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Water Bottles for People With Difficulty Swallowing

If you have difficulty swallowing, or dysphagia, it can be hard to ensure that you get enough fluids throughout the day. However, many types of bottles are available, with different caps, so you can try them and find the best one for you. If you have dysphagia, check with your doctor--some medical professionals discourage water drinking, as inhaling it can cause pneumonia.

  1. Flexible Straw

    • Flexible-straw bottles may help you regulate how much liquid you swallow.

      Some bottles have a flexible straw attached to the top of the bottle that you must suck to get the liquid. You may not need to tilt the bottle to use it, so you may control the amount of liquid coming out more easily than with a normal bottle, making swallowing easier. However, flexible straws are hard to clean and can harbor bacteria.

    Sports Cap

    • The sports-cap bottle can be hard to open.

      You pull open the spout of the traditional sports-cap bottle to get a drink. However, you may have difficulty opening the cap, and you'll need to tip the bottle to get the liquid. You can squeeze some bottles to easily control the amount of liquid you get.

    Squeeze Top

    • A squeeze-top bottle is made of softer plastic to make it easier to squeeze.

      You don't have to tip a squeeze-top bottle to get the liquid because you can squeeze the bottle to direct the flow of water. But a squeeze top can be harder to clean than can a normal top.

    Normal Bottle

    • A normal-top bottle has no special opening.

      The tip of a normal water bottle has a larger opening than do most other caps. As you simply tip the bottle to get the liquid, you may find it harder to control the amount of liquid you get. However, the tip is easy to clean.

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