When did you stop sterilising

[Riri85]

Hi all,

My dd is 6 months and is ff as well as just starting to wean. Have done a bit of reading up online and there seems to be conflicting guidance on when to stop sterilising bottles and teats and feeding equipment-some sites say 6 months others 12!
I currently sterilise all bottles and teats but I just run feeding spoons/bowls through the dishwasher.
When did you stop sterilising?

If you rinse them and stick them in the dishwasher they should be fine-that's what i did from 6 months

Dd is 9 months and I still sterlilise, I did a weaning course and was told to for as long as baby is on milk I'll definitely do it until 12 months then will probably just give them a good hot soapy wash, I don't find it too much of a pain now there isn't as many bottles to do.

Im going to keep sterilising the bottles til 1, when I can bin them for good (no more babies!!), but thats all I sterilise, and I dont have a dishwasher. Plates, sippy cups and cutlery all just normal handwashed.

6 months.

I never sterilised anything on advice of SCBU where preemie DS2 had spent some time.
Sterilising baby stuff is not routinely recommended in the States either.

I'd certainly stop once a baby is old enough to hold things, sit, stick random stuff in their mouths and/or crawl.
The world and our skin is full of germ and trying to avoid them is stressful and at best futile; and worst harmful.

Old Friends Theory

I work for an environmental engineering company that designs the process etc for the major water treatment plants where we live. All of the engineers would not only not sterilize but also not bother boiling water for baby bottles (but bear in mind that most of them/their wives breastfed for at least 4-6 months).

for my third child I breastfed for a few months then sterilized/boiled for a couple of months but about 6-7 months she was getting formula made in dishwasher-washed bottles from water from our tap. no problems.

Thanks for the quick responses everyone!
Am erring on just putting everything through the dishwasher as dd puts anything she can get her hands on straight in her mouth anyway!
Pacific-I recently became aware about the American guidelines-I don't think they use cooled boiled water to make formula either-just tap water?

They don't sterilise anything here either, and yes just warm tap water for bottles

I don't know - I've not looked at any guidelines re FF in the States and my youngest is now 5, so have not worried about this in quite some time

It just makes sense to me to allow babies who are beginning to explore their world to get on with it and then the whole sterilising business is a bit non-sensical IMO.

Is now the time to tell story of how precious premature DS2 ate dried cat poo in the garden when he was 10 months old?
He was fine; I am still traumatised - it was more than 10 years ago...

Oh Pacific!
That is pretty traumatic poor you and poor ds! Sounds like all was well in the end though!

You're dishwasher is a big electric steriliser so you font have to do it separately :)

Never sterilised, my midwife said to just wash in hot water. That was in Switzerland.

Your dont

I stopped when I found dd licking shoes in the hall and I thought why am I busting my arse slaving over the steriliser while she's doing this?!

I didn't have a dishwasher though, Id just use that instead as it's the same concept AFAIK

Never sterilised here - am in the US. Also just make formula with tap water without boiling first. But the bottles are most frequently washed in the dishwasher which is maybe sort of sterilising?!

Oh gawd, I'm having flash-backs here - mine used to lick shoes and airport floors and walls when pretending to be 'puppies' - disgusting creatures!
Just as well we love them, really!

DD1 I sterilised everything for aaaaaages. PFB

DD2 I stopped when I found her sucking the cat's tail.

DS I don't think I bothered.

I stopped sterilising things at around 6 months old.

When she was a tiny baby I was so paranoid about washing and sterilising everything properly. I now just wash bottles out with hot, soapy water.

Thanks guys-the decision has been made-dishwasher it is!
Woollyback-Laughed out loud at the image of your LO with the cat's tail shoved in her mouth!

I sterilised bottles until we stopped formula at 1 year old- we had a microwave steriliser which you could just chuck everything in and in 4 minutes it was done so not a massive inconvenience. We don't have a dishwasher though, not sure if they're "better" than normal washing up.

Our dishwasher does 90 degrees which surely is better than normal washing up.
I sterilised with dc1 until 12m. With dc2 I suspect I will for maybe 3 months before switching to the dishwasher. Can't see the point when they start to put all and sundry in their mouths.

I have friends who never sterilised (combination of dishwasher and hot, soapy water) and friends who were still sterilising everything at 2yrs. Most fall somewhere in the middle.

There is good evidence to suggest you don't actually need to sterilise if you have good hygiene standards and dishwashers have really helped with this. I do completely understand why people stick with sterilising bottles though. They're pretty fiddly and when you're knackered and need to remove all milk residue and you can't be buggered with it, you know the steriliser is doing its job.

My dd is also 6 months and people have said to stop steralising her bottles, but I have a tommee tippee microwave steriliser and its take 2 seconds to pop them in. It's the washing the bottles that take time. I read it's more about the bacteria that will grow from accidental leftover milk spots. I never sterilised her spoons or bowls.
You'll know what's best but for me I'm going to keep steralising bottles for while she's using them. She has 3 a day now along with 3 meals and a snack x

And my dishwasher sometimes leaves salt marks and food on things so I don't fully trust it - I really should buy a new one! X