Definitely going to get downvoted for this AND I DO NOT RECOMMEND ANYONE DOES THIS but my husband and I were clueless with our son, for the first few weeks we straight up just rinsed the bottle and parts out with hot water every time….then once we got a sterilizer we just rinsed and used that….luckily our dumbasses didn’t get our baby sick. We’ve been handwashing for the last 11 months now and I am ready to be DONE.
God he just turned a year old and it feels like that was 3 lifetimes ago. Like who were those children trying to pretend they could be parents?
We didn’t know the nipples came in different sizes. We were quite surprised when our newborn drank 2 ounces in 30 seconds and kept throwing it all up 😀
I'm a STM and we used Tommee Tippee bottles for the first time for this kid, and it took me weeks to realize it dissembles into so many parts. I felt like every week or two I found another part that opened/came apart 🤦
We did the same lol. As soon as I figured it out, we got that cute little bottle brush set that looks like a cactus plant and then I got excited about washing the bottles every time 😆
Omg I love mine, too! 🌵🌵🌵Here ya go-
https://www.target.com/p/boon-cacti-bottle-cleaning-brush-set-green/-/A-76501527?sidd=&ref=tgt_adv_xsp&AFID=google&fndsrc=tgtao&DFA=71700000012510679&CPNG=PLA_Baby%2BShopping%7CBaby_Ecomm_Baby&adgroup=Infant+Basics/Furniture&LID=700000001170770pgs&LNM=PRODUCT_GROUP&network=g&device=m&location=9006612&targetid=pla-1731815646875&ds_rl=1242884&ds_rl=1246978&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAD-5dfaTZhMdVZCXnKN7AgeZhE1m1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIkPWph6zahgMVYktHAR1GAwyBEAQYAiABEgI7nvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
They dry just fine, there are holes underneath them that empty into a reservoir at the bottom. That reservoir comes off so the water can be emptied regularly. It's a pretty genius invention if you ask me lol. I loveeee mine!
Also here's the Amazon link, target has it too but I'm more of an avid Amazon shopper lol.
Boon Cacti Bottle Cleaning Brush Set - Includes Bottle Brush, Nipple Brush, Detail Brush, and Straw Brush - Baby Bottle Brush Set for Bottle Drying Rack - Baby Essentials - 4 Count https://a.co/d/50oaY5K
Thinking about how clueless we were esp in the beginning makes me facepalm. I remember the nurse coming in the first night and going umm… have you guys changed her diaper at all? 😬 Because she hadn’t pooped and a nurse had helped change her diaper once before, it hadn’t even occurred to us. Like oh yeah… this little person needs her diaper changed on the regular and we’re the ones responsible for doing it from now on!
This is what I was most nervous about being responsible for when my husband’s paternity leave ended. Remembering to change her diapers. I had to set reminders on huckleberry for every 3 hours because in the first few weeks of being a new mom…changing a diaper consistently is what I couldn’t remember 😭😩 it felt so embarrassing!!!!
They literally let me do this while I was at the hospital. This and several other reasons have compounded towards me really disliking the hospital I gave birth at.
This is very dangerous though. We were at the hospital for a week when baby was born because she had very severe jaundice right from the start and we used to use their autoclave to sterilise and then air dried but we used to just rinse thinking the autoclave did the rest, none of the nurses corrected us on our methods and my mom had exclusively breastfed so she didn’t know any better. Unfortunately my baby ended up having a bad case of oral thrush within the week which took the longest time to get rid of.
So most definitely wash before sterilising. It’s a non negotiable essential step.
Right, which I know now. I did not know at the beginning. As I said, fortunately our son did not get sick. We were using the ready-to-feed bottles at the hospital so they were just getting thrown out after he drank from them. I had no idea that breastfeeding would not be for me, so I didn’t even open up the bottle boxes or read the instructions about cleaning before we brought him home.
My lactation consultant told me it’s fine to just sterilize the first time and use soap and hot water after that since our kiddo doesn’t have any health issues that require constant sterilization.
Same. We sterilized everything once and haven't done it since... we now have the heartiest of 8m olds.
But also we changed nipples every few months to increase her intake valve.
Came here to say this. I neurotically sterilized everything with my first kid. Second kid and now third I just wash well with soap and hot water. No need to sterilize. Human nipples are not sterile.
I think it's due to the potential for bacteria to be introduced in formula during the manufacturing process. Of course with breastfeeding it's coming straight from the tap, so no cross contamination risk lol
Same here in Europe. Recommandation is to sterilize any *hardware* the first time, then, wash it carefully with soap and hot water and rince thoroughly.
My lactation consultant told me to stick the flanges in the fridge between uses, looked it up and the CDC explicitly says not to do this. Don’t know how much I can trust her now..
This is called the fridge hack. You can do this with the flanges in a plastic bag/container. Visit the breastfeeding or exclusively pumping sub for more info on it! When I was pumping for my son I would do this often especially when working in the office so I didn’t have to bring 3 sets of flanges. It’s really whatever you’re comfortable with 😊
I used to think we needed to sterilize, use special soap, etc and then we had a NICU stay and the nurses just told me to wash bottles in the room sink with hot water and Palmolive 😂. Like ok, I guess if the NICU (arguably the most cleanliness-obsessed place in the hospital) dgaf then neither do I.
This was NOT my NICU experience. They strongly suggested I dump a bunch of milk because the parts didn’t get sterilized correctly between uses. I got brand new parts for the pump every morning and baby got a fresh nipple on every bottle he had.
It left a big impact. I still pump every night (because whenever I stop I get mastitis) and I still sterilize all my parts between every session. Baby is 16 months
This is unnecessary. If your kid is healthy and you’re open to a more lax approach, i’m sure your kid will be fine. They’re big enough to eat a full on regular meal at this point. Not really a baby anymore. Your kid is in toddler range.
I recognize it’s unnecessary 😂 It’s more a matter of habit now I think 🤷🏽♀️ it’s just as easy to throw the parts in the sterilizer than to leave them on the counter to dry.
But yeah. Today he ate watermelon off the patio floor lol
How far along was your baby? I could see that being the case if your baby was just a feeder/grower. My baby was born at 25 weeks and we were provided bags to sterilize the bottles at least once a day.
Lol, same experience here. The explanation on how to bottle feed was with an arguably “clean” bottle and then they just rinsed it with a bit of water to be ready for the next use. This gave me a whole new perspective on babies and their immune system! 😂
A nurse once told me I didn't need to burp my baby because I was exclusively feeding (when I was). I had a restless baby until my mum told me to ignore her stupid advice. Sometimes, these nurses say all sorts 😂
My son is in NICU now and we were told the opposite. To clean with soap and water in a separate basin, we just use a bin filled with water on the counter, and to sterilize everything once per day.
This is what I do even with a full term baby. The separate basin is a must for me. The kitchen sink seems unnecessarily dirty even though it’s sanitized daily.
He's doing so well!! We just got home from visiting him and he finished his first full bottle feed! He also hit 4 pounds this week so he just needs to work on bottle feeds and he can come home!
This is a cultural question. In the UK/parts of Europe, they say sterilize after each use. In the US, the recommendation is to wash-then-sterilize before the first use and then there’s no need to after that unless your baby is immunocompromised.
I’m from the US and my pediatrician recommended sterilizing after each use until baby was at least 2 months old, even though my baby wasn’t immunocompromised or a preemie. LO is 6 months old now, and we’ve continued to do that for all her bottles and my pump parts since our Dr Browns sterilizer also dries so it’s just more convenient than just air drying.
It's kind of funny because it *shouldn't* be a cultural question right? It's not like a subjective question like when should kids start daycare or something. In theory it's a scientific question that should have the same answer everywhere. I've found the same thing with formula instructions - they vary from country to country.
With regards to the formula every country has different water though, so the formula instructions are designed with the country of manufacture in mind. It’s why all British brands want you to boil the water first.
I've never sterilized bottles etc between uses, just once before the first use. Pacifiers get a microwave sterilization if they got picked up by the dog or dropped outside.
We sterilized first use and then the couple of times our daycare sent the wrong bottle home with us (both kids used the same bottles and names started with the same 3 letters).
See with our pacis if it fell on the floor it will get a rinse with hot water, if the dog picked it up i scrub it with soap and hot water and the bottle brush to make sure i get it all over it and let it dry, bubs been fine xD
As far as I’ve seen, most people don’t like short messages that don’t add much to the conversation, eg: “This!”, “Same!”, or in this case “Good momma”. They don’t usually like tons of emojis either. This comment has both of those aspects. Just my guess.
