Probably too late for me but still need to know

[adahc]

How long do you put the bottles in the fridge normally. I got loads of bottles and only us one a day...Do I really have to sterilized them everyday? Obsessive no?

 

[Portia]

I seem to recall our health visitor/lactation consultant told us to re-sterilise them after 24 hours. Refrigeration slows down bacterial growth, but doesn't eliminate it all together so it makes sense that you would need to re-sterilise them after a certain period.

Having said that if you are going to be away for 24 hours, I don't think it will make too much difference if the bottle was sterilised a bit more than 24 hours previously, eg 4 or 5 hours more.

 

[adahc]

When do you stop sterilize the bottles? my son is almost 4 months now.

 

[Konradsmom]

hmmm, advice I have been given ( or rather, what I notice other moms do) is u can stop sterilizing after 1 year old ....

 

[Jo Bowd]

I sterilised until 12 months with my eldest. But Yvonne Heavyside (Health Visitor who runs groups at the Matilda) says just 'till 6 months. This is the recommendation in the UK too. I'm thinking 2nd time round I might quit sterilising at 6 months. What do others do?

 

[peainpod]

How about breast pump parts? (I usually sterilize both bottle and pump parts at the same time and then store them together). In which case should I keep them in the fridge as well after sterilizing?

 

[Portia]

I used to sterilise everything at the same time and then put the baby bottles in the fridge and let the breast pump parts air dry. But because I took my breast pump to work, I thought it would be better to make sure it was dry before putting it in a plastic bag and then keeping it in the office at room temperature.

If you are using the pump only at home, I don't see any reason why you shouldn't put the parts in the fridge, sealed in a clean plastic bag, until you are ready to use them.

I sterlised my LO's bottles until he was a bit over a year old, but this was mainly because we were using Dr Brown's bottles and it wasn't easy to clean the central tube, so I thought it would be safer to keep on sterilsing after the first 6 months (although by the time he could crawl he was putting everything in his mouth including his shoes).