Sterilising question

[Titch85]

It takes around 6 to 8 minutes with a steam steriliser.

 

[hellywelly]

Our midwife said it's fine to assemble bottles and leave them on the side ready, and to dip in and out of the steriliser as needed to get stuff out. Technically nothing will be sterile as soon as you have handled it but she said everything will still be very very clean. She said the guidelines are super strict cause they have to cater for EVERYONE and try and get everyone up to a minimum hygienic standard, but as long as you are a sensible mum and don't give your child a bottle you've just swilled out with a dirty dishcloth you'll be fine!

 

[pinkyprincess]

From the AVENT instruction book:

"Removed items must be used/ASSEMBLED immediately or re-sterilised. Expressed milk can be stored in a sterile breast milk container in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours (not in the door) or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Infant formula should be made up fresh for each feed"

That's wrong EBM can be stored for 8 days in the fridge.

My midwife told me a sterile bottle can be left in the fridge.

Copied exactly from the instruction book.

I know but the company got it wrong. BM isn't like normal milk as its got antibodies in it so has amazing storage times

 

[BevG]

i put the bottles im not going to need for the day and any extra stuff ive sterilised on the shelf in the kitchen, i put the bottles together with the caps on so the teat isnt exposed to air and the bottle is sealed, i figure thats as close to sterile storage as possible. i dip in and out of the steriliser for the bottles im actually using that day. i.e sterilise them all then open up to get out the one i need then close again and leave the rest in there til needed. i dont believe ppl should worry about it too much iykwim unless their child has a compromised immune system, some dirt and bugs have to be touched so that the kids develop a but of a tolerance to them, being overly sterile leads to allergies and intolerances.

 

[Belfast girl]

i agree with what bev said re being hyper clean (apart from compromised immune systems and very young babies) - as soon as they have cooled down in the steriliser i make all the bottles up - mine stay sterile for 24 hours in the medela one so it doesn't have to be immediately. obviously you want to be as clean as possible but once they are sitting up and on the floor there wee hands will be everywhere...

 

[beckyboo1]

Tor I'm glad you asked as I'm going to start expressing more when I get round to buying a pump and did wonder

I kinda was going with either sterilising then dipping in for a bottle or justo king them up and leaving them. On the side

 

[Elliellie]

If you're using formula you can also make the sterilised bottles up with just boiled water in & they will stay sterile for 24 hours. Then you can just grab & put powder in when needed.

 

[Laura82]

If you sterilise once the lid is off the contents will
Not stay sterile, so the best thing to do is to sterilise and then put all the bottles together. Once you need to fill make sure you remove the teat and the lid together by unscrewing, then everything is safe.

 

[Levi89]

If you're using formula you can also make the sterilised bottles up with just boiled water in & they will stay sterile for 24 hours. Then you can just grab & put powder in when needed.

The formula has to be added to water above 70 degrees to kill any bacteria in the powder.

 

[Roo3]

If you're using formula you can also make the sterilised bottles up with just boiled water in & they will stay sterile for 24 hours. Then you can just grab & put powder in when needed.

This is how I have made my bottles up for the past year. The healthcare assistant at my hospital told me that I could do it like this. In nearly a year, my lo has been fine with me making his bottles like this.

 

[lyndsey_28]

If you're using formula you can also make the sterilised bottles up with just boiled water in & they will stay sterile for 24 hours. Then you can just grab & put powder in when needed.

This is how I have made my bottles up for the past year. The healthcare assistant at my hospital told me that I could do it like this. In nearly a year, my lo has been fine with me making his bottles like this.

things change over the years, when i had my first 10 years ago we was told to make up the feeds for the next 24hrs and keep them in the fridge and heat when needed and it never hurt my son, when i had my 2nd son 4yrs ago the advice had changed again it was make fresh feeds as you go not in advance!!

i asked HV and she said the advice had changed as there were many parents who did not store milk proprly after it had been made and was making their children ill, she said it was still ok to do as long as you do it properly i.e make feeds up, cool down in water, put in fridge, reheat when needed so this is what i did then but ony i made them up on the morning for the day ahead and then again at nite to get me threw the nite!!

3rd time around i do it how i did it for my 2nd child making feeds up in advance has never hurt any of my kids, and im not prepeared to make him starve by sterilising botte, boiling kettle making feeds and cooling to the right temp as he feeds on demand so feels its unfair to let him scream and cry for 30 mins plus each time for a feed

the water thing is ok as long as you heat the water up before you add the milk, and clearly everyone has their diff ways of making up formula and all of them have more than likely been the right way to do it at some point or another else we wouldnt do it xxx

 

[charliebear]

If you're using formula you can also make the sterilised bottles up with just boiled water in & they will stay sterile for 24 hours. Then you can just grab & put powder in when needed.

This is also how I made AJ's bottles and how my sister has made bottles for both her boys. AJ hated his bottle warm, so it would take forever to cool down to room temp and he'd make himself ill crying

Everyone does them differently, no matter what the recommendations are. The recommendations are always changing and different healthcare professionals tell you different ways.

Re: the sterilised bottles, if you put them together properly straight from the steriliser then they will still be sterile as you wont have touched the inside/teat etc.

For spoons etc, I sterilised something to store them in and just popped them in there when done in the steriliser.

 

[Hope81]

If I end up formula feeding or combination feeding I will do what my auntie did with my cousin.
Boil water at morning and put in a thermos. Also have a thermos with cold water with some ice in it.
Make the bottle with the water from the hot thermos and then cool down very fast putting it in a bowl and some cold water from the other thermos. She had the bottle done in less than 5 min like that.

 

[tinytoes]

I suppose everyone hs different ways of doing it dont they ? I had an electric steraliser so when the cycle was done I used to make the bottles for the next few hours up with cooled boiled water and when it was time for a feed I would pop the bottles into a por of hot water to heat them , but my girls never had overly warm bottles just room tmep (warm enough to melt the formulas ) then add the formula from a dispenser that I would have filled earlier .
As for spoons and dummys I had the spoons steralised and left in the straliser and I had a dummy case, wich I also steralised .If I was going out I put spoons/bowls in a zip lock bag.

 

[TORino]

Wow lots of replies to this!

I think i'm going to take the bottles out of the steriliser and keep them in the fridge until I need them.

 

[Elliellie]

If you're using formula you can also make the sterilised bottles up with just boiled water in & they will stay sterile for 24 hours. Then you can just grab & put powder in when needed.

The formula has to be added to water above 70 degrees to kill any bacteria in the powder.

I hadn't realized the advice had changed! Im just doing what my sister in law taught me & she is a nurse in a special care baby unit! I asked her about this & she said the guidelines changed recently as people often don't use feeds straight away, but as long as it's used straight away the bacteria don't have time to multiply so it's fine.

 

[BevG]

someone else said if you put the powder into boiling hot water it denatures it and damages the nutrients lol. no way is perfect

 

[Levi89]

God its all so conflicting - seems it depends on the area and midwifes!
But I suppose Casey has survived 8 weeks with me doing it my way (make up feeds for the next 24 hours & store in the fridge) although I was told by HV to make them up as I go - sooo time consuming! And my wee girl is gaining weight and is healthy... I reckon the advice is kinda aimed at people who dont sterilise or leave milk for longer than 24 hours maybe? Lack of common sense...? Xxx

 

[Bee7]

I use TT bottles and the microwave steriliser. If i'm in the house i just leave them in the steriliser until i need them. I think the general rule is that a sterilised bottle remains sterile for 24 hours after sterilisation. So if you put it together and left it in a cupboard or whatever then you'd have to use it within 24 hours iykwim?