Is this normal at a nursery?!

[beth10]

My 10 month old is starting nursery soon, she still has milk three times in the day. I asked what they do about bottles (obviously I understand we provide them)… they said they don’t sterilise? I sterilise all her bottles before using them as it says to do that until she’s 1. In the Milton steriliser it says they stay sterile for 2 hours after being sterilised. I always do a fresh one around lunch time for this reason. They say they don’t do this and just use bottles we provide? How can we do that if she’s in all day?

I always thought bottles were fine for 24 hours after being taken out the solution. So wouldn't be a problem. That's the way I treated them anyway. 2 hours is stupidly short means you can't go out anywhere for the day or even for lunch etc.

If worried use the UV or heat based steriliser

The number of people saying they don't need sterilising because they put other things in their mouths is just rediculous.

Send 3 bottles if you're worried.

Honestly, your kid will be putting all sorts of muck in their mouth that a non-sterilised bottle will be the least of your worries.

With an electric or microwave steriliser they come out and are good for 24 hours. So you send in 3 bottles each day, they send them home dirty, you wash and resterilise and then send them back. Easy peasy.

I have no idea if you’re correct on the Milton only lasting 2 hours, sounds like a massive PITA if you are and I don’t know how you’ve managed with that for 10 months presuming you do normal stuff like leaving the house, but presuming you are then just buy a cheap microwave steriliser (about £25 from Amazon). You still need to sterilise bottles used for ready made formula so that’s not a solution. It’s old milk residue left behind after washing that can grow bugs, ready made isn’t immune.

It doesn’t really matter after days.
You are cleaning bottle and then sterilising to remove old milk. Once it’s done it’s clean. It doesn’t magically get old milk back on it by sitting empty in changing bag a few hours.

It’s not the Milton that says only sterile for two hours (I think it might be less actually), it’s the actual bottle manufacturers. We have MAM ones and it says it on the labels.

Mam bottles are sterile for 2 days not 2 hours!

The only two hour I've seen is that the formula can only be kept at room temperature for 2 hours (or 1 hour if baby has drunk out of it). Never seen that the bottles themselves can only be sterile for 2 hours. I mean if you've cleaned the germs what's going to unsterlise them bar the air which your baby breaths all the time anyway. It makes no sense.

In the USA they don't even reccomend sterilising or only once a day even if reusing so don't get too worked up anyway

I thought it was up to 24 hours for MAM bottles if you used certain methods of sterilisation e.g. UV? We use MAM bottles and UV sterilise, we’ve never had an issue with using them inside of 24 hours of being sterilised. As long as they’re clean and sterilised it shouldn’t be an issue.

Is that not the easi start bottles done in the microwave? They’re definitely 48 hours as long as not made up.

Ones in Milton might be different as it’s a different method.

Tbh though the issue is the milk in the bottles so as long as the bottles are sterilised and the milk is prepared/used properly it’ll be fine @beth10

It’s actually 48 hours if you self sterilise the Mam bottles in a microwave! I’ve never heard of any sterilising method only being good for a couple of hours, how would ever leave the house and prep a bottle on the go? I strongly suspect OP has confused the 2 hour rule for milk with the usual 24 hours for sterilised bottles.

I may have confused something… I will check now! I was certain this is what it said though!

The MAM website Q&As says a bottle only needs to be sterlised occasionally from 6 months of age here

We don't sterilise at our nursery. Parents send in sterilised bottles either already made up or with the powder so that we can make them up fresh.

Bottles /dummies re sterile for 24hrs if in air tight container

2hrs is how long milk can be left till throw away tho tbh I Chuck after an hour

Either they drink it or not

If need another then would make fresh

Odd, our nursery sterilised bottles. They asked for only one bottle per child, it would be labelled by them, if they needed more than one bottle of milk a day it was washed and sterilised between feeds ready for the next one. My eldest is 5 and started nursery at 9 months and my youngest is 2 and started at 10 months, same nursery and they had the same policy both times. I had seen the steriliser etc in the room before with my eldest and again with settling sessions for youngest.

2hrs seems ridiculous but could be because the solution will only kill bacteria it comes in contact with, so if the bottles aren't completely free from milk residue there will be some left. If you use heat/steam then it will penetrate further and kill everything.

We used Milton though and I am pretty sure it said 24hrs back then, or didn't say anything.

600-800ml per day seems a lot? It does vary between babies but the recommended amount between 10 and 12 months is 13oz (just below 400ml).

This. What a fuss about nothing

the bottles remain sterile for 24 hours after you take them out of the Milton, just make sure you put the teats and lids on straightaway. We use Milton and I generally put them in the steriliser before bed then get them out in the morning and put the lids on them so that they’re ready and just need formula/boiling water adding when baby needs a feed. So I’d just take them out of the formula in the morning then send the sterile bottles to nursery.

Wow things have changed….when mine were young I’d sterilise the bottles then put the water in them and do a days worth so I only had to add powder.

When my kids were young, I sterilised the bottles in solution, rinsed them out and then made up bottles ready for the next 24 hours, kept in fridge and warmed up in jug of hot water. We did not leave the bottles out once opened for more than that feed though. Used to clean the teats using dry salt and rubbing the sides together before rinsing then popped in steriliser. Is that still acceptable today?

My son went to nursery at age 6 months and by then he was fully weaned and only having bottles in the morning and at night, he had to be taught to drink from a skippy cup before starting nursery. Seems far too young now!

I did read the OP so I’m confused why you can’t just send the bottles already sterilised?

They are sterile for 24 hours (or some people have said 48 hours with the MAM bottles which I’m not sure as don’t use these ones) but it’s not 2 hours. You can keep the formula once made up for 2 hours.

So send the sterilised bottles and measure out the scoops of formula into the pots and let them know how many oz? Or if they provide the formula just send the bottles.

Both of mine started nursery at 10mths, I don't think I ever sent bottles in as by that age they had 2/3 a day which I gave at home. At nursery they ate food and drank water very happily.

Both the CDC and American academy of pediatrics do not advise that sterilizing or boiling water for formula is necessary unless you suspect your tap water is contaminated. Say whatever you want about American healthcare but there are not widespread numbers of babies getting sick from unsterilized bottles. Recommendations differ from country to country and on this one, the NHS is going for the more extreme option. Your baby will be absolutely fine with a bottle that has been sterilized a few hours prior. NHS has some recommendations that are more lax than American ones, it goes both ways 🤷‍♀️.