Some parents wonder if it is absolutely necessary to sterilize a bottle before giving it to their baby. When in doubt, many choose to proceed with sterilization until their child is four months old to avoid any risk of milk contamination. Sometimes, at the risk of spending crazy amounts of money on the purchase of a competition sterilizer!
But is it really worth the effort? 🍼
Medical grade silicone: an easy-to-clean material
Thanks to its wide shape, your Innovative BibRond easily allows your hand to pass through as well as enough to clean the interior. There is no need to scrub for hours! To prevent a film of dried milk from forming at the bottom of your bottle, you can rinse it with cold water after each meal.
Note that this is absolutely not necessary and your bottle will not be more difficult to clean later if you forget. 😊
However, make sure it is perfectly clean before giving it to your child during the next meal.
Your silicone baby bottle has the advantage of retaining its appearance and texture even after several washes, unlike certain materials which can become cloudy.
Sterilizing baby bottles: a task relegated to the background!
Sterilization of baby bottles is not considered obligatory by pediatricians. And in any case, even if it were, it is of course not possible to check every household and before every baby meal...
You can simply wash your little one's bottle by hand or pass it through the dishwasher.
Don't forget any nooks and crannies!
Let your bottle dry in a clean, ventilated area, placing it right side up so that the water evaporates. This will prevent the formation of condensation inside which would remain trapped and could develop bacteria .
Be careful if you decide to sterilize your bottle, this does not exempt you from having to clean your little one's food equipment beforehand. A baby bottle must be clean before being sterilized.
Hand washing: the essential step before giving your baby a bottle of milk
Before every meal, in fact!
Even though we do it 10 times a day, do we really wash our hands well? 🤔
The method :
- Wash your hands with Marseille soap for 3 minutes.
- Go up to the wrists.
- Don't forget the insides of your fingers or the backs of your hands.
- Rinse them with lukewarm water.
- Avoid overly long nails which retain more dirt.
- Dry yourself with a clean, non-damp cloth.
In general, before preparing your child's meals, even larger ones, you should always perform hand hygiene. Just like you would do for yourself before sitting down to eat.
No need to constantly rub yourself with hydroalcoholic gel though 😊
What if we still want to sterilize baby's bottles?
If you still want to sterilize your medical grade silicone baby bottles, here is the procedure to follow:
Sterilizing your baby bottle the old-fashioned way!
1. Prepare a pot of boiling water
Start by heating a pot of water and wait until the water is boiling . Do not hold your child in your arms or sling if you handle the container.
Push the pan handle towards the inside of your hotplates, to avoid getting caught in it and spilling it on you and your child.
2. Immerse your silicone baby bottle accessories
After dismantling them, carefully place the accessories of your baby bottle (ring, inner ring, lid, container) so as not to burn yourself. Let them soak for 10 minutes.
Do not insert the physiological pacifier only during the last five minutes of the operation. More fragile, it should not remain immersed for too long so as not to risk altering its quality.
3. Take the disassembled bottle out of the water
Finally, remove each part from your bottle one by one and let them cool without drying them, so as not to reintroduce bacteria!
Using a sterilizer
If the previous method seems tedious to you, it is possible to sterilize your bottle using a electric sterilizer ! In this case, simply fill the bottom of the appliance tank and place the bottle and its components inside.
The machine will take care of sterilizing your baby bottles. The water vapor which forms inside will enable the sterilization process to complete. This solution, more expensive, is also clearly safer ... The risk of burning yourself is almost zero. Just be careful when removing the appliance from your microwave.
Cold sterilization of your silicone baby bottle
This method, very different from the other two, does not consist of heating water but of introducing sterilization tablets to destroy all forms of bacterial life on the surface of your bottle.
You can easily obtain tablets in supermarkets or online.
Leave the bottles soak in the dilution for the time indicated on the package (between 15 and 30 minutes). Without rinsing, simply let the silicone bottle air dry. There are no known risks to your children's health according to the manufacturers of these products.
And you, which team are you on?
Thorough sterilization team or no stress team?
It doesn't matter what you decide to do. The main thing is to always clean and let your silicone baby bottle dry before letting your baby drink.
If you had any doubts, you now know that sterilization is not essential.
One less task means more time to cuddle baby! 👶
