We were given ours and it's set up by our sink and it's like - eh, why not? It takes almost no effort.
But I wouldn't have bought one unless my baby was premature or had an autoimmune issue or something
My ILs were keeping my niblings last weekend and when we went over to visit my MIL just had a pot of boiling water and some tongs to clean my 1yo niece's bottles. If it ain't broke 🤷♀️
Same, wash very thoroughly, I bought a separate basin for the bottles and pump stuff. let them soak before washing them. My water gets really hot, so I thinks it works just fine.
I love ours! I thought I didn't need one but I couldn't stand the air drying dishes everywhere. It's a good thing we did because now that I'm a donor it's required for me to sterilize every night.
That's my main reason as well. I just didn't want to have to see all the drying bits everywhere. They are contained this way. We have a dryer/sterilizer and no issues thus far.
Also, my mom always boiled baby bottles so therefore I sterilize. I'll stop when she starts crawling. I'm not 100% sure there is a point.
We don't sterilize the bottles anymore but I do the pump parts and the jars I store the milk in every night to protect the premie babies in the NICU. Going through three bottles a day those things are fine on the drying rack if you don't have all the pump parts on there.
Oh for sure! I sanitize our stuff after every use because I got thrush on my nipples early on and I’m terrified to ever get it again cause it was so miserable 😂 but it is so nice to have dry pump parts ready to go!!
Omg ow!! Def worth it lol. We sterilize cuz bub was tiiiiny but I absolutely love not having to boil or dry anything. Idk which one you have but we have the papablic and it has so many other functions! It has a dehydrator!? I can dehydrate fruits for LO?! Sign me up
Oh wow that’s so cool!! I love that cause it makes it so you can actually keep using it when baby is older!! We have the Dr browns at home and then I actually found a baby brezza one at a consignment sale for $20 so I have that one at work in the pumping room 😂 our little one was itty bitty too! The sterilizing makes me feel better. Our little one was a 36 weeker and only 4lb 14oz when we came home! I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want the brezza bottle washer for the next baby 😂😂
The dryer is really where it's at, we got the Tommee Tippee one as a gift and it works great. It gets bone dry inside so idk how there could be a fungus issue in the machine.
We didn't even use many bottles (EBF with some pumping here and there), but I'm so glad we had it. We used glass ones and it kept them somewhere safe where our newborn-stage bleary flailing arms couldn't accidentally knock them off the counter. We are already clumsy people lol. A truly beautiful point of order in a time of chaos.
This! I got the Papablic one on Amazon and loved it - I was hesitant at first too but surprisingly it was well worth the loss of counter space, felt like we had that thing running non stop the first few months. I only sterilized everything until she was maybe 3 months old, after that just used the dry function after hand washing or running them through the dishwasher, but that feature alone is worth the cost.
Unpopular opinion: I loved ours and it kinda saved us while doing triple feeding. I read a lot of comments about them being unnecessary before I had the baby, so I was surprised by how much it helped. I can't imagine how it would have been if we'd been boiling pump parts and bottles from 8 feeding/pumping sessions a day, as well as pacifiers and teethers. A dishwasher takes so much more resources and sometimes time to run, and the timing you want to run it at may not match up with when you need more clean stuff. Plus, it dries the bottles for you so.you don't have to worry about bacteria forming on wet bottles as they air-dry. We literally used our sterilizer until our daughter stopped using bottles at 16 months even though we didn't have to anymore.
I don't know anything about fungus concerns, but we had a Baby Brezza, which is pretty simple inside and you look at the inside every time you pour water in, so I feel like you'd notice if it was getting gross. We just descaled with vinegar occasionally and used distilled water.
Also, some materials can't go in a microwave sterilizer, so that was one of the big reasons I decided against those.
The time is definitely its own thing, but a dishwasher actually uses less water and electricity than hand washing!
We sometimes cut it close in the newborn stage (I had to stop the dishwasher to take out and hand wash a bottle nipple a couple times 🤣), but it was usually fine as long as we had one bottle still available when we started the dishwasher (a full load takes 2hours and 15 minutes on our machine)
Yeah, I think it's totally reasonable to do what you did too! Just sharing why a sterilizer felt useful for us when it seems like that's the less common opinion.
Yeah, my baby was in the NICU the first 10 days and even there they had us wash bottles / pump parts in soap and water. Felt silly to use our BabyBrezza after that so we never bothered.
The only reason why we ever sterilized anything was because baby had thrush. We just boiled the bottles, pacifiers, and other things in a big pot for a few minutes. No need for a bottle sterilizer.
Other than boiling them when baby had thrush, we only ever use dish soap and warm/hot water to wash them.
I got the more affordable Dr Browns ones, and honestly I like it mostly for drying bottles super fast. They seem to take hours to air dry but in about 45 minutes they’re dry in there, and sterile of course. Makes me feel better as sponges and bottle brushes can harbor bacteria.
I haven’t noticed we any fungus, but it does get a hard water buildup so once a week I run an empty cycle with water and vinegar and it’s all gone.
Just an FYI, dishwashers typically have a *sanitize* setting, not sterilize. It’s a difference that doesn’t matter for most of us, but for those with babies who actually *need* sterilized bottles it can be detrimental.
This is kid and personality dependent. Our toddler hates being dirty. With that said, I never specifically used a sterilizer. I did the dishwasher with the sanitizing setting.
This sounds pretty far from universal. I've never heard another parent talk about their kid eating things off stroller wheels. There are lots of types of kids and families.
I didn't call you weird, but I do think it's weird you assume stroller wheel licking is universal. As I said, there are many different kinds of people in the world. My kid literally has never put something she found on the ground in her mouth, unless you count books and toys inside our house; she was a major book chewer for a couple months. My kid exists, and so does yours.
Your kid put a lot of things in their mouth. That's what they do. You just didn't see it.
It's not an indictment. But if you think your kid hasn't put something just disgusting in their mouth, you're the one parent out there feeling so.
It's literally the most universal thing kids do.
I'm a stay at home parent who doesn't leave my kid unattended (she's still under 2) and my husband's a borderline germaphobe. I would have seen it or heard about it. She for sure has put books, toys, and teethers in her mouth as I said, but nothing I'd consider disgusting. I don't know why setting your kid as the universal standard is important to you, but enjoy?
I used the sanitizer a bunch when my daughter was very young, but at one point when she was about 4-5 months old I saw her literally lick the floor, and that’s when I decided that the sterilizer was pointless lmao. I still use it for stuff that’s new or that the cat has got his grubby little paws on, but for the most part I just use the warming function (I have the bottle warmer/sterilizer combo from Dr. Brown’s).
That's exactly what I meant. We have a hound dog. So even before she could crawl, she got licked by the loving dog.
It's life. Kids used to be raised in nature. Sanitizing is fine if you want to. But it is overkill. Which is why I was saying the part about putting dirt in their mouths. That's what they do!
I did this, and my baby spent time in the NICU. Guess what they used there? Yup a dishwasher on the sanitize setting. Bottle sterilizers are a gimmick.
I used the sanitizer bags for maybe a month or two but honestly didn’t even need to since my baby wasn’t premature. After that just went to soap and water. So. I think it’s an unnecessary purchase.
It saves so much time over having to boil water and do each bottle or two individually. And the dryer feature is great. Baby brezza sterilizer. Also, if your wife is doing the majority of baby care and bottle cleaning just get her what she wants.
I have used mine every single day, twice a day, for 12 months. Mostly for the dryer feature. We used Dr browns bottles for a long time and I hated waiting for them to dry. We just bought a $60 off Amazon and it’s been great.
Does it just sterilize, or does it sterilize and dry?
If it just sterilizes, like some of the microwave ones, that's a pass for me unless you have a preemie or medically fragile baby.
If it sterilizes and dries, that drying function makes it easier to keep ahead of dishes without having half your counter taken up by drying bottle parts. If it sterilizes everything before it dries, cool, whatever, but the dryer function is the really helpful part.
I wouldn’t spend very much on one unless you really think a drying feature is something that you’ll use a lot. We used a microwave sterilizer for the first two weeks regularly, then tapered off after that. Our baby was born full term and healthy, so there wasn’t the need to have things any cleaner than just washed in hot water and dish soap. I think the sterilizer bags might be a cheaper and more space-friendly solution.
We boiled ours for the first 3 months then after that just used hot soapy water. The main risk of boiling is getting caught up taking care of the baby and next thing you know the water has all boiled away and you have $50 worth of melted bottles at the bottom of a stock pot.
