Sterilising Options for Baby Bottles and Equipment

In the first year of their lives, a baby’s immune system is not yet fully developed, and is therefore not as robust as it needs to be to repel infection.

That’s why it’s so important to maintain good cleanliness habits when preparing your baby’s bottles.

Babies are much more open to getting sick from an infection than older children and adults, making bottle cleaning and sterilisation a topic that all new parents should be familiar with.

This guide aims to inform new parents about both the process of cleaning your baby’s bottles, and sterilising them effectively in a way that works for you and your routine.

Cleaning Bottles

Both before the first use, and after every use, bottles, nipples, lids and any other feeding equipment should be properly cleaned. To clean these items, wash the bottle (including nipple and teat) in hot soapy water as soon as possible after your baby has used them. Clean the entire bottle with a bottle brush, focusing on any dried milk inside the bottle and nipple. Once scrubbed, rinse everything in fresh water and allow to air dry.

Three Sterilising Options

While the cleaning process is important to get rid of milk from the bottles and equipment, it doesn’t ensure that the items are safe for the baby to use. You need to actually sterilise the baby bottles prior to use, with most agreeing that it is a must for at least the first 12 months of your child’s life. Regardless of whether you’re using formula or expressed breast milk, sterilisation is a must. After the 12-month period, talk to your doctor about what you should do.

When it comes to sterilising, there are actually three options for ensuring that your baby’s bottles, lids, nipples and other feeding equipment is germ free. Let’s look at them now.

1. Boiling

Boiling is a simple sterilisation method that does not require any special equipment beyond what you are likely to have in your home already. It works by raising the temperature high enough to kill any bacteria that remain on the feeding equipment after washing. Here’s how you do it.

1. In a large saucepan, place all the bottles, nipples, lids, caps and other feeding utensils you intend to use in the next 24 hours. Pop this on the stove.
2. Cover them with water, making sure no bubbles of trapped air remain.
3. Bring the pot to the boil, and continue to boil for five minutes.
4. Turn the heat off, and allow the water to cool down.
5. Wash your hands well, and disinfect the surface where you’ll be preparing the sterilised bottles.
6. Remove the equipment from the saucepan, shaking off excess water.
7. Either make up the bottle on the spot, or store in a clean container in the fridge. Anything not used in the first 24 hours will need to be re-sterilised.

2. Steaming

Just like boiling, steaming sterilisation raises the temperatures high enough to kill bacteria present on feeding equipment. You can use the steaming method either using a microwave and a specific sterilisation container, or with an electric steamer. Here’s how.

1. Clean and sterilise your steamer by running it once empty prior to using. Make sure you follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
2. Prepare your clean bottles, and load them into the steriliser ensuring that the bottles, nipples, caps etc are placed with the openings facing down in the steriliser.
3. Add water to the steriliser as outlined in the instructions for your specific device, and run it.
4. Leave the bottles and other equipment in the steriliser until you plan to prepare the bottles, and if you aren’t using the bottles right away, refer to the instructions as to how long they can stay in the steriliser before they need to be re-done.

3. Chemical

Chemical sterilisers are liquid or tablet disinfectant solutions that are diluted with water and used to sterilise feeding equipment. Here’s how they work.

1. Take your clean bottles, nipples, lids, caps and other feeding equipment. Prepare the disinfectant solution according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
2. Place the feeding equipment into the solution, and make sure that all the items are totally under the water level, with no air bubbles remaining.
3. Leave everything in the solution for the recommended amount of time. This is usually around 30 minutes, but it might be different for your solution.
4. If you’re making up the bottles straight away, remove the equipment from the sterilising solution and allow to drain in a disinfected area. Don’t rinse off the solution. Once dry, use as normal.
5. If you aren’t making the bottles right away, leave them in the solution for up to 24 hours. If you still haven’t used them at this point, the solution must be discarded and the bottles sterilised again. Also remember to wash your sterilisation container in warm, soapy water before making up a new solution.

What sterilisation option did you choose?