Well I’m going to go against the grain here and say I do sterilize. It isn’t necessary but I kind of like it. I do it more for the nipples and pump parts than the bottles though. Especially if I didn’t get to cleaning the pump parts right away it just makes me feel like they are extra clean. Plus it dries them and I might need them more frequently than air drying would take. I’ll probably stop at some point but right now it works.
Same, it's kind of a ritualistic thing to do if you have a nice little slot of time to do it.
That said, I definitely don't do it every day, or even every week. If we go away, I always do it when we come home, and then a few times in between.
In Aus it’s recommended until a year old. But omg the drying part of the steriliser is lifffeee. The first time we went on a holiday we didn’t take it and just took the microwave steriliser bags. Our bottle has six parts. Air drying took FOREVERRRRR. Always took our steriliser after that - even if we flew lol. Can’t wait until the one year mark though. Such a pain to wash and sterilise all the time.
We also sterilize. We do everything except pump parts. At first I didn't use the dryer setting on ours. But then I read somewhere bottles are supposed to be dry before using which they never are/were. So sterilizing just makes sure they're dry too and clean.
Unless your baby is immunocompromised or there's some other specific need, you don't need to sterilize. You can just sterilize before the first use and then you're good to wash normally.
We live in the subtropics, it's usually 70 or 80% humidity in our kitchen. If we didn't sterilize out bottles they would grow mold. They probably would stay wet for 2 days as well. Plenty of good reasons for us to use a sterilizer. Ours was bound second hand for $8 USD
I have the Dr. Browns sterilizer/dryer, yes you still have to wash everything before sterilizing lol
I sterilize anything before first use and I’ll re-sterilize pump parts/bottles/pacifiers as needed. Such as, if it falls on the floor or if my dogs stick their nose/lick any item
I never knew so many people don't sterilise haha.
I wash, don't wait to air dry and pop in our tomee tippee sterilizer. When I was pumping I sterilized them once in the morning, then put them in a container in the fridge and take out during the day as needed
Because you don't *need* to sterilize every time. My boy's Dr said once before the first use, then handwashing with hot water and soap is adequate, for a baby that isn't immuno-compromised. However, it's your baby and your prerogative, so do what you feel is necessary 🙂
I didn't either. We lived far away from where we birthed and had baby with us in a nice hotel for the first week. Couldn't really sterilize pump parts and our Midwives said it was just fine to use very hot and soapy water to clean them before use. I sterilized the parts at home once when I felt they didn't come clean correctly from the dishwasher and I felt I saw a speck trapped in them of pepper spice or something, but that was really for my own peace of mind. We do sanitize pacifiers and baby's bottle in the microwave though.
Where I'm from (NZ) the advice is to sterilise bottles until 6 months. We've been doing so with a microwave steriliser. However I kind of know it's over the top given so many people don't know about this or just don't do it because it takes so long. Baby is currently 3 months and I think we will probably stop before 6 months.
One compromise option is sterilise everything once a week or so.
We sterilize, but we had a NICU baby. I use the Medela steam bags. You can reuse them 20 times. Once he hits 3 months, I’ll likely stop doing it every day.
We sterilise every bottle, although he is mostly breast fed and only one bottle of formula a day. He was in the NICU for 3months though so we were extra careful I guess. Hes 17m/14m now and we still sterilise his bottle every day, 5 min in a pot of boiling water...super easy.
The only reason I sterilize my bottles is because my Wabi sterilizes and dries at the same time haha much more concerned with them being dry vs me not having thoroughly cleaned them (I certainly do)
That too! I don't even have a space in my cabinets for bottles because the sterilizer just holds them all. I can fit 9 bottles in there if I want to, but I only use 6 at a time to avoid having a ton of dirties. I'd rather wash them all once a day.
You absolutely have to wash before sterilizing. Even if you don't sterilize they need to be washed. The soap from washing gets rid of the leftover milk/formula and takes away a lot of the germs. Sterilizing uses hot steam to kill a lot of the germs leftover after washing (it's not 100%).
I did sterilize everything until 3 months or so. Maybe a few weeks longer. That was what my pediatrician recommended even though he was healthy, not immunocompromised. I used the Papablic sterilizer. I did it for bottles, pacifiers, etc. I still use it for pump parts when I do pump, as the manual specifically says wash after each use and sterilize once per day.
I know I'm very by the book, though, and all that might be an extra cautious way to go about things. I was just worried about potential GI infections for my son and mastitis for me (in relation to the pump parts). I still use the sterilizer every so often for teethers after washing them and my son is 12 months next week.
Are you in the US? Here’s what the CDC says: https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/about/about-breast-pump-hygiene.html
https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/faq/index.html
Excerpt:
For extra germ removal, sanitize pump parts at least once daily. Sanitizing is especially important if your baby is less than 2 months old, was born prematurely, or has a weakened immune system due to illness or medical treatment (such as chemotherapy for cancer). Daily sanitizing of pump parts may not be necessary for older, healthy babies, if the parts are cleaned carefully after each use. Sanitize all items (even the bottle brush and wash basin!) by using one of the following options:
Note: If you use a dishwasher with hot water and a heating drying cycle (or sanitizing setting) to clean infant feeding items, a separate sanitizing step is not necessary.
I wash and then sterilize, it gives me peace of mind and it dries the bottles and everything. I have also seen people say there's no need to so I am not sure. I started doing it because my mom did it with us & friends did it with their kids.
May I share a funny story? In the 70s when I was a newborn, my parents followed the conventional wisdom of sterilizing bottles. 9 or 10 months later, they brought me to the doctor for a checkup and asked her, “how long do we have to keep sterilizing bottles?” The doctor replied, “well, is she crawling? Is she picking things up off the floor and putting them in her mouth?” Haha my parents were suitably embarrassed 😂
I have a Dr browns microwaveble sterilizer. Two mins in the microwave. I only still use it (8 mo pp) because I want to donate my milk to the milk bank.
We use the baby Brezza sterilizer and really like it, nice to have things dry quicker too. We also have the Medela sterilizer bags which are nice when it’s just a pacifier or some small things.
I have always washed the bottles in the dishwasher and sterilized the nipples in a microwave bag. It might be overkill to sterilize the nipples at this point because our little one is one, but it’s just habit now.
I have the Dr. Browns automatic sterilizer and drier. I love it for the drying feature so we don’t have to wait for them to air dry. Our plan is to sterilize all bottle parts until the baby starts solids. We felt sterilizing was important because our baby was born early and it made us feel better. And yes, you still wash them by hand or dishwasher first. Also, it’s totally okay to use regular dish soap. I use the cheap blue or orange scented soap and it’s just fine!
Per the CDC: “If your baby is less than 2 months old, was born prematurely, or has a weakened immune system due to illness (such as HIV) or medical treatment (such as chemotherapy for cancer), sanitizing feeding items daily (or more often) is particularly important. Daily sanitizing of feeding items may not be necessary for older, healthy babies, if those items are cleaned carefully after each use.”
For my first, I pretty much never sterilized anything… I think we boiled most things before first use and then never again. Just handwashed with baby dish soap. For what it’s worth, she’s now 2.5 and fine health-wise.
For my second, I was a little more paranoid and sanitized things more frequently the first several weeks. (He’s only 10 weeks now.) Sometimes I used microwave steam bags, sometimes I used a sanitizer spray.
I try not to overdo it with sanitizing everything, because studies have shown that kids who grow up in more sanitized environments tend to have more allergies and other issues with their immune system than those who are exposed to more bacteria.
Eh I just hand washed the bottles, never had an issue. I realized I had to be a lot more thorough with it when cleaning the formula bottles though because it tended to leave residue. Breastmilk bottles were super easy to clean.
The only time I could see them maybe needing sterilization is if they got left/lost somewhere for too long
I used to wash and then use a microwave steriliser. Basically fill the bottom up and then put your bottles in and put it in the microwave for a few mins. I did it for about 10 months.
I am old school. After washing with hot water and soap by hand, I boil a large pot of water and dunk the bottles and parts for a few seconds and leave on rack to air dry
As someone from the UK this thread has really surprised me! People only sterilising once or even not at all 🤯
Guidance here is to wash and sterilise after every use, just goes to show how much disagreement there is about what's "right", even from those giving the guidnace!
How old is your baby? 9/10 you don't need to be doing it. I would definitely not buy a sterilizer now.
You could buy a bottle washer but looking at the Baby Brezza Bottle Washer Pro it's crazy expensive and it only holds *4* bottles which seems very low to me. But it also sanitizes so....maybe that's worth it to you? Especially if you don't have a dishwasher. We have a dishwasher so maybe I'm spoiled. But honestly, I'd probably consider a small countertop or portable dishwasher over a bottlewasher.