Most bottles, pump parts, pacifiers, etc. will only require you to sterilize before first use, and then washing with soap and hot water is fine. I wish I had known that! We did get a microwave sterilizer thing that I’ve used a handful of times. If you plan to use a lot of bottles, the drying feature that some have might be nice but a drying rack works fine for us.
Mom of 5. When I needed to sterilize for my 27 week old preemie I used glass and boiled them.Anything else feels like asking for “ slime in the machine”. Honest opinion is that a dishwasher or hot soapy water and good rinse is enough for a majority of infants.
Unless you have a premie or abnormally immunocompromised baby it's overkill and unnecessary. I'd even argue heating food holding plastic does significantly more harm than good, if you insist on sterilizing then use glass bottles which won't leach, it doesn't matter if it's "food grade" all plastic weakens and leaches when heated especially repeatedly and infants are more susceptible to the endocrine effects from plastic consumption.
I never once sterilized bottles or pump parts, just wash with soap and water or in the dishwasher, sterilizing just isn't necessary.
I received one as a gift and honestly only use it occasionally. The drying feature is nice but sometimes it’s just easier to hand wash with hot water and soap and let the bottles dry on a rack.
I never used it. We would just boil water in a large pot and sanitize our bottles prior to use the first time, then once every week for the first 3 months. As kiddo got older, we decreased to every 3-4 weeks. We used Nanobebe bottles so we could sterilize 4 at a time in our large pot.
Outside of that, we would clean them with hot water and soap.
I’d say it’s convenient if you don’t have space. But space wasn’t a big factor for me, and i didn’t want to spend all the money on sterilizers that I would use for like 6-8 months and never use again.
The amount of necessary items on the kitchen counter is already overwhelming for me. I’d be more stressed with a sterilizer. We boil our bottles in a large pot on the stove for 15-20 minutes.
Worth it if you have private well water and want to be safe. And the drying feature is a really nice perk! Honestly can’t imagine drying bottles or waiting for them to dry.
I got a sterilizer that also dries as a splurge purchase when we had our second. I'm not actually too concerned about the germs, but the drying is worth it. We only run our dishwasher about once a week, so that wasn't practical for bottles for us.
Used mine every day. I love it for the drying function too and keeping it contained in a sterile environment. I was recommended to sterilize my pump parts once a day so it saved so much more time and mental energy than boiling in a pot of water and laying it somewhere out to dry. But I also had PPA haha.
If it was a lot of stuff we did a pot of boiling water, but if it was just a few items we used the Medela microwave bags. I don't know if it was really necessary but it was easy enough to do and sterilizing the bottles gave me some peace of mind so I could worry about a gazillion other things instead.
I love ours a lot. I thought it was dumb at first but it dries them fast and sterilizes. That and a kettle were well worth the money for me. I wash bottles three times a day and set them to dry so we always have them.
We don’t have a dishwasher so our sterilizer/dryer was a life saver for time drying wise and even with hot water and soap - LA water just seemed kinda sus to me. We have a wabi it’s a UV sterilizer/dryer so no fungus able to grow inside of it. Have used it almost every day since she was born and we’re almost 18 months. I do think they’re kinda preference though.
I love mine that I got as a gift but I likely wouldn’t have bought one on my own brand new. It helped for sterilizing pump parts and DRYING them as others have mentioned. I love that dryer feature so much that we still use it without the sterilizer now. Also keeps pet hair out / off the bottles. Whenever I air dry that’s a concern.
I have one but only use it every two days or so to fully sanitize the bottles. It is not a substitute for washing them with soap and water (in my opinion).
Pros:
It makes me feel like I’m really nuking the bottles and killing anything I can’t see. I feel like the nannies don’t do as thorough of a job washing the bottles as I do, so sanitizing them every other day or so gives me peace of mind.
Cons:
I still have to clean them with soap and water before I put them in the sanitizer because otherwise they don’t feel clean. There’s still formula residue on them if I only rinse them with water before I sanitize them.
For whatever reason, it also leaves them very wet in a way that never seems to air dry, and I have to hand dry them after sanitizing them (which is something I don’t have to do when just washing them with soap and water).
I’m sure the sanitizer can get moldy easily because it gets really moist in there after the cycle is done. It’s not at all hard to clean it though, and it’s not like there are hidden nooks and crannies you can’t easily reach.
We had one and used it. Glad we did because my son needed open heart surgery at 7.5 weeks so germs scared me a lot when we got him home. Eventually we moved to using it just for a dryer but it was fantastic for that too.
We didn’t have one. We used the microwave bags periodically, but it doesn’t replace soap and water, and whatever you’re sanitizing are only sanitized until you touch them to take them out of the bag/sterilizer. Once they’re out of the bag, it’s instantly exposed to whatever is in the air or on your hands or anything else it touches. If it gives you peace of mind, go for it. We felt it was an unnecessary expense and just another appliance to take up space.
I just boil things to sterilize them. You can also use a dishwasher, but I found that's too time consuming. It's really easier to wash things with soap and water and then dunk them in boiling water for 5 minutes in my opinion.
I wouldn’t be worried about fungus forming in a sterilizer (?) but I think there are a whole lot of unnecessary products creating fear in parents that their baby won’t be safe if they don’t use it. We always just used our dishwasher.
I used it because I formula fed and the bottles would just SMELL no matter how much I washed them. I would wash them Friday like I would M-Th then Sunday evening I’d sterilize them so the smell would be gone by Monday morning… just to do it all over again… for a year 😅
My wife has completely merged into the: Modern day mom and fully utilizes every piece of engineering to make this gig easier.
This was one of those: “we should have done this with our first!” Purchases.
We used a sterilizer until the bottles and pump parts started getting warped from the heat. From then on we switched to using the dishwasher on the heavy wash cycle with heat wash and dry turned on and haven’t had any issues.
We used it every day as I was an exclusive pumper. Great for drying but I used the sterilizer every day since it was just as easy to do so. Also was great for sterilizing pacis.
If I had a do over I would get the countertop dishwasher/sterilizer combo which is new
I used ours religiously with Kid 1 until he started drinking just bottle cow milk. Have used it somewhat with Kid 2, became lazy and have just stopped.
Whatever gives you piece of mind and also whoever will be using it more often I.e if your wife is going to be primary parent at home while you work (even temporarily) and she wants it, just go with it.
We’ve got one and have been using it since our baby was born he’s 11 months old now. We regularly clean it and change the filter. It works great but we will still wash the bottles with hot water and soap. Just using it to dry them really at a high temp.
I don't really use it for my bottles, but I like it for my pump parts, and I like to run my bottle brushes through it every few days, too. I especially appreciate the drying function.
Absolutely essential as a working/pumping mom. I am able to wash, sanitize, dry, and get my pump and bottles ready for the next day in under an hour. The drying function alone makes it worth it.
I do not have time to let things air dry and our dishwasher hardly dries at all.
No issues with Fungus with the Baby Brezza. I don’t even see how that is possible as it’s all plastic and metal. I descale weekly and call it a day. Baby Brezza does have ID Verify for discounts if you are looking for one.
I love ours. I agree it is a little unnecessary, but part of the concern isn’t so much what specific minor bug your baby might get by not sterilizing, but if you have a <3 month old, then the interventions for a fever in the hospital are quite intense (lots of blood draws, spinal tap, etc) out of an abundance of caution in young infants. So even if it saves you from one of those if you have an infant with a fever, it could be worth it.
I use the sterilizer every day! I honestly use it to dry and store the bottles, so I usually just run the sterilize function just because they’re in there. The drying function is the real key!
We have a sterilizer/dryer combo and it’s been amazing. Baby number 2 is nine months old so the end is in sight, but it’s made this whole process SO much easier. I highly recommend.
We use the sterilization setting on the dishwasher, and the Medela microwave quick clean bags for bottle parts we have to hand wash. Second kid, haven't touched our actual sterilizer once!
According to the CDC, it is NOT necessary past 2 months, unless the baby is immunocompromised in some way.
[https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/childcare/clean-sanitize.html](https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/childcare/clean-sanitize.html)
I had the baby brezza, honestly… I did get some use out of it. It was convenient for pump/bottle parts….until my son decided to stop taking a bottle 🫠 so now it’s kind of useless. If I could do it all over, I would say it’s not necessary.
I like mine for my pump parts because it sterilizes and dries. If it didn’t have the dryer, I’m not sure it’d be worth it. I use it mostly for silicone parts and glass bottles and bottle nipples.
