Does anyone know when it's ok to stop sterilizing bottles?.........

[becaroo]

.......my ds2 will be 1 on friday but he still loves his bottle and despite my best efforts will not drink formula or cows milk from a cup (although he has drunk water happily from one since he was 5 months old!)

I seem to remember (back in the mists of time!) that with ds1 I stopped sterilizing his bottles when he was 1 - although he went onto a cup and cows milk from 13 months anyway....is that still ok? DS1 is 6 now and advice has changed so much WRT ff since then...

Thanks!

My twins are 10 months so I was wondering the same and have been reading up online on the different opinions and guidance over the past week.

Consensus seems to be that as long as you thoroughly wash the bottles in hot soapy water, there is no need to sterilise past 12 months (and indeed, many people stop earlier..some as early as 6 months).

I think you'll find that using cow's milk will make the bottles easier to clean anyway, compared to formula.

My first born son still took a bottle until he was about 2 - tho by then, I had restricted it to one a day at night time. By that age, they don't need the milk for nutrition so I stuck it in a cup one evening, he refused it and that was the end of that thankfully...easier than I had expected.

Totally agree on how things change..my DS1 is almost 6...it's all so different!

Hi dingdong

I know - I cant believe how different things are!! Silly me thought that having done it once, I would be ok

To be fair to my ds2 he only has 2 bottles a day now anyway and he doesnt have a dummy so dont think it will matter if he has his bottle for a bit longer....

Cant wait to get rid of that damn sterilizer!!!

Hi becaroo...haha, we are on both chats! That other one getting very heated, isn't it!

In terms of the differences in the space of 5-6 years, the one thing that got my back up the most was the crazy bottle making guidelines. I should know better than to get involved in these debates online tho...taking up my whole morning!

Me too re:getting rid of sterilizer....all that space back on the counter again..yippeee x

Yes....I dont post on those threads very often and I always regret it when I do!

Got to remember to book ds2's next jabs - he gets an extra one that ds1 didnt have (Hib booster and men c)....VERY confusing!

God, yes...not looking forward to the extra jabs with two babies in tow!
Defo regretting getting involved in the bun-fight...my morning wasted...but actually, no...got to meet like minded mum here so not so wasted after all!

Good luck with the jabs...bring a packet of choccy buttons with you...or maybe there's a thread about them too....watch out!

Ok, am going to really try not to wind anyone up...

Just to say that I stopped sterilising when DD1 was 10 months. Am very interested in recent thread that says not to sterilise at all (but am thinking that steriliser unit is actually quite convenient place for storing clean bottles so I may well whack it on anyway when I start to FF DC2?)

Hi mrsvee...hope you enjoyed your buns! This is defo a thread for not winding people up...no paragraphs from wikipedia allowed!
I am still sterilising for the only reason that is gives me somewhere to store the bottles too...have 12 on the go from back when twins were on 6-8 bottles per day. Looking forward to cutting that back really soon.
When's your DC2 due?

Hello! You made it out alive then?

I'm 36+4 today (not that I'm counting...), have reached the beached-whale-and-useless stage

I think it from 6 mths.

I've stopped sterlising ds bottles and he 6mths as i feel as he crawling/rolling around the floor and chewing dd's feet/hands i can't see the point.

I do put his bottles the dishwasher to clean.

Yes mrsvee...looks like we both survived!
Good luck with your last few weeks...the toughest part of the pregnancy for sure. Thankfully I got the sunroof option at 38 weeks with my twins as I thought I would burst otherwise!

Thanks, dingdong! Am trying to enjoy the calm before the storm (as it were) but kind of difficult with a 2 yo to contend with.

Hello all - what a nice civilised thread!

Thanks for all your replies. Have decided to stop sterilizing - he has been chewing on his shoes and licking the pushchair wheels this morning so I am thinking it wont hurt!!

I know someone who never didnt have a sterilizer and put her babys bottles in the dishwasher to clean them. No problems.

Sadly my dishwasher decided to die last night so not on option for me anyway at the moment

Goos luck with the rest of your pregnancy mrsvee x

I stopped at 6 months as by the they were picking up all sorts of stuff off the floor and eating it. Just bunged them in the dishwasher after that.

mrsvee That is a good thing about sterilizers - especially if you havent got much work surface space in your kitchen - in that they are a good place to store the bottles etc etc.

I have three kids, and have never sterilised bottles for feeding or storing expressed milk - just washed them thoroughly in hot soapy water then left to dry.
Never sterilised anything else either...
I figured that if I wasn't sterilising my boobs, my fingers (occasionally used as emergency something to suck on), their hands, and for DS and DD2 the hands of their older siblings, then what was the point?

Thanks becaroo, not long to go now!

It's one of those things that you're "supposed" to do isn't it, just like all the other advice that you cling on to as a new mum. Then one day you think "hang on, why am I doing this...?"

My mum always says she stopped sterilising the day she saw me sharing my biscuit with the cat!

LOL DD1 is often found rummaging in the cat's bowl!

You don't need to sterilise bottles if you have a dishwasher that washes over 70 degrees.

roman

Found ds2 trying to eat his pram wheels again this morning...sigh.