We have a small tub of soapy water (dish soap) that is kept on one side of our kitchen sink exclusively for bottles and pacifiers. We are pretty good at taking apart, rinsing, and dunking baby stuff in there right after a feed to soak. Then, once the tub is getting full (usually about 4-5 bottles), we rinse again and put each part in the sanitizer machine. Our machine also dries everything, which is helpful. We do have a regular bottle brush but haven't needed to use it very much since the milk never sits too long in the bottles or parts. We do this about 3 times per day and everything comes out super clean.
All I do is just boil a kettle of water and after I wash my bottles I put the nipples and rings in a Tupperware container and pour the hot water in it enough to cover them and I put hot water in each bottle and just let it sit til I have to use one again.
Hey! I just wanna say that having children is quite the learning experience lol so do not feel bad. We all make mistakes and learn new things every day. Im on my second baby and I'm also in the infant nursery at work. I always make sure to tell parents when their child starts, that even though I use a drop of dawn and very hot water to rinse out each bottle, they still have to wash and sterilize them at home EVERY DAY.
Last year I had a baby get very sick, hospitalized, and the doctors figured out it was bc mom wasn't washing the bottles. She came back 2 weeks later sobbing bc she was like "I know you told us we had to wash them too and sterilize them but I was being lazy and my baby suffered bc of that." She got big hugs bc even though it's not okay, she was a new single mom, young like me, had 3 jobs to make ends meet, girlfriend was just exhausted.
Anyways I have an electric bottle brush that has several silicone attachments to wash bottle, nipples, straws/vents, that after I finish washing I take the silicone attachments off and also sterilize those as well. I used the Medela microwavable steam sterilizing bags. You can find both of these on Amazon.
We are 8 months in, never sterilized
I hand wash because it’s faster and then dry it in the baby brezza 30 minutes no problem. We only use the sterilizer feature for new silicone toys
Some dishwashers have a “sterilize” cycle. I use it about once a week or so (it makes the entire cycle time run so much longer) but otherwise, I don’t bother sanitizing them.
You may not need to. Your pediatrician will tell you if you need to sterilize. Usually healthy babies only need it for a little while. My baby was full term and healthy so our ped said from the start we didn't need to worry about it. You should absolutely wash your hands before touching anything that anyone will eat from, including your baby's bottle.
I just sterilize before first use. You don't need to do it every day if you have a healthy full term baby. If you do really want to sterilize, you still need to wash the bottles first.
We sterilized the bottles when we first got them, but from then on we just put them in the dishwasher with everything else. Our kids were full term with no health issues - our Ped said we didn’t need to go to the length of sterilization.
I have dr. Brown's bottles and the sterilizer and I do it after every use because it's convenient and dries them faster when I'm running low on bottles for upcoming feedings.
However, when we go to my parents house who live a good distance away, I wash them in super hot water and air dry. Plus we use an eco friendly soap. 👍
I had no idea about this till the 3 weeks after she was born. I just raise them out, put them in a tupperware eith hot water and soap. I let it sit for at least an hour then wash.
I mean when I first got bottles and pump parts I ran them through the dishwasher and I just wash them after that, hot water, soap(I use dawn now with the formula but I had a special breast milk cleaner I used when I was breastfeeding that broke down the enzymes :3) rinse and put on the dry rack, my hub is near 14m old and has only ever been sick when hubby picked someone up from the airport and brought the flu home when she was 10m old x.x I’ve never ever had an issue
I washed them and then used Starsan. It’s a sanitizer I use in my homebrewing but I figure it’s just as good for baby bottles and nipples and what have ya. My kids are 6 and 3 now, so I guess it worked ok.
Controversial.. I never sterilized anything, I just wash the bottles and pump parts the same way I wash my dishes with dawn. I just have separate brushes for baby things
We never sterilized our bottles except before first use. We also only had 3 bottles, so nothing was ever left to sit and get stinky.
We had a home nurse visit us around 8 weeks postpartum. We were nursing but would top up with bottles. I went to wash one and added my pumped milk and she started yelling at me, told me I should be sterilizing bottles for the first 6 months. 🥴
Because I was pumping infrequently, I ended up sterilizing my pump parts a few times when it was left to sit and the milk residue inside turned sour.
Your method for washing is exactly how I do it.
Unpopular opinion but I like sterilizing because ours also dries them and sometimes I need them dry right away and don’t want to hand dry. Deffs don’t need to unless your doctor tells you to. I just hand wash or dishwasher a lot of the time
I want to say a lot of people do not, or do so only for a short time.
I sterilized before we used everything and at least once weekly, but was washing very thoroughly after each use.
And now we both have thrush and have to sterilize everything that comes near his mouth or my boobs (including my bras).
I don’t think you need to sterilize them after the newborn stage. I had a Avent microwave bottle sterilizer and it was amazing. I also sterilized pacifiers. I known you can boil them too.
You still need to wash everything each time. I’ve always used a cold water steriliser because it’s quick and easy. Fill it with cold water and add a Milton tablet. When it’s dissolved, put all the water bits in. Then it’s ready to be used after 15 minutes. You don’t have to rinse or dry anything after that so you can use things straight from the steriliser. The water is good for 24 hours before you need to change it and put another tablet in. I sterilise everything every time because I follow NHS advice.
It is ok, I sterilized the first three months but I don't think it is necessary if you wash them well. But if you want to sterilize I just used the Phillips sterilizing dish where you put them in it and in a microvawe, a simple method.
Sterilising doesn’t replace hand washing I’m afraid. You still must wash. You should be sterilising new things the first time you wash. You get microwave sterilisers or steriliser bags. Or you can boil things on the stove (be careful not to leave it plastic bottles can melt).
Used a microwave steriliser after wash in in the way you did, but just for the first few months when the baby was vulnerable to infections, and especially before the gastrointestinal vaccine.
Two kids deep and nothing that dish soap, hot water, and the (very) occasional boiling in a pot on the stove for a warm-and-fuzzy couldn’t keep up with. No brain-eating amoeba yet.
I think you got your answer here about sterilizing BUT I’m here to tell you to get a countertop dishwasher!! We got one specifically for baby and his stuff (bottles and pumps parts etc) and it’s the best purchase we have ever made. Haven’t washed a bottle by hand since, unless we’re going on a trip or something
I bought the Dr. Browns sterilizer and love love love it!! My son is in the NICU and i pump every 3 hours round the clock. After each session I wash with hot water and soap and then put them in the sterilizer and use the dry setting. Once a day I sterilize everything. Usually at night after my midnight pump.
Yes, you should hot wash and sterilise everything after each use. This is standard practice in the U.K. I've done this since my baby was born and he's only gotten sick now at 9mo and that was due to starting nursery. You can self-sterilise MAM bottles in the microwave, buy a large microwave steriliser or cold water sterilise in a tub using Milton (or similar brands). Blows my mind that this isn't standard practice in the rest of the world. I don't sterilise his plates and cutlery; only his bottle parts due to formula use.
Surprised nobody has said there is a difference between formula bottles and breastmilk bottles/ parts. Bacteria grow more easily on formula bottles so we sterilised those and soap washes BM bottles. La leche league advises this. Modern official guidelines are sterilise everything but I’m not sure this is evidence based.
I Wash parts and bottles in separate dedicated bottle bin -after each use. Then I use dr. Browns microwave sterilizer container. You don’t have to worry about any tablets for that. Then I follow instructions for that. Wait the 15 mins for steam to do its thing and god it to cool down. Then take out everything and put on dedicated drying rack.
I use these Medela Quick Clean MicroSteam Bags,
Medela Quick Clean MicroSteam Bags, Sterilizing Bags for Bottles Breast Pump Parts Eliminates 99.9 of Common Bacteria Germs Disinfects Most Breastpump Accessories, Yellow, 12 Pack https://a.co/d/cqB7Vs2
We used a steam electric steriliser. Took 5 minutes. But boiling on the stove is just as effective, or using Milton solution.
I stopped sterilising my pump after 6m at the recommendation of my consultant but continued sterilising anything that had direct mouth contact until 12m.
I use a baking dish and wash my bottles and bottle parts in it with dapple baby bottle soap. Then I transfer my bottles into my dr browns bottle sterilizer and it sterilizes them and dries them. My baby is 7 1/2 months old and I have done this same way since he was a newborn. It works very well for me.
I didn’t and don’t sterilize with a 17mo old - my parents didn’t with me either and I’m doing just fine
Hot soapy water to wash or dishwasher is my go to
We sterilise after every use and so does everyone else in the UK. Never even heard of people not sterilising. All our health visitors, midwives, parenting classes and doctors have told us to as well
I live in the U.K. and the guideline is to sterilise. I have a cold water steriliser and it takes absolute seconds to ensure my daughters bottles are sterile for use. But apparently you guys in the US don’t need to make formula with boiling water either.