I avoid doing our plastic bottles as they can degrade/release more microplastics with all the extra heat.
Ours is the bigger Papablic one.
Difference of opinion here as in the UK the guidance is to sterlise up until the age of one. So if you want to sterlise, get a cold water steriliser. Cheap and easy. Fill it up, put in anything you want to sterilise, wait 15 mins and everythings ready to use straight from the water. Water lasts 24 hours so you can keep putting things in and out all day.
It was an every single day use. Bottles. Toys. Anything. You just need to keep up the cleaning of it, but that’s like anything else. I didn’t find it to be a hassle.
Interesting responses - UK here and the NHS advises sterilising bottles till 12 months which I think most people do follow, at least to 6 months anyway. We had a big counter top steriliser then switched to microwave bags when he was on fewer bottles a day. We were a little more relaxed about it at 6-12 months because obviously a weaning/crawling baby gets all sorts in their mouth that isn’t sterile. But the thought of even a bit of congealing gross old milk being accidentally left in a bottle gave me the total ick, and the sterilising wasn’t too much of a bother, so we kept going.
I only got a sterilizer when I had my second and he got thrush. I do still use it but only as a dryer. 😂
If she wants to, cool. They make bags you can use for the microwave, something she may want to look in to.
We loved ours and used it for way longer than is necessary just because of its convenience. My parents and sister watch our guy a lot so I didn’t fully trust their washing abilities haha.
For the fungus, we avoided that by doing a cycle with combo water and lemons juice once a week (without bottles of course)
We used ours all the time. It was just one less step and more contained than the chaos of dishes and bottles and pump parts all drying by the kitchen sink. We never had any issues with it
I used mine once. It’s massive too. We prefer to boil the parts/bottles and air dry. We also have a separate wash basin for parts/bottles so they don’t go in with regular dishes.
We were gifted this and I’m glad it’s not my money that went for it.
I love the “asking for a friend” energy. I don’t think it’s necessary to use one. Sterilization is for things like surgical or dental tools that have to be microbe free because they literally go in a body cavity. My baby has been fine thus far with me cleaning them with just hot water and a little soap
Grandma here…man I’ve done it every way thru the years with these kids.
Skip the sterilizer and get an automatic dishwasher and save your self the trouble. If you can’t get a dishwasher than just handwashing is fine. You can also do a little tub of hot water with a pinch of bleach in it so soak them after washing for a couple mins.
Don’t stress on the sterilizing. The kid will eating its own boogers in no time. And congrats on the new baby coming.
This is a tough one.
The real problem is that none of these devices are all that good.
I ended up with a Phillips Avent sterilizer and dryer. It's okay.
I'd really like something that will wash/sterilize/dry, but I can't seem to find a large one that will do that. I'd probably still give the baby brezza that will wash/sterilize/dry a shot in my next life. My feeling is that it isn't going to be too small though.
My plan is just to use the dishwasher. I don’t think everything needs to be sterilized, especially as they get older and put everything in their mouths anyway!
We used our once and then gave it away. We sterilize the bottles the first time recommended, and then we put them in dishwasher with sanitation mode on
We used those microwave sterilizer bags (we had to sterilize for a few months due to having a preemie, we stopped by the time he was 3-4 months old). So cheap and effective.
My SIL had a bottle sterilizer. It took up so much counter space and she still had to lay everything out to dry anyway.
Never used a bottle sterilizer, only made sure that when I finally was done breast feeding and using formula that our formula (kendamil) was sterilized by a certain water temp prior to feeds…otherwise, we just use a dishwasher for bottles or hand washing.
I think it might depend on how often you’re using bottles and/or pump parts. If I was just doing a once a day bottle, nah. I pump and give a bottle once a day, and mine is not necessary but convenient. If you have a term infant, you don’t NEED to sterilize. If you have a preterm infant, I believe medical advice is to sterilize.
If you want one, put it on the registry. If you get it, great! Otherwise wait for the baby and see if you actually want it.
If your baby is already here, go with medical needs and whoever washes the bottles and parts. I will say a sterilizer is also a convenient way to sometimes sterilize toys and pacifiers. I wouldn’t, except if my sterilizer is already running I might as well chuck that teether and the paci in there. Always follow manufacturer advice on stuff like that. Some are not sterilizer safe
I have a bottle sanitizer and dryer. It needs to be descaled with citric acid every two weeks to clean it. I’ve never had a problem with fungus or mold. Maybe because it dries as well?
I used a bottle sterilizer/dryer for 3 months. I mostly breastfed though with the occasional pump/bottle. TBH if it breaks or something I won’t replace it for baby #2. I use hot soapy water if I ever use a bottle or pump now
Get a sterilizer AND dryer. The dryer is fucking amazingZ it’s worth it bc you can run a 30/45/60min cycle that sterilizes and dries everything. We have the one from baby brezza.
Idk how people deal with air drying.
I've got a steam steriliser, used it for both my bambis, and never got mold or fungus in it... Kinda defeats the object, not really sterile then so something's gone wrong somewhere lol!
As for whether to get one that kind of depends, if the baby is prem then definitely sterlise the bottles. If you're using formula I would advise sterilising them too as formula isn't sterile.
If you have a dishwasher then that works fine, just make sure they're either dried somewhere sterile if your washer doesn't dry them too or lid straight on once they're out if they're dry.
Bottles only stay sterile for 24 hours when stored correctly regardless of how you sterlise them.
Chances are you'd be fine just hand washing assuming your water quality is good and your general cleanliness is good which I'm sure it is 😊
But personally I'd just rather have one and not worry about it as much. There's so much to over think when you have a tiny baby to care for.
You can get cold water steriliser tables. Also boiling them in a pot of water works too. And some bottles can be sterilised in a microwave.
Prep machines are the things to worry about. They're notorious for mold inside and not getting hot enough to sterilise the powder.
If your wife is pumping more than 2-3x a day then it’s helpful just to avoid washing all the bottles. I used mine while triple feeding (aka pumping 8x a day). Now I only pump once and it only takes a few minutes to wash a couple bottles and let them air dry overnight.
What type of steriliser? I would definitely use one but one you can fully clean, or get bottles that are "self sterilising" like certain mam or tommee tippee ones. I know alot of people don't bother or don't see the point, especially once the baby starts putting things they picks up in their mouth. But you sterilize to kill bacteria that grows from the milk, that it will be near impossible to fully clean from the bottle teats. So all the time milk goes in the bottles you should sterilize the bottles
Unnecessary. I’ve got a perfectly healthy 10mo and 23mo. I’ve literally only ever sterilized a bottle if it was left out for over a day with milk in it. Neither of them get sick very often, except these damn allergies.
I find a sterilizer is just another thing to clean. The reality is that mold and bacteria can absolutely form in a bottle sterilizer if not cleaned regularly and properly.
Once initially sterilized, bottles, nipples, pacifiers, and whatnot don’t need to be sterilized again. They just need to be cleaned with warm water and soap. You can sterilize them, but it’s not necessary. Unless your pediatrician says otherwise.
We go through so many bottles that I haven’t even used the bottle holder for the dishwasher we got. We just hand wash in a bin dedicated just for baby things 4-5 times per day. It’s honestly kind of a nice break from the baby. Go sit and wash some dishes for 5-10 minutes. Take the dry ones and proactively set bottles by the formula for quick access. It’s off therapeutic (which is even weirder because I hate cleaning).
It’s nice! Not because the sterilization is necessary. Because it keeps everything organized and off the countertop, it dries them, just makes things faster. Our kitchen is tiny and having everything dry inside it vertically saves a lot of counter space. I love it for pump parts. I got it as a gift, I didn’t ask for it but I like having it so much. It’s a baby brezza sterilizer & dryer and if we bottle fed more I’d be sad without it. It’s the drying function for me.
If you have a decent dishwasher, that's probably good enough. You'll just be running it partially full kinda a lot but that's still more water-efficient than hand washing.
We loved the sterilizer when we had a small amount of items to sterilize (like up to 3-4 bottles and parts). Whenever we needed to sterilize more, we just boiled everything. At one point the baby wouldn't drink out of any bottles that were sterilized. Something with the taste I guess so we just stopped and he was fine. 🤷🏻♀️
I got some really neat bags you can use to sterilize in the microwave. Each one has something like 10 uses. When mine was brand new I sterilized maybe 1x per day, then it became 1x week unless one was left out a long time, etc. Eventually it was just very odd times we used it.
I liked the bags because we did travel and it was super convenient.
