How to Sterilize Baby Bottles

You’ve probably read that you should sterilize baby bottles and pump parts before first use and regularly thereafter. So now you’re wondering,  how should I sterilize everything? How often should I sterilize baby bottles? Is sterilizing baby bottles necessary? How should I sterilize everything? And what’s the best way to dry them?

How often should I sterilize baby bottle?

Baby products such as bottles, teething toys, pacifiers and more should be sterilized on a daily basis. This is because your baby’s immune system is weaker especially with the younger they are. Daily sanitizing of these items may not be necessary for older, healthy babies, if those items are cleaned carefully after each use.

Is sterilizing baby bottles and products even necessary? 

Sanitizing is particularly important when your baby is younger than 2 months, was born prematurely, or has a weakened immune system. Improperly cleaned baby bottles will also attract germs that might lead newborns to be ill.

Due to these necessary steps to keep your newborn baby healthy, there are multiple different ways to sterilize baby bottles. Though some methods may be easier or more affordable, not all of these methods are effective or fast.

Let’s start off with some of the pros and cons of the different approaches to sterilizing bottles and pump parts. And then answer the million dollar question – what is the best way to sterilize and dry?

Sterilizing by Boiling Baby Bottles

Many parents sterilize baby bottles by sanitizing baby bottles in boiling water. Why Boil Baby Bottles? The reason – you don’t need anything special. Just grab a large pot, put the baby products in it, cover them all with water, and then boil it. 

The cons of problem with this approach is time, effectiveness, and safety. It can take a long period of time to boil a pot of water. While everything is boiling, bottles will float to the top, forcing you to keep them submerged, or else they won’t get sterilized. Lastly, there’s the safety issue. You have to be very careful not to spill the boiling water on yourself when you fish out everything from the pot of boiling water. Plus, you need to ensure you don’t use a non-sterile drying rack or towel to dry everything, or else you’re undermining the entire point of sterilizing.

Sterilizing with Hot Water

Parents sterilize baby bottles using hot water too. It has many of the same pros and cons as boiling. Specifically on the pro side, you don’t need anything special. Simply running your baby bottles under hot water in your sink. However, this approach can take even longer, and it’s not as effective. The reason being is because the hot water doesn’t get up to 212 degrees F, which is the temperature required to kill 99.9% of germs. Similarly with boiling the baby bottles, you have to make sure you are using a sterile drying rack or towel for drying. 

Sterilizing with Microwave Steam Bag

Some parents also use a microwave steam bag to sterilize baby bottles. This simple solution is one parents turn to because of its simplicity. The process consists of putting put the baby products in the steam bag, put it in your microwave, and let it run. The biggest downside of this solution is safety. Parents need to be extremely careful when opening up the steam bag because it will release a ton of steam that can easily burn your hand. 

How to Sterilize Bottles & How To Use Baby Brezza Sterilizer

The best way to sterilize is also the best way to dry. Use a sterilizer-dryer like the Baby Brezza One Step Sterilizer-Dryer. It automatically sterilizes and dries bottles, pump parts, and other accessories.

The Baby Brezza One Step Sterilizer-Dryer is super easy to use – just load up your baby products into the appliance, push one button, and it will sterilize using natural steam. Afterwards, it will dry all the products, all within an hour. This one step sterilizer-dryer keeps everything sterile for up to 24 hours inside. That way, when you’re ready to feed your baby or pump again, your baby products are ready to go.

Do you need to wash bottles before sterilizing?

While sterilizers like our SUPERFAST Sterilizer Dryer kill germs and dry bottles, they do not clean them. You will still need to wash baby bottles, pump parts and accessories prior to using our sterilizers.

Can you sterilize all bottle types?

Of course! Our Sterilizers fit anywhere from 6 to 8 bottles depending on the model, and up to 2 pump part sets.

So what are you waiting for? Shop now and save 15% if you join Baby Brezza Rewards.