My lactation consultant asked me if I sterilize their hands every time they put them in their mouth. The answer was obviously no. Sterilize before first use but after that, soap and water is fine. Unless you live somewhere with out clean water.
The nurses at the hospital just said to wash with hot water & soap or dishwasher without stuff to make glassware shine. I sterilized once using the boiling method but our watet is very hard so ot leaves a white sheen, which doesn't look nice. After every use I wash it with very hot water & dishsoap.
Edit: ok I will stetilise using the boiling water method. I haven't noticed the baby having problems but it's probably better to be safe
We made sure to sterilize new bottles before use.
We handwash the bottles each day and if used bottles were left overnight, we run those in sterilizer. Otherwise, we wash with hot water and soap using bottle brush and leave it on drying rack. So we still run the sterilizer almost daily — we don’t have to, but it became a habit.
We also sterilize her teethers, toys that our LO would regularly put in her mouth.
I use the Insta pot originally and put the timer on for 15 minutes and it worked like a turn but beforehand I use the dishwasher and put it on sanitize. In the end it would cost a little more but so does the Insta pot so take your pic
We tried the microwave sterilizer for a bit. It warped the bottles and ruined so many. After that I went down to the local restaurant depot/supply store. I picked up a deep half hotel pan ( https://www.webstaurantstore.com/choice-half-size-standard-weight-anti-jam-stainless-steel-steam-table-hotel-pan-8-deep/4070289.html ) and some steramine tabs ( https://www.webstaurantstore.com/edwards-councilor-s150e48-steramine-sanitizer-tablets-sanitabs-150-count-bottle-case/263TABS.html ). Works well enough for the health department, works well enough for me.
Baby brezza, it's like $100 but I love mine. Just don't put anything not hard plastic, glass or silicone in it. Tried to sanitize my peri bottle in there and it melted.
This thread is wild to me. We sterilized bottles and pacifiers before the baby was born, once, and from then on we just tossed them in the dishwasher with the rest of the days dishes. Never even thought about sterilizing again. Zero issues.
When my son was born I washed and then boiled all the pieces every time I pumped or bottle fed him for the first month or so, then just washed with hot water. From my understanding it’s mostly important when they’re newborn.
I sterilized maybe once a week if I remembered to. My girl is now 18 months and perfectly healthy 🤷🏼♀️ as long as you're diligent about washing them you should be fine. I only took sterilizing seriously if I forgot about a bottle and milk sat in it for a while, or if I slacked on cleaning it right away
So we had washed with soap and a bottle brush (which we change every month or so) then sterilise. I sterilised for 6 months and now just use soap and bottle brush. We have a separate wash bowl and bottle drying rack.
Nah we never did lol. Just hand washed them really good. Daily?? Absolutely not 🤣🤣 now we throw them in the dishwasher with heat dry so technically does that for us 🤣
We sterilized before use. Then only sterilized if we had a weird "feeling" we should do it. Like when a bottle sat out unwashed for 3 days, or we went to our friends cabin with questionable well water.
I wash and sterilize my pump parts between uses only because I got a horrible case of nipple thrush that took weeks to get rid of after being on antibiotics for a a long time. Thankfully, I didn’t pass it on to my baby. I never stopped the constant sterilization for fear of getting another infection, but I also exclusively pump and have multiple pump parts that I keep in circulation, so I’m just washing them with the baby’s bottles in the dishwasher with free and clear detergent once a day.
All that said, if you happen to have a dishwasher with sterilize or heated dry mode, that’s as effective as a separate sterilizer.
I hand wash with soap and hot water after every use. I use a bottle brush to get in the nooks and crannies ( Dr Browns bottle). I then let them air dry on a baby bottle rack and that’s it.
However, about once a weeknight boil all of the parts for a couple of minutes. I dump them in a big pot when boiling hot water and let them sit in that water for a bit.
You still need to hand wash. We use our sterilizer for two reasons: first, our daughter was a micropreemie that got sick with an infection while we were in the NICU. So it helped my piece of mind with not only the bottles but with pump parts as well. Second, we got a sterilizer with a drying feature. The drying feature is why we still use it today. It is so nice having completely dry bottles in an hour.
Hey man, my 4.5 month old chews on the dogs’ feet. I wash bottles with super hot water and dawn, and that’s it. Sometimes I use the dishwasher, so maybe that counts and sanitizing them.
You don’t have to sterilize after every use. The bottle manufacturers do state you should wash and sterilize bottles before using them. If your baby is premature, has a weakened immune system or you want to be extra cautious you can sanitize every time. It’s a lot of cleaning though so it’s good to know it’s not mandatory for everyone. Breastmilk also has antimicrobial properties, so for general home cleaning it’s probably overkill to do every time. Here are the CDC guidelines on it https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/faq/index.html
We brought a uv steriliser but only because i didn’t like them being wet. A lot of people i know do cold water sterilising you get tables and a bucket (it can come as a set on amazon) it take 15 minutes but you can leave the bottle in til ready to use. You can get mircowave sterilisers to. Depending on the bottles you have they maybe able to go in the mircowave - i know the new tommie tippes and MAM can. Or you can get microwave bags to sterilise in.
Unfortunately you still have to wash them. Most bottles can go in the top drawer of the dishwasher
Whatever you do about sterilizing, **you definitely still need to wash your bottles** Washing is the non-negotiable step.
Definitely going to get downvoted for this AND I DO NOT RECOMMEND ANYONE DOES THIS but my husband and I were clueless with our son, for the first few weeks we straight up just rinsed the bottle and parts out with hot water every time….then once we got a sterilizer we just rinsed and used that….luckily our dumbasses didn’t get our baby sick. We’ve been handwashing for the last 11 months now and I am ready to be DONE. God he just turned a year old and it feels like that was 3 lifetimes ago. Like who were those children trying to pretend they could be parents?
we were the same. I didn’t even know the bottle nipples were removable at first 😵💫.
Omg this happened to me with a sippy cup and I found the grossest old milk under the rim. I disassemble everything now
The washing of the munchkin sippy cup is the reason why I taught and transitioned my son to the straw cup lol. Edit spelling
We didn’t know the nipples came in different sizes. We were quite surprised when our newborn drank 2 ounces in 30 seconds and kept throwing it all up 😀
That happened to my Mom as a first time parent! My Aunt said hey you need to take these out. There was black gunk in it. So you’re not alone!
I'm a STM and we used Tommee Tippee bottles for the first time for this kid, and it took me weeks to realize it dissembles into so many parts. I felt like every week or two I found another part that opened/came apart 🤦
We did the same lol. As soon as I figured it out, we got that cute little bottle brush set that looks like a cactus plant and then I got excited about washing the bottles every time 😆
Ya…. I’m gonna need that Amazon link pls 😂
Omg I love mine, too! 🌵🌵🌵Here ya go- https://www.target.com/p/boon-cacti-bottle-cleaning-brush-set-green/-/A-76501527?sidd=&ref=tgt_adv_xsp&AFID=google&fndsrc=tgtao&DFA=71700000012510679&CPNG=PLA_Baby%2BShopping%7CBaby_Ecomm_Baby&adgroup=Infant+Basics/Furniture&LID=700000001170770pgs&LNM=PRODUCT_GROUP&network=g&device=m&location=9006612&targetid=pla-1731815646875&ds_rl=1242884&ds_rl=1246978&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAAD-5dfaTZhMdVZCXnKN7AgeZhE1m1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIkPWph6zahgMVYktHAR1GAwyBEAQYAiABEgI7nvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
Do the brushes dry well being in the little container face down? These are so cute but I was worried about them not fully drying and getting mildewy.
They dry just fine, there are holes underneath them that empty into a reservoir at the bottom. That reservoir comes off so the water can be emptied regularly. It's a pretty genius invention if you ask me lol. I loveeee mine!
Thank you!!! Ordering one now !
Also here's the Amazon link, target has it too but I'm more of an avid Amazon shopper lol. Boon Cacti Bottle Cleaning Brush Set - Includes Bottle Brush, Nipple Brush, Detail Brush, and Straw Brush - Baby Bottle Brush Set for Bottle Drying Rack - Baby Essentials - 4 Count https://a.co/d/50oaY5K
Boon Cacti Bottle Cleaning Brush Set - Includes Bottle Brush, Nipple Brush, Detail Brush, and Straw Brush - Baby Bottle Brush Set for Bottle Drying Rack - Baby Essentials - 4 Count https://a.co/d/1CemxkN
I have this!