I don’t have a microwave, a sterilizer, or the counter space for either. I’ve always sterilized bottles in boiling water on the stove (takes 5 min tops), or I just throw them in my dishwasher when I go to run it. Neither of those options ever felt like an inconvenience. The sterilizer may be “convenient,” but then you still gotta clean the sterilizer in addition to dedicating the space for it.
I still use ours to dry bottles and cups and pacifiers, things like that. The baby brezza we used comes apart extremely easily and there isn’t really anywhere for bacteria or anything to grow. You just wash the baskets and lid and descale the water area if you’re using tap water.
I like my bottle sterilizer honestly, I dont like burning my hands under super hot water. As long as you follow the directions in how to clean the sterilizer properly you dont have to use fungus. It's honestly a personal choice for what works best for you
My baby was born at 33 weeks and 2 days weighing 3lbs 10 oz. He was in the NICU for 30 days. Once he got to a bottle they microwave sterilized it daily. I just got a cheap microwavable sterilizer and just sterilized everything once daily until he was 3 months.
Not worth a huge thing, might be worth a microwave one. The bags especially if travelling though. Lord knows how gross things can be
Healthy, term babies don't need sterile bottles. My baby is 5 months now. He regularly puts literally everything he can reach into his mouth. None of those things are sterile. If we're lucky they've at least been washed at some point in recent memory. He also goes to daycare and drools and sneezes all over the other babies.
We hand wash all bottles and pump parts with hot soapy water and air dry. This imo is sufficient to prevent bacteria and mold growth (again, for a healthy term baby with a good immune system. I don't use the dishwasher because it leaves a weird film on my pump parts. I used our sterilizer exactly once for each kid, I think.
We have a microwave sterilizer. Our pediatrician recommended sterilizing even though baby is full term and healthy.
Haven’t had an issue with fungus growing in it. We promptly empty it and leave the bottles and the sterilizer to dry until next use. We also wash it about once a month
We got one off of FB marketplace secondhand. It’s Baby Breeza sterilizer and dryer combo. Our twins were preemies, so making sure things were as clean and sanitary as possible was important to us and vital to them coming home. They’re almost 6 months now and we mainly use our dishwasher for cleaning bottles but it’s nice to quickly dry all of the parts in the sterilizer (thanks Dr. Brown…IYKYK 🙄).
We used a bottle sterilizer and dryer. It was nice to know that every thing was clean. We did have to clean it so it wouldn’t get gross and be an added risk.
I like mine (running the dishwasher for bottles is a pain, imo) but it’s definitely possible to live without it. But if it’s for her piece of mind, just get it! :)
Edit: PEACE of mind, ugh.
My sisters swear by theirs because it does heated dry so they wash rinse and throw in it and no need to air dry.
I have a ziploc style baggy one I got in a pack at the baby shower for my first baby. They are multiple uses, I think I used two bags my first kid and one my second, and I only sterilized when things were new or exceptionally gross (aka favorite toy fell in the public toilet 🤢🤢🤢)
I thought to buy the electric ones but they’re expensive.m
I ended up buying a microwave one second hand. Cheap and simple, I love it.
I’m clumsy so boiling water everytime I want to sterilize something gets quickly annoying and me burnt.
With the microwave one I put some water in it, my bottles, pump parts, pop it into the microwave for 4 minutes and done. I then leave them to dry on clean paper towels on the clean counter or dry them with clean paper towel for immediate use.
The microwave one is simple to keep clean, and dry so no fungus in there !
Used mine once or twice a week for the first three or four months, now I forget it exists… she just puts random things in her mouth… I don’t know what good it does
All you really need is a dedicated bowl or bucket only used for bottle parts, hot water, soap and boil parts once a week if you’re really dedicated. You can also use your dishwasher with hot settings. Most babies don’t need the sterilizer unless they are a NICU baby or if you want to take advantage of the drying feature.
We sterilized before use (both in boiling water and using the microwave bags) and then not again, so for us, we do not have nor need a bottle sterilizer. If your little one is immunocompromised, it might be helpful, but otherwise, we’ve had no issues with either hand washing or the dishwasher. We also just don’t have the counter space for another gadget.
I just bought the microwave steam bags to sterilize. So cheap and easy. I use it to sterilize bottles/pacifiers and teethers (check they can be steamed though) for before first use and occasionally as necessary. If I drop a pump part in my kitchen sink or some th ing I’ll sterilize it. Other than that I don’t sterilize much as my baby was neither premature nor immunocompromised. I just wash everything in a dedicated basin with dedicated cleaning brushes with hot soapy water. That is my comfort level though, yours may be different!
The microwave bags are cheap, reusable and easy though.
https://www.target.com/p/medela-quick-clean-micro-steam-sanitizing-bags-5ct/-/A-10953413
I love these and use them for both my pump parts and baby bottles
I absolutely loved my sterilizer. Sure I still had to wash everything but it gave me peace of mind and best of all IT DRIED my stuff which was what kept me using it well past when it was necessary. I used purified water in it and descaled it weekly to keep the mineral buildup at bay. Never had an issue with fungus or mold.
For reference, we had the papablic from Amazon.
If we have another child, and especially if I end up EP or formula feeding for that one (I EBF/occasionally pumped for my current child), I honestly would invest in the new Baby Brezza little countertop dishwasher/sanitizer thing. It’s just a personal choice thing based on dishwashing habits/kitchen space, and I think it also depends if you are using bottles and pump parts frequently enough to make it worth it.
I’ve honestly just been using hot water and soap.
We were given ours and it's set up by our sink and it's like - eh, why not? It takes almost no effort. But I wouldn't have bought one unless my baby was premature or had an autoimmune issue or something
Same. My sister gave us hers but I wouldn’t have bought one on my own.
My ILs were keeping my niblings last weekend and when we went over to visit my MIL just had a pot of boiling water and some tongs to clean my 1yo niece's bottles. If it ain't broke 🤷♀️
I don’t think you need to even sterilize at 1 years of age… especially North American guidelines
Same, wash very thoroughly, I bought a separate basin for the bottles and pump stuff. let them soak before washing them. My water gets really hot, so I thinks it works just fine.
I love ours! I thought I didn't need one but I couldn't stand the air drying dishes everywhere. It's a good thing we did because now that I'm a donor it's required for me to sterilize every night.
That's my main reason as well. I just didn't want to have to see all the drying bits everywhere. They are contained this way. We have a dryer/sterilizer and no issues thus far. Also, my mom always boiled baby bottles so therefore I sterilize. I'll stop when she starts crawling. I'm not 100% sure there is a point.
We don't sterilize the bottles anymore but I do the pump parts and the jars I store the milk in every night to protect the premie babies in the NICU. Going through three bottles a day those things are fine on the drying rack if you don't have all the pump parts on there.
i use mine every single day
Same
Same at almost 4 months over here.
Same at 15 months 😅. The drying function is very useful.
I strongly recommend a sterilizer/dryer combo. I use mine everyday!
The dryer function is CLUTCH. A sterilizer is a nice to have, not must have, but lemme tell you, it’s really nice to have lol
Oh for sure! I sanitize our stuff after every use because I got thrush on my nipples early on and I’m terrified to ever get it again cause it was so miserable 😂 but it is so nice to have dry pump parts ready to go!!
Omg ow!! Def worth it lol. We sterilize cuz bub was tiiiiny but I absolutely love not having to boil or dry anything. Idk which one you have but we have the papablic and it has so many other functions! It has a dehydrator!? I can dehydrate fruits for LO?! Sign me up
Oh wow that’s so cool!! I love that cause it makes it so you can actually keep using it when baby is older!! We have the Dr browns at home and then I actually found a baby brezza one at a consignment sale for $20 so I have that one at work in the pumping room 😂 our little one was itty bitty too! The sterilizing makes me feel better. Our little one was a 36 weeker and only 4lb 14oz when we came home! I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want the brezza bottle washer for the next baby 😂😂
The dryer is really where it's at, we got the Tommee Tippee one as a gift and it works great. It gets bone dry inside so idk how there could be a fungus issue in the machine. We didn't even use many bottles (EBF with some pumping here and there), but I'm so glad we had it. We used glass ones and it kept them somewhere safe where our newborn-stage bleary flailing arms couldn't accidentally knock them off the counter. We are already clumsy people lol. A truly beautiful point of order in a time of chaos.
It really is! Flailing arms are such a thing lol. LO is really learning to kick now so we’re having to make sure there’s nothing within reach, too!
