, sugars, sweeteners and any stated minimum age.
No. Tesco’s listing for the Mars No Added Sugar milk drink states that it contains sweeteners and has a lower age limit of 3 years. Check the complete label rather than using that phrase to judge suitability.
Check the ingredient and allergen information on the particular pack before serving it. The cited Yazoo Strawberry, FRijj Chocolate and Mars milk drinks contain milk or milk-derived ingredients, so they are not options for a child who must avoid cow’s milk.