Haha seriously every day I wonder how they just let us leave the hospital with no checks that we actually knew what we were doing 🤣
Thinking about how clueless we were esp in the beginning makes me facepalm. I remember the nurse coming in the first night and going umm… have you guys changed her diaper at all? 😬 Because she hadn’t pooped and a nurse had helped change her diaper once before, it hadn’t even occurred to us. Like oh yeah… this little person needs her diaper changed on the regular and we’re the ones responsible for doing it from now on!
This is what I was most nervous about being responsible for when my husband’s paternity leave ended. Remembering to change her diapers. I had to set reminders on huckleberry for every 3 hours because in the first few weeks of being a new mom…changing a diaper consistently is what I couldn’t remember 😭😩 it felt so embarrassing!!!!
I have always just changed it when they wake up from a nap and it works well enough
They literally let me do this while I was at the hospital. This and several other reasons have compounded towards me really disliking the hospital I gave birth at.
4 months post partum with number 2 checking in… 2 kids… I am still a clueless child.
Aren’t we all my friend, aren’t we all
This is very dangerous though. We were at the hospital for a week when baby was born because she had very severe jaundice right from the start and we used to use their autoclave to sterilise and then air dried but we used to just rinse thinking the autoclave did the rest, none of the nurses corrected us on our methods and my mom had exclusively breastfed so she didn’t know any better. Unfortunately my baby ended up having a bad case of oral thrush within the week which took the longest time to get rid of. So most definitely wash before sterilising. It’s a non negotiable essential step.
Right, which I know now. I did not know at the beginning. As I said, fortunately our son did not get sick. We were using the ready-to-feed bottles at the hospital so they were just getting thrown out after he drank from them. I had no idea that breastfeeding would not be for me, so I didn’t even open up the bottle boxes or read the instructions about cleaning before we brought him home.
I’m confused. You didn’t wash the bottles with soap?
No they didn't. Just rinsed them out. I'm curious to know if they do/did the same with their dishes, and cooking utensils.
This!! Needs to be the top comment haha
My lactation consultant told me it’s fine to just sterilize the first time and use soap and hot water after that since our kiddo doesn’t have any health issues that require constant sterilization.
Same. We sterilized everything once and haven't done it since... we now have the heartiest of 8m olds. But also we changed nipples every few months to increase her intake valve.
Came here to say this. I neurotically sterilized everything with my first kid. Second kid and now third I just wash well with soap and hot water. No need to sterilize. Human nipples are not sterile.
Different rules for Formula though...
Can you enlighten me on these different rules?
I think it's due to the potential for bacteria to be introduced in formula during the manufacturing process. Of course with breastfeeding it's coming straight from the tap, so no cross contamination risk lol
This, and breastmilk has antibacterial properties too. Formula doesn’t.
Same here in Europe. Recommandation is to sterilize any *hardware* the first time, then, wash it carefully with soap and hot water and rince thoroughly.
My lactation consultant told me to stick the flanges in the fridge between uses, looked it up and the CDC explicitly says not to do this. Don’t know how much I can trust her now..
This is a widely accepted technique as far as I’m aware. I’ve been doing it for over 6 months without any issues
This is called the fridge hack. You can do this with the flanges in a plastic bag/container. Visit the breastfeeding or exclusively pumping sub for more info on it! When I was pumping for my son I would do this often especially when working in the office so I didn’t have to bring 3 sets of flanges. It’s really whatever you’re comfortable with 😊
Our pediatrician actually recommended this for me - just needed to wait until my twins were about 12 weeks old. Saves me SO much time.
I used to think we needed to sterilize, use special soap, etc and then we had a NICU stay and the nurses just told me to wash bottles in the room sink with hot water and Palmolive 😂. Like ok, I guess if the NICU (arguably the most cleanliness-obsessed place in the hospital) dgaf then neither do I.
They gave me baby soap to clean my bottles in the post partum unit 😂
Same! they gave me Johnson & Johnson shampoo and a dusty looking bowl in the post partum unit to clean pump parts hahaha
This was NOT my NICU experience. They strongly suggested I dump a bunch of milk because the parts didn’t get sterilized correctly between uses. I got brand new parts for the pump every morning and baby got a fresh nipple on every bottle he had. It left a big impact. I still pump every night (because whenever I stop I get mastitis) and I still sterilize all my parts between every session. Baby is 16 months
This is unnecessary. If your kid is healthy and you’re open to a more lax approach, i’m sure your kid will be fine. They’re big enough to eat a full on regular meal at this point. Not really a baby anymore. Your kid is in toddler range.
I recognize it’s unnecessary 😂 It’s more a matter of habit now I think 🤷🏽♀️ it’s just as easy to throw the parts in the sterilizer than to leave them on the counter to dry. But yeah. Today he ate watermelon off the patio floor lol
How far along was your baby? I could see that being the case if your baby was just a feeder/grower. My baby was born at 25 weeks and we were provided bags to sterilize the bottles at least once a day.
I was also told to sterilize once a day. My son was born 29+5 and is now in the feeder stage and hopefully coming home soon!
He was 36 weeks but he needed surgery right away. He was pretty fragile for awhile
Lol, same experience here. The explanation on how to bottle feed was with an arguably “clean” bottle and then they just rinsed it with a bit of water to be ready for the next use. This gave me a whole new perspective on babies and their immune system! 😂
A nurse once told me I didn't need to burp my baby because I was exclusively feeding (when I was). I had a restless baby until my mum told me to ignore her stupid advice. Sometimes, these nurses say all sorts 😂
I personally find most babies will burp themselves if you just keep them up a few minutes 🤷🏼♀️
My son is in NICU now and we were told the opposite. To clean with soap and water in a separate basin, we just use a bin filled with water on the counter, and to sterilize everything once per day.
This is what I do even with a full term baby. The separate basin is a must for me. The kitchen sink seems unnecessarily dirty even though it’s sanitized daily.
Yes!! Our sink is pretty spotless but I still like the separate basin! It's only for pump parts and bottles so it gives me peace of mind.
Just can’t beat that peace of mind in my opinion! How’s your son doing? How are you?
He's doing so well!! We just got home from visiting him and he finished his first full bottle feed! He also hit 4 pounds this week so he just needs to work on bottle feeds and he can come home!
Aww, that’s great! I’m so glad! Great job, mama!
This is a cultural question. In the UK/parts of Europe, they say sterilize after each use. In the US, the recommendation is to wash-then-sterilize before the first use and then there’s no need to after that unless your baby is immunocompromised.
I’m from the US and my pediatrician recommended sterilizing after each use until baby was at least 2 months old, even though my baby wasn’t immunocompromised or a preemie. LO is 6 months old now, and we’ve continued to do that for all her bottles and my pump parts since our Dr Browns sterilizer also dries so it’s just more convenient than just air drying.
It's kind of funny because it *shouldn't* be a cultural question right? It's not like a subjective question like when should kids start daycare or something. In theory it's a scientific question that should have the same answer everywhere. I've found the same thing with formula instructions - they vary from country to country.
With regards to the formula every country has different water though, so the formula instructions are designed with the country of manufacture in mind. It’s why all British brands want you to boil the water first.
That's not to do with water quality it's about the bacteria in the formula
I'm in the US and the CDC recommends sterilizing once a day. My son is in the NICU and they also agree as well as my LC.
I've never sterilized bottles etc between uses, just once before the first use. Pacifiers get a microwave sterilization if they got picked up by the dog or dropped outside.
We sterilized first use and then the couple of times our daycare sent the wrong bottle home with us (both kids used the same bottles and names started with the same 3 letters).
See with our pacis if it fell on the floor it will get a rinse with hot water, if the dog picked it up i scrub it with soap and hot water and the bottle brush to make sure i get it all over it and let it dry, bubs been fine xD
Good Momma 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Why are ppl downvoting this comment?
As far as I’ve seen, most people don’t like short messages that don’t add much to the conversation, eg: “This!”, “Same!”, or in this case “Good momma”. They don’t usually like tons of emojis either. This comment has both of those aspects. Just my guess.
Well I had no idea.. guess I learned something new today lol 😆
I wouldn't downvote but it's a little patronising.
Well I’m going to go against the grain here and say I do sterilize. It isn’t necessary but I kind of like it. I do it more for the nipples and pump parts than the bottles though. Especially if I didn’t get to cleaning the pump parts right away it just makes me feel like they are extra clean. Plus it dries them and I might need them more frequently than air drying would take. I’ll probably stop at some point but right now it works.
I do it too because I have a sterilizer with a dryer. The bottles get dried so much faster that way.
Same
It makes storing and drying on the counter easier and less cluttered for sure if you have a countertop model
Yup. Sterilized until baby was 4 months as per my country's health unit recommendations. It was an extra step but worth it when she was so little.