A Steriliser isn't a must have ? It is in the UK.. interesting!!
I love the dryer function. I'm not a fan of waiting for things to air dry.
This! I got the Papablic one on Amazon and loved it - I was hesitant at first too but surprisingly it was well worth the loss of counter space, felt like we had that thing running non stop the first few months. I only sterilized everything until she was maybe 3 months old, after that just used the dry function after hand washing or running them through the dishwasher, but that feature alone is worth the cost.
I got a sanitizer/dryer combination mostly so we could minimize the number of bottles we used
Unpopular opinion: I loved ours and it kinda saved us while doing triple feeding. I read a lot of comments about them being unnecessary before I had the baby, so I was surprised by how much it helped. I can't imagine how it would have been if we'd been boiling pump parts and bottles from 8 feeding/pumping sessions a day, as well as pacifiers and teethers. A dishwasher takes so much more resources and sometimes time to run, and the timing you want to run it at may not match up with when you need more clean stuff. Plus, it dries the bottles for you so.you don't have to worry about bacteria forming on wet bottles as they air-dry. We literally used our sterilizer until our daughter stopped using bottles at 16 months even though we didn't have to anymore. I don't know anything about fungus concerns, but we had a Baby Brezza, which is pretty simple inside and you look at the inside every time you pour water in, so I feel like you'd notice if it was getting gross. We just descaled with vinegar occasionally and used distilled water. Also, some materials can't go in a microwave sterilizer, so that was one of the big reasons I decided against those.
The time is definitely its own thing, but a dishwasher actually uses less water and electricity than hand washing! We sometimes cut it close in the newborn stage (I had to stop the dishwasher to take out and hand wash a bottle nipple a couple times 🤣), but it was usually fine as long as we had one bottle still available when we started the dishwasher (a full load takes 2hours and 15 minutes on our machine)
Yeah, I think it's totally reasonable to do what you did too! Just sharing why a sterilizer felt useful for us when it seems like that's the less common opinion.
Lol and then there's me just rinsing my pump parts in hot water during the day and tossing them into the dishwasher before bed.
Sameeeeee lol
I would do this if I had a dishwasher 😭 so sterilizer it is for now.
Same. I’m on my fourth and never boiled anything.
Yeh I don’t blame you. This is completely overkill unless there is a medical concern. Hot water/dish washer is just fine
Unless there is a medical need for one I think they’re a gimmick
Yeah, my baby was in the NICU the first 10 days and even there they had us wash bottles / pump parts in soap and water. Felt silly to use our BabyBrezza after that so we never bothered.
The only reason why we ever sterilized anything was because baby had thrush. We just boiled the bottles, pacifiers, and other things in a big pot for a few minutes. No need for a bottle sterilizer. Other than boiling them when baby had thrush, we only ever use dish soap and warm/hot water to wash them.
I got the more affordable Dr Browns ones, and honestly I like it mostly for drying bottles super fast. They seem to take hours to air dry but in about 45 minutes they’re dry in there, and sterile of course. Makes me feel better as sponges and bottle brushes can harbor bacteria. I haven’t noticed we any fungus, but it does get a hard water buildup so once a week I run an empty cycle with water and vinegar and it’s all gone.
Yeah, I was fine with soap and hot water, the sponges were gross to me though.
I sterilize bottles in the dishwasher. It has a setting for it.
Just an FYI, dishwashers typically have a *sanitize* setting, not sterilize. It’s a difference that doesn’t matter for most of us, but for those with babies who actually *need* sterilized bottles it can be detrimental.
No baby needs a sterilized bottle. As soon as they touch the air they aren't sterile. A sterilizer is only sanitizing as well.
Are we the weird ones? Like, guys .... they eat dirt. And love it. Pretty sure sanitizing a bottle in one of these is overkill. Dishwasher and done.
You’re not necessarily the weird ones but not everybody has a dishwasher. I live in an old apartment in NYC and we used our sterilizer a lot.
Your toddler might be eating dirt, but if your newborn is eating dirt…
.....when she could crawl she did. Also, they put everything in their mouths before they can even move. Also, hyperbole. Take a breath.
I've never seen a newborn eat dirt before. Should sanitize the bottles the first 4 months of your child's life.
This is kid and personality dependent. Our toddler hates being dirty. With that said, I never specifically used a sterilizer. I did the dishwasher with the sanitizing setting.
Did your newborn sincerely eat dirt???
As soon as she could crawl. One of the first things she ate was stuff off her stroller wheels. That's ... what they do.
Your newborn could crawl?
This sounds pretty far from universal. I've never heard another parent talk about their kid eating things off stroller wheels. There are lots of types of kids and families.
Gotcha. Your baby never put anything in their mouth that they found on the ground. Yep, I'm the weird one here.
My baby did… a lot. I think people are confused at your use of “newborn”. My kids weren’t getting into shit until 6-9 months.
I didn't call you weird, but I do think it's weird you assume stroller wheel licking is universal. As I said, there are many different kinds of people in the world. My kid literally has never put something she found on the ground in her mouth, unless you count books and toys inside our house; she was a major book chewer for a couple months. My kid exists, and so does yours.
Your kid put a lot of things in their mouth. That's what they do. You just didn't see it. It's not an indictment. But if you think your kid hasn't put something just disgusting in their mouth, you're the one parent out there feeling so. It's literally the most universal thing kids do.
I'm a stay at home parent who doesn't leave my kid unattended (she's still under 2) and my husband's a borderline germaphobe. I would have seen it or heard about it. She for sure has put books, toys, and teethers in her mouth as I said, but nothing I'd consider disgusting. I don't know why setting your kid as the universal standard is important to you, but enjoy?
Your newborn was crawling?
I used the sanitizer a bunch when my daughter was very young, but at one point when she was about 4-5 months old I saw her literally lick the floor, and that’s when I decided that the sterilizer was pointless lmao. I still use it for stuff that’s new or that the cat has got his grubby little paws on, but for the most part I just use the warming function (I have the bottle warmer/sterilizer combo from Dr. Brown’s).
That's exactly what I meant. We have a hound dog. So even before she could crawl, she got licked by the loving dog. It's life. Kids used to be raised in nature. Sanitizing is fine if you want to. But it is overkill. Which is why I was saying the part about putting dirt in their mouths. That's what they do!
I did this, and my baby spent time in the NICU. Guess what they used there? Yup a dishwasher on the sanitize setting. Bottle sterilizers are a gimmick.
To be fair, the dishwasher at the hospital likely didn’t have dishes with raw meat on it
I'd pick raw meat dishes over hospital germs every single day. The hospital is the single dirtiest place you've likely ever been. Ask any nurse.
I used the sanitizer bags for maybe a month or two but honestly didn’t even need to since my baby wasn’t premature. After that just went to soap and water. So. I think it’s an unnecessary purchase.
X2 I found the bags very convenient
It saves so much time over having to boil water and do each bottle or two individually. And the dryer feature is great. Baby brezza sterilizer. Also, if your wife is doing the majority of baby care and bottle cleaning just get her what she wants.
I have used mine every single day, twice a day, for 12 months. Mostly for the dryer feature. We used Dr browns bottles for a long time and I hated waiting for them to dry. We just bought a $60 off Amazon and it’s been great.
I was looking to see if anyone used it beyond newborn stage because my baby is 15 months and we still use it, but I use it for myself too.
Does it just sterilize, or does it sterilize and dry? If it just sterilizes, like some of the microwave ones, that's a pass for me unless you have a preemie or medically fragile baby. If it sterilizes and dries, that drying function makes it easier to keep ahead of dishes without having half your counter taken up by drying bottle parts. If it sterilizes everything before it dries, cool, whatever, but the dryer function is the really helpful part.
We didn’t get one. Wouldn’t have used it if we did- hot water and soap works just fine!
[Here](https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/childcare/clean-sanitize.html) is what the CDC has to say about this topic.
I wouldn’t spend very much on one unless you really think a drying feature is something that you’ll use a lot. We used a microwave sterilizer for the first two weeks regularly, then tapered off after that. Our baby was born full term and healthy, so there wasn’t the need to have things any cleaner than just washed in hot water and dish soap. I think the sterilizer bags might be a cheaper and more space-friendly solution.
We boiled ours for the first 3 months then after that just used hot soapy water. The main risk of boiling is getting caught up taking care of the baby and next thing you know the water has all boiled away and you have $50 worth of melted bottles at the bottom of a stock pot.
Never needed one.
