By Katie Hilton
Below are my sterilising tips and advice to help you with the what, how and when of keeping everything clean and germ free.
Once your baby is born, you’ll spend the next 12 months sterilising everything that comes into contact with their mouth. This includes feeding equipment, soothers, spoons, teethers and toys. During the first year, a baby is most vulnerable to illnesses. If bottles and feeding equipment aren’t sterilised, viruses and bacteria can gather and make your baby ill. They could develop anything from mild oral thrush to tummy upsets, known as gastroenteritis.
Sterilising is a special way of cleaning your baby’s feeding equipment including bottles, teats and breast pump parts to ensure they are completely free from these harmful germs.
There are 3 common methods of sterilization:
- Microwave steaming using a steriliser in the microwave
- Electric steaming using an electric steam steriliser
- Cold water sterilisation using a sterilising solution – such as sterilising tablets or sterilising fluid and a container.
Most sterilisers only allow one type of sterilising which isn’t always practical for
The Benefits of a multi-use steriliser
However, if you choose to use the MAM 6-in-1 Steriliser you’ll be able to quickly and easily switch between all three methods of sterilisation. You might want to use it as an electric steam steriliser when at home, a microwave steam steriliser when going away for the weekend or both the microwave and cold-water options when travelling overseas.
Any equipment that comes into contact with baby’s mouth should be sterilized. This includes feeding equipment, soothers, spoons, teethers and toys. You should certainly sterilize for the first year of your child’s life while their immune system is developing. After this, you should continue to sterilize bottles and teats for as long as your baby is using them.
Before sterilizing any item it’s really important to wash thoroughly with hot soapy water to remove any food residue. Then place your items into the sterilizer following the manufacturers instructions. The sterilization process will take anywhere from 5-7 minutes dependent on which method you’re using.
Always be sure to sterilize each feeding item after use and keep items in the sterilizer until needed. Wash your hands and disinfect the surface before removing using the tongs. It’s recommended to re-sterilize items left in the sterilizer every 12 hours to ensure they’re always ready to use.
If using the MAM Easy Start Bottles these can be sterilised individually in the microwave. As with all items wash in hot soapy water first, then assemble using the instructions provided and place in the microwave for 3 minutes, increasing the time by one minute for each additional bottle.