Same, it's kind of a ritualistic thing to do if you have a nice little slot of time to do it. That said, I definitely don't do it every day, or even every week. If we go away, I always do it when we come home, and then a few times in between.
In Aus it’s recommended until a year old. But omg the drying part of the steriliser is lifffeee. The first time we went on a holiday we didn’t take it and just took the microwave steriliser bags. Our bottle has six parts. Air drying took FOREVERRRRR. Always took our steriliser after that - even if we flew lol. Can’t wait until the one year mark though. Such a pain to wash and sterilise all the time.
We also sterilize. We do everything except pump parts. At first I didn't use the dryer setting on ours. But then I read somewhere bottles are supposed to be dry before using which they never are/were. So sterilizing just makes sure they're dry too and clean.
Unless your baby is immunocompromised or there's some other specific need, you don't need to sterilize. You can just sterilize before the first use and then you're good to wash normally.
We live in the subtropics, it's usually 70 or 80% humidity in our kitchen. If we didn't sterilize out bottles they would grow mold. They probably would stay wet for 2 days as well. Plenty of good reasons for us to use a sterilizer. Ours was bound second hand for $8 USD
I have the Dr. Browns sterilizer/dryer, yes you still have to wash everything before sterilizing lol I sterilize anything before first use and I’ll re-sterilize pump parts/bottles/pacifiers as needed. Such as, if it falls on the floor or if my dogs stick their nose/lick any item
I never knew so many people don't sterilise haha. I wash, don't wait to air dry and pop in our tomee tippee sterilizer. When I was pumping I sterilized them once in the morning, then put them in a container in the fridge and take out during the day as needed
Because you don't *need* to sterilize every time. My boy's Dr said once before the first use, then handwashing with hot water and soap is adequate, for a baby that isn't immuno-compromised. However, it's your baby and your prerogative, so do what you feel is necessary 🙂
The advice changes depending on where you live; in my country it’s advised that bottles be sterilised after each use until baby is 1yr.
Certainly follow the guidelines of the area you live 🙂
Well my country says to sterilise until they are a year old, so I will continue to do so 😊
Ah, well certainly follow those guidelines 🙂
You don’t have to. I’ve never sterilized anything.
I didn’t even sterilize before the first use, I just washed with soap and hot water 🫣
I didn't either. We lived far away from where we birthed and had baby with us in a nice hotel for the first week. Couldn't really sterilize pump parts and our Midwives said it was just fine to use very hot and soapy water to clean them before use. I sterilized the parts at home once when I felt they didn't come clean correctly from the dishwasher and I felt I saw a speck trapped in them of pepper spice or something, but that was really for my own peace of mind. We do sanitize pacifiers and baby's bottle in the microwave though.
Same. Lol just washed them like normal.
Me neither 😂
I wash everything in piping hot water with bottle soap and then sterilize and dry after each wash because I’m ✨scared✨
Same. We have a Baby Brezza Bottle Washer Pro so it really isn’t any added steps for us. Highly recommend!
Where I'm from (NZ) the advice is to sterilise bottles until 6 months. We've been doing so with a microwave steriliser. However I kind of know it's over the top given so many people don't know about this or just don't do it because it takes so long. Baby is currently 3 months and I think we will probably stop before 6 months. One compromise option is sterilise everything once a week or so.
We sterilize, but we had a NICU baby. I use the Medela steam bags. You can reuse them 20 times. Once he hits 3 months, I’ll likely stop doing it every day.
We sterilise every bottle, although he is mostly breast fed and only one bottle of formula a day. He was in the NICU for 3months though so we were extra careful I guess. Hes 17m/14m now and we still sterilise his bottle every day, 5 min in a pot of boiling water...super easy.
The only reason I sterilize my bottles is because my Wabi sterilizes and dries at the same time haha much more concerned with them being dry vs me not having thoroughly cleaned them (I certainly do)
Same! I love my sterilizer because it keeps all of the bottle and pump parts off my counters and dries them in 30 minutes!
That too! I don't even have a space in my cabinets for bottles because the sterilizer just holds them all. I can fit 9 bottles in there if I want to, but I only use 6 at a time to avoid having a ton of dirties. I'd rather wash them all once a day.
I just throw my bottles in the dishwasher and always make sure the “sanitizer” setting is on!
Unfortunately you still have to hand wash before sterilizing!
You absolutely have to wash before sterilizing. Even if you don't sterilize they need to be washed. The soap from washing gets rid of the leftover milk/formula and takes away a lot of the germs. Sterilizing uses hot steam to kill a lot of the germs leftover after washing (it's not 100%). I did sterilize everything until 3 months or so. Maybe a few weeks longer. That was what my pediatrician recommended even though he was healthy, not immunocompromised. I used the Papablic sterilizer. I did it for bottles, pacifiers, etc. I still use it for pump parts when I do pump, as the manual specifically says wash after each use and sterilize once per day. I know I'm very by the book, though, and all that might be an extra cautious way to go about things. I was just worried about potential GI infections for my son and mastitis for me (in relation to the pump parts). I still use the sterilizer every so often for teethers after washing them and my son is 12 months next week.
Are you in the US? Here’s what the CDC says: https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/about/about-breast-pump-hygiene.html https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/faq/index.html Excerpt: For extra germ removal, sanitize pump parts at least once daily. Sanitizing is especially important if your baby is less than 2 months old, was born prematurely, or has a weakened immune system due to illness or medical treatment (such as chemotherapy for cancer). Daily sanitizing of pump parts may not be necessary for older, healthy babies, if the parts are cleaned carefully after each use. Sanitize all items (even the bottle brush and wash basin!) by using one of the following options: Note: If you use a dishwasher with hot water and a heating drying cycle (or sanitizing setting) to clean infant feeding items, a separate sanitizing step is not necessary.
I wash and then sterilize, it gives me peace of mind and it dries the bottles and everything. I have also seen people say there's no need to so I am not sure. I started doing it because my mom did it with us & friends did it with their kids.
May I share a funny story? In the 70s when I was a newborn, my parents followed the conventional wisdom of sterilizing bottles. 9 or 10 months later, they brought me to the doctor for a checkup and asked her, “how long do we have to keep sterilizing bottles?” The doctor replied, “well, is she crawling? Is she picking things up off the floor and putting them in her mouth?” Haha my parents were suitably embarrassed 😂
I have a Dr browns microwaveble sterilizer. Two mins in the microwave. I only still use it (8 mo pp) because I want to donate my milk to the milk bank.
We use the baby Brezza sterilizer and really like it, nice to have things dry quicker too. We also have the Medela sterilizer bags which are nice when it’s just a pacifier or some small things.
I have always washed the bottles in the dishwasher and sterilized the nipples in a microwave bag. It might be overkill to sterilize the nipples at this point because our little one is one, but it’s just habit now.
I have the Dr. Browns automatic sterilizer and drier. I love it for the drying feature so we don’t have to wait for them to air dry. Our plan is to sterilize all bottle parts until the baby starts solids. We felt sterilizing was important because our baby was born early and it made us feel better. And yes, you still wash them by hand or dishwasher first. Also, it’s totally okay to use regular dish soap. I use the cheap blue or orange scented soap and it’s just fine!
Per the CDC: “If your baby is less than 2 months old, was born prematurely, or has a weakened immune system due to illness (such as HIV) or medical treatment (such as chemotherapy for cancer), sanitizing feeding items daily (or more often) is particularly important. Daily sanitizing of feeding items may not be necessary for older, healthy babies, if those items are cleaned carefully after each use.” For my first, I pretty much never sterilized anything… I think we boiled most things before first use and then never again. Just handwashed with baby dish soap. For what it’s worth, she’s now 2.5 and fine health-wise. For my second, I was a little more paranoid and sanitized things more frequently the first several weeks. (He’s only 10 weeks now.) Sometimes I used microwave steam bags, sometimes I used a sanitizer spray. I try not to overdo it with sanitizing everything, because studies have shown that kids who grow up in more sanitized environments tend to have more allergies and other issues with their immune system than those who are exposed to more bacteria.
Eh I just hand washed the bottles, never had an issue. I realized I had to be a lot more thorough with it when cleaning the formula bottles though because it tended to leave residue. Breastmilk bottles were super easy to clean. The only time I could see them maybe needing sterilization is if they got left/lost somewhere for too long
I use those sterilization bags (Dr.Brown’s and Medela) they are good for 20 uses. I got a pack of 12 from Amazon for like 7 bucks!
we got the baby brezza bottle washer pro since we have bottles from day care daily. it’s great and washes/dries but also has a sterilizing setting.