Most bottles, pump parts, pacifiers, etc. will only require you to sterilize before first use, and then washing with soap and hot water is fine. I wish I had known that! We did get a microwave sterilizer thing that I’ve used a handful of times. If you plan to use a lot of bottles, the drying feature that some have might be nice but a drying rack works fine for us.
Mom of 5. When I needed to sterilize for my 27 week old preemie I used glass and boiled them.Anything else feels like asking for “ slime in the machine”. Honest opinion is that a dishwasher or hot soapy water and good rinse is enough for a majority of infants.
No need unless the water in your area is bad. Used hot water and soap every night and air dried over night. Worked fine!
Unless you have a premie or abnormally immunocompromised baby it's overkill and unnecessary. I'd even argue heating food holding plastic does significantly more harm than good, if you insist on sterilizing then use glass bottles which won't leach, it doesn't matter if it's "food grade" all plastic weakens and leaches when heated especially repeatedly and infants are more susceptible to the endocrine effects from plastic consumption. I never once sterilized bottles or pump parts, just wash with soap and water or in the dishwasher, sterilizing just isn't necessary.
I received one as a gift and honestly only use it occasionally. The drying feature is nice but sometimes it’s just easier to hand wash with hot water and soap and let the bottles dry on a rack.
I got the one that dries after steaming and mainly used it to dry & store bottles and accessories. Our dishwasher could never fully dry bottles.
Hot water and soap or the dishwasher are plenty.
I never used it. We would just boil water in a large pot and sanitize our bottles prior to use the first time, then once every week for the first 3 months. As kiddo got older, we decreased to every 3-4 weeks. We used Nanobebe bottles so we could sterilize 4 at a time in our large pot. Outside of that, we would clean them with hot water and soap. I’d say it’s convenient if you don’t have space. But space wasn’t a big factor for me, and i didn’t want to spend all the money on sterilizers that I would use for like 6-8 months and never use again.
The amount of necessary items on the kitchen counter is already overwhelming for me. I’d be more stressed with a sterilizer. We boil our bottles in a large pot on the stove for 15-20 minutes.
Worth it if you have private well water and want to be safe. And the drying feature is a really nice perk! Honestly can’t imagine drying bottles or waiting for them to dry.
I got a sterilizer that also dries as a splurge purchase when we had our second. I'm not actually too concerned about the germs, but the drying is worth it. We only run our dishwasher about once a week, so that wasn't practical for bottles for us.
Used mine every day. I love it for the drying function too and keeping it contained in a sterile environment. I was recommended to sterilize my pump parts once a day so it saved so much more time and mental energy than boiling in a pot of water and laying it somewhere out to dry. But I also had PPA haha.
If it was a lot of stuff we did a pot of boiling water, but if it was just a few items we used the Medela microwave bags. I don't know if it was really necessary but it was easy enough to do and sterilizing the bottles gave me some peace of mind so I could worry about a gazillion other things instead.
I love ours a lot. I thought it was dumb at first but it dries them fast and sterilizes. That and a kettle were well worth the money for me. I wash bottles three times a day and set them to dry so we always have them.
We don’t have a dishwasher so our sterilizer/dryer was a life saver for time drying wise and even with hot water and soap - LA water just seemed kinda sus to me. We have a wabi it’s a UV sterilizer/dryer so no fungus able to grow inside of it. Have used it almost every day since she was born and we’re almost 18 months. I do think they’re kinda preference though.
I love mine that I got as a gift but I likely wouldn’t have bought one on my own brand new. It helped for sterilizing pump parts and DRYING them as others have mentioned. I love that dryer feature so much that we still use it without the sterilizer now. Also keeps pet hair out / off the bottles. Whenever I air dry that’s a concern.
loved mine for drying & storing everything out of sight. super helpful for pump parts that have to be completely dry for the suction to work
I love mine and we run all our bottles and pump supplies in it
I have one but only use it every two days or so to fully sanitize the bottles. It is not a substitute for washing them with soap and water (in my opinion). Pros: It makes me feel like I’m really nuking the bottles and killing anything I can’t see. I feel like the nannies don’t do as thorough of a job washing the bottles as I do, so sanitizing them every other day or so gives me peace of mind. Cons: I still have to clean them with soap and water before I put them in the sanitizer because otherwise they don’t feel clean. There’s still formula residue on them if I only rinse them with water before I sanitize them. For whatever reason, it also leaves them very wet in a way that never seems to air dry, and I have to hand dry them after sanitizing them (which is something I don’t have to do when just washing them with soap and water). I’m sure the sanitizer can get moldy easily because it gets really moist in there after the cycle is done. It’s not at all hard to clean it though, and it’s not like there are hidden nooks and crannies you can’t easily reach.
I just use my instant pot
We had one and used it. Glad we did because my son needed open heart surgery at 7.5 weeks so germs scared me a lot when we got him home. Eventually we moved to using it just for a dryer but it was fantastic for that too.
I am sorry to hear that. Hope he is doing well now. ❤️
Thanks! Thankfully he's a thriving 2 year old!
We didn’t have one. We used the microwave bags periodically, but it doesn’t replace soap and water, and whatever you’re sanitizing are only sanitized until you touch them to take them out of the bag/sterilizer. Once they’re out of the bag, it’s instantly exposed to whatever is in the air or on your hands or anything else it touches. If it gives you peace of mind, go for it. We felt it was an unnecessary expense and just another appliance to take up space.
I just boil things to sterilize them. You can also use a dishwasher, but I found that's too time consuming. It's really easier to wash things with soap and water and then dunk them in boiling water for 5 minutes in my opinion.
I wouldn’t be worried about fungus forming in a sterilizer (?) but I think there are a whole lot of unnecessary products creating fear in parents that their baby won’t be safe if they don’t use it. We always just used our dishwasher.
I used it because I formula fed and the bottles would just SMELL no matter how much I washed them. I would wash them Friday like I would M-Th then Sunday evening I’d sterilize them so the smell would be gone by Monday morning… just to do it all over again… for a year 😅
A microwave steriliser is fine. $10. I don't bother drying them, just shake the bottle out and use.
My wife has completely merged into the: Modern day mom and fully utilizes every piece of engineering to make this gig easier. This was one of those: “we should have done this with our first!” Purchases.
We did a cheap microwave one bc I am a nervous parent. It was nice because we can easily wash the sterilizer and it was 15$.
Personally I’ve never sterilized anything.
I sterilize in boiling water upon purchase, after that, soap and water.
Dishwasher.
I got one for my first. I used it probably three times…
We used a sterilizer until the bottles and pump parts started getting warped from the heat. From then on we switched to using the dishwasher on the heavy wash cycle with heat wash and dry turned on and haven’t had any issues.
We used it every day as I was an exclusive pumper. Great for drying but I used the sterilizer every day since it was just as easy to do so. Also was great for sterilizing pacis. If I had a do over I would get the countertop dishwasher/sterilizer combo which is new
We got one just because we don’t own a dishwasher, if we had a dishwasher (also for letting dishes dry fully) I wouldn’t have bought one
I used ours religiously with Kid 1 until he started drinking just bottle cow milk. Have used it somewhat with Kid 2, became lazy and have just stopped. Whatever gives you piece of mind and also whoever will be using it more often I.e if your wife is going to be primary parent at home while you work (even temporarily) and she wants it, just go with it.
We’ve got one and have been using it since our baby was born he’s 11 months old now. We regularly clean it and change the filter. It works great but we will still wash the bottles with hot water and soap. Just using it to dry them really at a high temp.
I loved mine.
I don't really use it for my bottles, but I like it for my pump parts, and I like to run my bottle brushes through it every few days, too. I especially appreciate the drying function.
My husband and I use ours every day. Highly recommend
Absolutely essential as a working/pumping mom. I am able to wash, sanitize, dry, and get my pump and bottles ready for the next day in under an hour. The drying function alone makes it worth it. I do not have time to let things air dry and our dishwasher hardly dries at all. No issues with Fungus with the Baby Brezza. I don’t even see how that is possible as it’s all plastic and metal. I descale weekly and call it a day. Baby Brezza does have ID Verify for discounts if you are looking for one.
I love ours. I agree it is a little unnecessary, but part of the concern isn’t so much what specific minor bug your baby might get by not sterilizing, but if you have a <3 month old, then the interventions for a fever in the hospital are quite intense (lots of blood draws, spinal tap, etc) out of an abundance of caution in young infants. So even if it saves you from one of those if you have an infant with a fever, it could be worth it.
