How to Clean Baby Bottles and Nipples ?
Well-being of your baby is closely linked to the cleaning of his feed bottles. You must make it a point that the bottles are kept perfectly clean and hygienic.
Sterilize baby bottles and nipples ?
Before you use a bottle for the first time, you have to sterilize it. Sterilizing is extremely easy. First you have to clean the bottles with soapy water. The right way is to fill your kitchen sink with sufficient water and then mix some dish soap in it. Then put all your bottles in that water and clean them thoroughly. Use a bottle brush for this purpose so that the bottles get cleaned completely. Every part of the bottles like the nipples, collars and caps must be cleaned properly. It’s better to do all this with hands but if you don’t find this convenient or feasible you can also use a dishwasher.
After that boil the bottles in simple water for 5-10 minutes. Make sure that you take a large container and fill it at least to the half way mark. The best way is, you first allow the water to boil completely and then add bottles to it. After that, take out the bottles from the boiling water with a pair of tongs and place them at a clean place for drying. Dish strainer is a convenient place to dry the bottles.
Other precautions
When your baby has finished his feed, wash the bottle with cold water. All the nicks and corners of the bottle should be thoroughly cleaned using a bottle brush. Give special attention to the collars, as they are a favorite breeding place for the bacteria. Don’t heat your bottles in a microwave oven. Heating in an oven is not even and can be dangerous for your baby as the feed may be too much hot at certain places. You should heat the bottle by placing it below warm water or by placing it in a pan of hot water. You can always check the temperature of the bottle by feeling it. The best method is that you place a drop of the feed on your wrist. This way you will be able to test the temperature of the feed with considerable accuracy.
Don’t be careless
It’s very often seen that mothers tend to forget to rinse the bottles after the baby has finished his feed. Don’t let them lie in the diaper bag or keep them in the refrigerator. If you do this, a sticky layer of the feed keeps on clinging to the bottom of the bottle. Such a layer is very difficult to remove. Even the best quality baby brushes fail to remove it. There is another very simple method for this. Put about two-table spoons of uncooked rice in the bottle that has a stain at the bottom. Then add some soapy water in the bottle and shake it with force. The sticky formula stain would be removed completely and your bottle will have a brand new look.