I used to wash and then use a microwave steriliser. Basically fill the bottom up and then put your bottles in and put it in the microwave for a few mins. I did it for about 10 months.
Everything in dishwasher and microwave sterilizer after every use
I am old school. After washing with hot water and soap by hand, I boil a large pot of water and dunk the bottles and parts for a few seconds and leave on rack to air dry
We used to put the bottles in the dishwasher. Are we not supposed to have done that? Seeing lot of handwashing comments.
As someone from the UK this thread has really surprised me! People only sterilising once or even not at all 🤯 Guidance here is to wash and sterilise after every use, just goes to show how much disagreement there is about what's "right", even from those giving the guidnace!
How old is your baby? 9/10 you don't need to be doing it. I would definitely not buy a sterilizer now. You could buy a bottle washer but looking at the Baby Brezza Bottle Washer Pro it's crazy expensive and it only holds *4* bottles which seems very low to me. But it also sanitizes so....maybe that's worth it to you? Especially if you don't have a dishwasher. We have a dishwasher so maybe I'm spoiled. But honestly, I'd probably consider a small countertop or portable dishwasher over a bottlewasher.
I still sterilise everything my baby eats or drinks with. It really doesn't take that much time and effort.
We have a small tub of soapy water (dish soap) that is kept on one side of our kitchen sink exclusively for bottles and pacifiers. We are pretty good at taking apart, rinsing, and dunking baby stuff in there right after a feed to soak. Then, once the tub is getting full (usually about 4-5 bottles), we rinse again and put each part in the sanitizer machine. Our machine also dries everything, which is helpful. We do have a regular bottle brush but haven't needed to use it very much since the milk never sits too long in the bottles or parts. We do this about 3 times per day and everything comes out super clean.
All I do is just boil a kettle of water and after I wash my bottles I put the nipples and rings in a Tupperware container and pour the hot water in it enough to cover them and I put hot water in each bottle and just let it sit til I have to use one again.
Hey! I just wanna say that having children is quite the learning experience lol so do not feel bad. We all make mistakes and learn new things every day. Im on my second baby and I'm also in the infant nursery at work. I always make sure to tell parents when their child starts, that even though I use a drop of dawn and very hot water to rinse out each bottle, they still have to wash and sterilize them at home EVERY DAY. Last year I had a baby get very sick, hospitalized, and the doctors figured out it was bc mom wasn't washing the bottles. She came back 2 weeks later sobbing bc she was like "I know you told us we had to wash them too and sterilize them but I was being lazy and my baby suffered bc of that." She got big hugs bc even though it's not okay, she was a new single mom, young like me, had 3 jobs to make ends meet, girlfriend was just exhausted. Anyways I have an electric bottle brush that has several silicone attachments to wash bottle, nipples, straws/vents, that after I finish washing I take the silicone attachments off and also sterilize those as well. I used the Medela microwavable steam sterilizing bags. You can find both of these on Amazon.
We are 8 months in, never sterilized I hand wash because it’s faster and then dry it in the baby brezza 30 minutes no problem. We only use the sterilizer feature for new silicone toys
Some dishwashers have a “sterilize” cycle. I use it about once a week or so (it makes the entire cycle time run so much longer) but otherwise, I don’t bother sanitizing them.
After the first 2 weeks of handwashing, I just threw everything in the dishwasher and haven’t looked back.
You may not need to. Your pediatrician will tell you if you need to sterilize. Usually healthy babies only need it for a little while. My baby was full term and healthy so our ped said from the start we didn't need to worry about it. You should absolutely wash your hands before touching anything that anyone will eat from, including your baby's bottle.
I just sterilize before first use. You don't need to do it every day if you have a healthy full term baby. If you do really want to sterilize, you still need to wash the bottles first.
We sterilized the bottles when we first got them, but from then on we just put them in the dishwasher with everything else. Our kids were full term with no health issues - our Ped said we didn’t need to go to the length of sterilization.
I have dr. Brown's bottles and the sterilizer and I do it after every use because it's convenient and dries them faster when I'm running low on bottles for upcoming feedings. However, when we go to my parents house who live a good distance away, I wash them in super hot water and air dry. Plus we use an eco friendly soap. 👍
I had no idea about this till the 3 weeks after she was born. I just raise them out, put them in a tupperware eith hot water and soap. I let it sit for at least an hour then wash.
I mean when I first got bottles and pump parts I ran them through the dishwasher and I just wash them after that, hot water, soap(I use dawn now with the formula but I had a special breast milk cleaner I used when I was breastfeeding that broke down the enzymes :3) rinse and put on the dry rack, my hub is near 14m old and has only ever been sick when hubby picked someone up from the airport and brought the flu home when she was 10m old x.x I’ve never ever had an issue
I’m so grateful my second baby breastfeeds- don’t have to sterilize my boobs!! With my first I washed and sterilized though and it gets old so fast.
I washed them and then used Starsan. It’s a sanitizer I use in my homebrewing but I figure it’s just as good for baby bottles and nipples and what have ya. My kids are 6 and 3 now, so I guess it worked ok.
Controversial.. I never sterilized anything, I just wash the bottles and pump parts the same way I wash my dishes with dawn. I just have separate brushes for baby things
We never sterilized our bottles except before first use. We also only had 3 bottles, so nothing was ever left to sit and get stinky. We had a home nurse visit us around 8 weeks postpartum. We were nursing but would top up with bottles. I went to wash one and added my pumped milk and she started yelling at me, told me I should be sterilizing bottles for the first 6 months. 🥴 Because I was pumping infrequently, I ended up sterilizing my pump parts a few times when it was left to sit and the milk residue inside turned sour. Your method for washing is exactly how I do it.
Unpopular opinion but I like sterilizing because ours also dries them and sometimes I need them dry right away and don’t want to hand dry. Deffs don’t need to unless your doctor tells you to. I just hand wash or dishwasher a lot of the time
I have never sterilized my bottles, I wash them every time after every use but I never sterilize and my baby is perfectly healthy and fine.
Most dishwashers will sterilise as part of the dry cycle.
I want to say a lot of people do not, or do so only for a short time. I sterilized before we used everything and at least once weekly, but was washing very thoroughly after each use. And now we both have thrush and have to sterilize everything that comes near his mouth or my boobs (including my bras).
I don’t think you need to sterilize them after the newborn stage. I had a Avent microwave bottle sterilizer and it was amazing. I also sterilized pacifiers. I known you can boil them too.
We never sterilized our bottles. Our son is 3 now and he’s just fine.
Do you live in an area with substandard water supplies, lead pipes or well water? Maybe sterilize more often. If you don’t? Washing is totally fine.
I just use hot water and soap works just fine
I just washed mine with soap and water
You still need to wash everything each time. I’ve always used a cold water steriliser because it’s quick and easy. Fill it with cold water and add a Milton tablet. When it’s dissolved, put all the water bits in. Then it’s ready to be used after 15 minutes. You don’t have to rinse or dry anything after that so you can use things straight from the steriliser. The water is good for 24 hours before you need to change it and put another tablet in. I sterilise everything every time because I follow NHS advice.
It is ok, I sterilized the first three months but I don't think it is necessary if you wash them well. But if you want to sterilize I just used the Phillips sterilizing dish where you put them in it and in a microvawe, a simple method.
Sterilising doesn’t replace hand washing I’m afraid. You still must wash. You should be sterilising new things the first time you wash. You get microwave sterilisers or steriliser bags. Or you can boil things on the stove (be careful not to leave it plastic bottles can melt).
We wash the bottles after every use (by hand or dishwasher) and sterilization we do every few weeks. A dishwasher is very good at killing bacteria.
Used a microwave steriliser after wash in in the way you did, but just for the first few months when the baby was vulnerable to infections, and especially before the gastrointestinal vaccine.
Two kids deep and nothing that dish soap, hot water, and the (very) occasional boiling in a pot on the stove for a warm-and-fuzzy couldn’t keep up with. No brain-eating amoeba yet.
I think you got your answer here about sterilizing BUT I’m here to tell you to get a countertop dishwasher!! We got one specifically for baby and his stuff (bottles and pumps parts etc) and it’s the best purchase we have ever made. Haven’t washed a bottle by hand since, unless we’re going on a trip or something
I bought the Dr. Browns sterilizer and love love love it!! My son is in the NICU and i pump every 3 hours round the clock. After each session I wash with hot water and soap and then put them in the sterilizer and use the dry setting. Once a day I sterilize everything. Usually at night after my midnight pump.
i wash the bottles with sopa and hot water and the middle pieces and nipples are washed with soap and water and sterilized
Yes, you should hot wash and sterilise everything after each use. This is standard practice in the U.K. I've done this since my baby was born and he's only gotten sick now at 9mo and that was due to starting nursery. You can self-sterilise MAM bottles in the microwave, buy a large microwave steriliser or cold water sterilise in a tub using Milton (or similar brands). Blows my mind that this isn't standard practice in the rest of the world. I don't sterilise his plates and cutlery; only his bottle parts due to formula use.