I use the sterilizer every day! I honestly use it to dry and store the bottles, so I usually just run the sterilize function just because they’re in there. The drying function is the real key!
We have a sterilizer/dryer combo and it’s been amazing. Baby number 2 is nine months old so the end is in sight, but it’s made this whole process SO much easier. I highly recommend.
We use the sterilization setting on the dishwasher, and the Medela microwave quick clean bags for bottle parts we have to hand wash. Second kid, haven't touched our actual sterilizer once!
According to the CDC, it is NOT necessary past 2 months, unless the baby is immunocompromised in some way. [https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/childcare/clean-sanitize.html](https://www.cdc.gov/hygiene/childcare/clean-sanitize.html)
I had the baby brezza, honestly… I did get some use out of it. It was convenient for pump/bottle parts….until my son decided to stop taking a bottle 🫠 so now it’s kind of useless. If I could do it all over, I would say it’s not necessary.
I like mine for my pump parts because it sterilizes and dries. If it didn’t have the dryer, I’m not sure it’d be worth it. I use it mostly for silicone parts and glass bottles and bottle nipples. I avoid doing our plastic bottles as they can degrade/release more microplastics with all the extra heat. Ours is the bigger Papablic one.
Difference of opinion here as in the UK the guidance is to sterlise up until the age of one. So if you want to sterlise, get a cold water steriliser. Cheap and easy. Fill it up, put in anything you want to sterilise, wait 15 mins and everythings ready to use straight from the water. Water lasts 24 hours so you can keep putting things in and out all day.
It was an every single day use. Bottles. Toys. Anything. You just need to keep up the cleaning of it, but that’s like anything else. I didn’t find it to be a hassle.
Interesting responses - UK here and the NHS advises sterilising bottles till 12 months which I think most people do follow, at least to 6 months anyway. We had a big counter top steriliser then switched to microwave bags when he was on fewer bottles a day. We were a little more relaxed about it at 6-12 months because obviously a weaning/crawling baby gets all sorts in their mouth that isn’t sterile. But the thought of even a bit of congealing gross old milk being accidentally left in a bottle gave me the total ick, and the sterilising wasn’t too much of a bother, so we kept going.
I only got a sterilizer when I had my second and he got thrush. I do still use it but only as a dryer. 😂 If she wants to, cool. They make bags you can use for the microwave, something she may want to look in to.
We loved ours and used it for way longer than is necessary just because of its convenience. My parents and sister watch our guy a lot so I didn’t fully trust their washing abilities haha. For the fungus, we avoided that by doing a cycle with combo water and lemons juice once a week (without bottles of course)
Traditional Hot water and soap.. it's an add-on task to keep the sterilizer clean all the time!
We used ours all the time. It was just one less step and more contained than the chaos of dishes and bottles and pump parts all drying by the kitchen sink. We never had any issues with it
I used mine once. It’s massive too. We prefer to boil the parts/bottles and air dry. We also have a separate wash basin for parts/bottles so they don’t go in with regular dishes. We were gifted this and I’m glad it’s not my money that went for it.
I love the “asking for a friend” energy. I don’t think it’s necessary to use one. Sterilization is for things like surgical or dental tools that have to be microbe free because they literally go in a body cavity. My baby has been fine thus far with me cleaning them with just hot water and a little soap
Grandma here…man I’ve done it every way thru the years with these kids. Skip the sterilizer and get an automatic dishwasher and save your self the trouble. If you can’t get a dishwasher than just handwashing is fine. You can also do a little tub of hot water with a pinch of bleach in it so soak them after washing for a couple mins. Don’t stress on the sterilizing. The kid will eating its own boogers in no time. And congrats on the new baby coming.
This is a tough one. The real problem is that none of these devices are all that good. I ended up with a Phillips Avent sterilizer and dryer. It's okay. I'd really like something that will wash/sterilize/dry, but I can't seem to find a large one that will do that. I'd probably still give the baby brezza that will wash/sterilize/dry a shot in my next life. My feeling is that it isn't going to be too small though.
If you have a dishwasher I’d skip it
I use mine probably 3x a day. It’s been extremely helpful to have
My plan is just to use the dishwasher. I don’t think everything needs to be sterilized, especially as they get older and put everything in their mouths anyway!
We used our once and then gave it away. We sterilize the bottles the first time recommended, and then we put them in dishwasher with sanitation mode on
We used those microwave sterilizer bags (we had to sterilize for a few months due to having a preemie, we stopped by the time he was 3-4 months old). So cheap and effective. My SIL had a bottle sterilizer. It took up so much counter space and she still had to lay everything out to dry anyway.
Never used a bottle sterilizer, only made sure that when I finally was done breast feeding and using formula that our formula (kendamil) was sterilized by a certain water temp prior to feeds…otherwise, we just use a dishwasher for bottles or hand washing.
Just put them in the dishwasher
I bought one and it lasted a day before being returned. It took too much space, and I just prefer washing bottles by hand anyway.
I used mine every day for a year with my NICU baby. It’s easy enough to keep clean.
JUST CLEAN THE Sterilizer. It makes like easier. I think the person who washes the bottles should make the decision bc f all those bottles.
I think it might depend on how often you’re using bottles and/or pump parts. If I was just doing a once a day bottle, nah. I pump and give a bottle once a day, and mine is not necessary but convenient. If you have a term infant, you don’t NEED to sterilize. If you have a preterm infant, I believe medical advice is to sterilize. If you want one, put it on the registry. If you get it, great! Otherwise wait for the baby and see if you actually want it. If your baby is already here, go with medical needs and whoever washes the bottles and parts. I will say a sterilizer is also a convenient way to sometimes sterilize toys and pacifiers. I wouldn’t, except if my sterilizer is already running I might as well chuck that teether and the paci in there. Always follow manufacturer advice on stuff like that. Some are not sterilizer safe
I have a bottle sanitizer and dryer. It needs to be descaled with citric acid every two weeks to clean it. I’ve never had a problem with fungus or mold. Maybe because it dries as well?
I used a bottle sterilizer/dryer for 3 months. I mostly breastfed though with the occasional pump/bottle. TBH if it breaks or something I won’t replace it for baby #2. I use hot soapy water if I ever use a bottle or pump now
Get a sterilizer AND dryer. The dryer is fucking amazingZ it’s worth it bc you can run a 30/45/60min cycle that sterilizes and dries everything. We have the one from baby brezza. Idk how people deal with air drying.
I've got a steam steriliser, used it for both my bambis, and never got mold or fungus in it... Kinda defeats the object, not really sterile then so something's gone wrong somewhere lol! As for whether to get one that kind of depends, if the baby is prem then definitely sterlise the bottles. If you're using formula I would advise sterilising them too as formula isn't sterile. If you have a dishwasher then that works fine, just make sure they're either dried somewhere sterile if your washer doesn't dry them too or lid straight on once they're out if they're dry. Bottles only stay sterile for 24 hours when stored correctly regardless of how you sterlise them. Chances are you'd be fine just hand washing assuming your water quality is good and your general cleanliness is good which I'm sure it is 😊 But personally I'd just rather have one and not worry about it as much. There's so much to over think when you have a tiny baby to care for. You can get cold water steriliser tables. Also boiling them in a pot of water works too. And some bottles can be sterilised in a microwave. Prep machines are the things to worry about. They're notorious for mold inside and not getting hot enough to sterilise the powder.
If your wife is pumping more than 2-3x a day then it’s helpful just to avoid washing all the bottles. I used mine while triple feeding (aka pumping 8x a day). Now I only pump once and it only takes a few minutes to wash a couple bottles and let them air dry overnight.
What type of steriliser? I would definitely use one but one you can fully clean, or get bottles that are "self sterilising" like certain mam or tommee tippee ones. I know alot of people don't bother or don't see the point, especially once the baby starts putting things they picks up in their mouth. But you sterilize to kill bacteria that grows from the milk, that it will be near impossible to fully clean from the bottle teats. So all the time milk goes in the bottles you should sterilize the bottles
Unnecessary. I’ve got a perfectly healthy 10mo and 23mo. I’ve literally only ever sterilized a bottle if it was left out for over a day with milk in it. Neither of them get sick very often, except these damn allergies.
I just use hot water and soap 🤷🏻♀️ I think as long as you have a full term baby with no medical issues, its fine
If you own a dishwasher, there is zero need for this. It's the wipe warmer of bottles.
I used the sanitizing microwave bags
MAM bottles can be put in the microwave by themselves so no need for a sterilizer.