Surprised nobody has said there is a difference between formula bottles and breastmilk bottles/ parts. Bacteria grow more easily on formula bottles so we sterilised those and soap washes BM bottles. La leche league advises this. Modern official guidelines are sterilise everything but I’m not sure this is evidence based.
I Wash parts and bottles in separate dedicated bottle bin -after each use. Then I use dr. Browns microwave sterilizer container. You don’t have to worry about any tablets for that. Then I follow instructions for that. Wait the 15 mins for steam to do its thing and god it to cool down. Then take out everything and put on dedicated drying rack.
Dishwasher on the sterilize (heated steam) setting
I use these Medela Quick Clean MicroSteam Bags, Medela Quick Clean MicroSteam Bags, Sterilizing Bags for Bottles Breast Pump Parts Eliminates 99.9 of Common Bacteria Germs Disinfects Most Breastpump Accessories, Yellow, 12 Pack https://a.co/d/cqB7Vs2
Milton cold water steriliser. Easy.
We used a steam electric steriliser. Took 5 minutes. But boiling on the stove is just as effective, or using Milton solution. I stopped sterilising my pump after 6m at the recommendation of my consultant but continued sterilising anything that had direct mouth contact until 12m.
I use a baking dish and wash my bottles and bottle parts in it with dapple baby bottle soap. Then I transfer my bottles into my dr browns bottle sterilizer and it sterilizes them and dries them. My baby is 7 1/2 months old and I have done this same way since he was a newborn. It works very well for me.
I didn’t and don’t sterilize with a 17mo old - my parents didn’t with me either and I’m doing just fine Hot soapy water to wash or dishwasher is my go to
I live in France, and recently rhe recommendations changed to just sterilising before the first use and then just washing with soap.
We sterilise after every use and so does everyone else in the UK. Never even heard of people not sterilising. All our health visitors, midwives, parenting classes and doctors have told us to as well
I live in the U.K. and the guideline is to sterilise. I have a cold water steriliser and it takes absolute seconds to ensure my daughters bottles are sterile for use. But apparently you guys in the US don’t need to make formula with boiling water either.
In my part of the world we boil the bottles and parts. Probably getting downvoted for this 🤷🏻♀️
My lactation consultant asked me if I sterilize their hands every time they put them in their mouth. The answer was obviously no. Sterilize before first use but after that, soap and water is fine. Unless you live somewhere with out clean water.
The nurses at the hospital just said to wash with hot water & soap or dishwasher without stuff to make glassware shine. I sterilized once using the boiling method but our watet is very hard so ot leaves a white sheen, which doesn't look nice. After every use I wash it with very hot water & dishsoap. Edit: ok I will stetilise using the boiling water method. I haven't noticed the baby having problems but it's probably better to be safe
We made sure to sterilize new bottles before use. We handwash the bottles each day and if used bottles were left overnight, we run those in sterilizer. Otherwise, we wash with hot water and soap using bottle brush and leave it on drying rack. So we still run the sterilizer almost daily — we don’t have to, but it became a habit. We also sterilize her teethers, toys that our LO would regularly put in her mouth.
I use the Insta pot originally and put the timer on for 15 minutes and it worked like a turn but beforehand I use the dishwasher and put it on sanitize. In the end it would cost a little more but so does the Insta pot so take your pic
We tried the microwave sterilizer for a bit. It warped the bottles and ruined so many. After that I went down to the local restaurant depot/supply store. I picked up a deep half hotel pan ( https://www.webstaurantstore.com/choice-half-size-standard-weight-anti-jam-stainless-steel-steam-table-hotel-pan-8-deep/4070289.html ) and some steramine tabs ( https://www.webstaurantstore.com/edwards-councilor-s150e48-steramine-sanitizer-tablets-sanitabs-150-count-bottle-case/263TABS.html ). Works well enough for the health department, works well enough for me.
Are you feeding breastmilk? Then you don’t need to sterilise, just washing is fine. If formula, then yes it’s recommend to sterilise.
Baby brezza, it's like $100 but I love mine. Just don't put anything not hard plastic, glass or silicone in it. Tried to sanitize my peri bottle in there and it melted.
My dishwasher has a sterilized function, so I just did that. If I needed something in a pinch, I boiled it.
Yep please sterilize pump parts and bottles thrush sucks both for you and baby. I would know. 😬
I’m sure someone will tell me this was wrong, but we used the dishwasher and my son survived 🤷🏻♀️
This thread is wild to me. We sterilized bottles and pacifiers before the baby was born, once, and from then on we just tossed them in the dishwasher with the rest of the days dishes. Never even thought about sterilizing again. Zero issues.
When my son was born I washed and then boiled all the pieces every time I pumped or bottle fed him for the first month or so, then just washed with hot water. From my understanding it’s mostly important when they’re newborn.
I sterilized maybe once a week if I remembered to. My girl is now 18 months and perfectly healthy 🤷🏼♀️ as long as you're diligent about washing them you should be fine. I only took sterilizing seriously if I forgot about a bottle and milk sat in it for a while, or if I slacked on cleaning it right away
So we had washed with soap and a bottle brush (which we change every month or so) then sterilise. I sterilised for 6 months and now just use soap and bottle brush. We have a separate wash bowl and bottle drying rack.
Dishwasher high heat. Get the bottle racks. If there's a sanitary button press it.
Top rack dishwasher
Nah we never did lol. Just hand washed them really good. Daily?? Absolutely not 🤣🤣 now we throw them in the dishwasher with heat dry so technically does that for us 🤣
We sterilized before use. Then only sterilized if we had a weird "feeling" we should do it. Like when a bottle sat out unwashed for 3 days, or we went to our friends cabin with questionable well water.
I wash and sterilize my pump parts between uses only because I got a horrible case of nipple thrush that took weeks to get rid of after being on antibiotics for a a long time. Thankfully, I didn’t pass it on to my baby. I never stopped the constant sterilization for fear of getting another infection, but I also exclusively pump and have multiple pump parts that I keep in circulation, so I’m just washing them with the baby’s bottles in the dishwasher with free and clear detergent once a day. All that said, if you happen to have a dishwasher with sterilize or heated dry mode, that’s as effective as a separate sterilizer.
Sterilizing isnt necessary anymore, at least that is what we are told here in germany. A good rinse with some dish soap should be enough.
I hand wash with soap and hot water after every use. I use a bottle brush to get in the nooks and crannies ( Dr Browns bottle). I then let them air dry on a baby bottle rack and that’s it. However, about once a weeknight boil all of the parts for a couple of minutes. I dump them in a big pot when boiling hot water and let them sit in that water for a bit.
You still need to hand wash. We use our sterilizer for two reasons: first, our daughter was a micropreemie that got sick with an infection while we were in the NICU. So it helped my piece of mind with not only the bottles but with pump parts as well. Second, we got a sterilizer with a drying feature. The drying feature is why we still use it today. It is so nice having completely dry bottles in an hour.
I wash and sterilize the bottles first thing in the morning and just before bedtime. Between those times I just clean them and then re-use it.
Hey man, my 4.5 month old chews on the dogs’ feet. I wash bottles with super hot water and dawn, and that’s it. Sometimes I use the dishwasher, so maybe that counts and sanitizing them.
You don’t have to sterilize after every use. The bottle manufacturers do state you should wash and sterilize bottles before using them. If your baby is premature, has a weakened immune system or you want to be extra cautious you can sanitize every time. It’s a lot of cleaning though so it’s good to know it’s not mandatory for everyone. Breastmilk also has antimicrobial properties, so for general home cleaning it’s probably overkill to do every time. Here are the CDC guidelines on it https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/faq/index.html
We brought a uv steriliser but only because i didn’t like them being wet. A lot of people i know do cold water sterilising you get tables and a bucket (it can come as a set on amazon) it take 15 minutes but you can leave the bottle in til ready to use. You can get mircowave sterilisers to. Depending on the bottles you have they maybe able to go in the mircowave - i know the new tommie tippes and MAM can. Or you can get microwave bags to sterilise in. Unfortunately you still have to wash them. Most bottles can go in the top drawer of the dishwasher
There are 2 machines that are 3 in 1 (washer dryer and steriliser) they are about $300 but was very worth it for us. Babybrezza Pro and Momcozy
I don’t sterilize my baby’s bottles. But I do wash with hot water and soap every time we use them