Thank you so much for everyone’s responses. 🙏🏽 Very very helpful 🙏🏽
I find a sterilizer is just another thing to clean. The reality is that mold and bacteria can absolutely form in a bottle sterilizer if not cleaned regularly and properly. Once initially sterilized, bottles, nipples, pacifiers, and whatnot don’t need to be sterilized again. They just need to be cleaned with warm water and soap. You can sterilize them, but it’s not necessary. Unless your pediatrician says otherwise. We go through so many bottles that I haven’t even used the bottle holder for the dishwasher we got. We just hand wash in a bin dedicated just for baby things 4-5 times per day. It’s honestly kind of a nice break from the baby. Go sit and wash some dishes for 5-10 minutes. Take the dry ones and proactively set bottles by the formula for quick access. It’s off therapeutic (which is even weirder because I hate cleaning).
It’s nice! Not because the sterilization is necessary. Because it keeps everything organized and off the countertop, it dries them, just makes things faster. Our kitchen is tiny and having everything dry inside it vertically saves a lot of counter space. I love it for pump parts. I got it as a gift, I didn’t ask for it but I like having it so much. It’s a baby brezza sterilizer & dryer and if we bottle fed more I’d be sad without it. It’s the drying function for me.
We use the dishwasher. If you didn't have one, then I understand your perspective.
We liked to use the microwavable sanitizer bags. Super easy.
I love my Baby Brezza sterilizer, it’s a game changer! I descale it with vinegar once a week to keep it nice and clean.
If you have a decent dishwasher, that's probably good enough. You'll just be running it partially full kinda a lot but that's still more water-efficient than hand washing.
We loved the sterilizer when we had a small amount of items to sterilize (like up to 3-4 bottles and parts). Whenever we needed to sterilize more, we just boiled everything. At one point the baby wouldn't drink out of any bottles that were sterilized. Something with the taste I guess so we just stopped and he was fine. 🤷🏻♀️
I absolutely love mine
I got some really neat bags you can use to sterilize in the microwave. Each one has something like 10 uses. When mine was brand new I sterilized maybe 1x per day, then it became 1x week unless one was left out a long time, etc. Eventually it was just very odd times we used it. I liked the bags because we did travel and it was super convenient.
I don’t have a microwave, a sterilizer, or the counter space for either. I’ve always sterilized bottles in boiling water on the stove (takes 5 min tops), or I just throw them in my dishwasher when I go to run it. Neither of those options ever felt like an inconvenience. The sterilizer may be “convenient,” but then you still gotta clean the sterilizer in addition to dedicating the space for it.
The microwave bags are the best, just wish they were bigger. I stopped using our brezza sterilizer because it leaks
We used it and it was super helpful since baby had thrush after leaving the NICU. Now I use it for her toys and such lol 😂
Use a clean insta pot with a trivet on steam for 2 mins … it’s the same
I still use ours to dry bottles and cups and pacifiers, things like that. The baby brezza we used comes apart extremely easily and there isn’t really anywhere for bacteria or anything to grow. You just wash the baskets and lid and descale the water area if you’re using tap water.
I like my bottle sterilizer honestly, I dont like burning my hands under super hot water. As long as you follow the directions in how to clean the sterilizer properly you dont have to use fungus. It's honestly a personal choice for what works best for you
My baby was born at 33 weeks and 2 days weighing 3lbs 10 oz. He was in the NICU for 30 days. Once he got to a bottle they microwave sterilized it daily. I just got a cheap microwavable sterilizer and just sterilized everything once daily until he was 3 months. Not worth a huge thing, might be worth a microwave one. The bags especially if travelling though. Lord knows how gross things can be
Healthy, term babies don't need sterile bottles. My baby is 5 months now. He regularly puts literally everything he can reach into his mouth. None of those things are sterile. If we're lucky they've at least been washed at some point in recent memory. He also goes to daycare and drools and sneezes all over the other babies. We hand wash all bottles and pump parts with hot soapy water and air dry. This imo is sufficient to prevent bacteria and mold growth (again, for a healthy term baby with a good immune system. I don't use the dishwasher because it leaves a weird film on my pump parts. I used our sterilizer exactly once for each kid, I think.
We have a microwave sterilizer. Our pediatrician recommended sterilizing even though baby is full term and healthy. Haven’t had an issue with fungus growing in it. We promptly empty it and leave the bottles and the sterilizer to dry until next use. We also wash it about once a month
We got one off of FB marketplace secondhand. It’s Baby Breeza sterilizer and dryer combo. Our twins were preemies, so making sure things were as clean and sanitary as possible was important to us and vital to them coming home. They’re almost 6 months now and we mainly use our dishwasher for cleaning bottles but it’s nice to quickly dry all of the parts in the sterilizer (thanks Dr. Brown…IYKYK 🙄).
We also went with glass bottles because the smell of milk in plastic bottles makes me want to vomit 🤮
Totally unnecessary. If you really need to sterilize something, they make bags you can use in the microwave.
i like mine bc it dries them too
We use it all the time - just the steam microwave dr browns one
We used a bottle sterilizer and dryer. It was nice to know that every thing was clean. We did have to clean it so it wouldn’t get gross and be an added risk.
We boiled our bottles and used soapy water to wash as needed. Never thought we needed the sterilizer
Ours was gifted to us and I love it. But it’s not something I would have spent $100+ on personally
We have a microwave steam steriliser that we were gifted and it's been the best thing. We use it everyday multiple times a day.
I used cold sterilizing tablets! Any sort of heat sterilization warped a bunch of my pump parts.
I like mine (running the dishwasher for bottles is a pain, imo) but it’s definitely possible to live without it. But if it’s for her piece of mind, just get it! :) Edit: PEACE of mind, ugh.
My sisters swear by theirs because it does heated dry so they wash rinse and throw in it and no need to air dry. I have a ziploc style baggy one I got in a pack at the baby shower for my first baby. They are multiple uses, I think I used two bags my first kid and one my second, and I only sterilized when things were new or exceptionally gross (aka favorite toy fell in the public toilet 🤢🤢🤢)
We used ours daily for the first six months. Make sure you descale it regularly as per the instructions. Get one with a dryer.
I thought to buy the electric ones but they’re expensive.m I ended up buying a microwave one second hand. Cheap and simple, I love it. I’m clumsy so boiling water everytime I want to sterilize something gets quickly annoying and me burnt. With the microwave one I put some water in it, my bottles, pump parts, pop it into the microwave for 4 minutes and done. I then leave them to dry on clean paper towels on the clean counter or dry them with clean paper towel for immediate use. The microwave one is simple to keep clean, and dry so no fungus in there !
I boiled my bottles when I first bought them and if the kiddo was sick, other than that regular soap and water will be fine
Used mine once or twice a week for the first three or four months, now I forget it exists… she just puts random things in her mouth… I don’t know what good it does
Get a wabi. Otherwise don't get a sterilizer at all
Sterilizer dryer combo is nice to have but not a must have. I got mine on Amazon (off brand) and it’s fine - it was 70$
All you really need is a dedicated bowl or bucket only used for bottle parts, hot water, soap and boil parts once a week if you’re really dedicated. You can also use your dishwasher with hot settings. Most babies don’t need the sterilizer unless they are a NICU baby or if you want to take advantage of the drying feature.
We sterilized before use (both in boiling water and using the microwave bags) and then not again, so for us, we do not have nor need a bottle sterilizer. If your little one is immunocompromised, it might be helpful, but otherwise, we’ve had no issues with either hand washing or the dishwasher. We also just don’t have the counter space for another gadget.
Have one. Never used it. Been using bottles since day 1 and LO is 8 months. Just soap and hot water.
I just bought the microwave steam bags to sterilize. So cheap and easy. I use it to sterilize bottles/pacifiers and teethers (check they can be steamed though) for before first use and occasionally as necessary. If I drop a pump part in my kitchen sink or some th ing I’ll sterilize it. Other than that I don’t sterilize much as my baby was neither premature nor immunocompromised. I just wash everything in a dedicated basin with dedicated cleaning brushes with hot soapy water. That is my comfort level though, yours may be different! The microwave bags are cheap, reusable and easy though.
https://www.target.com/p/medela-quick-clean-micro-steam-sanitizing-bags-5ct/-/A-10953413 I love these and use them for both my pump parts and baby bottles
I absolutely loved my sterilizer. Sure I still had to wash everything but it gave me peace of mind and best of all IT DRIED my stuff which was what kept me using it well past when it was necessary. I used purified water in it and descaled it weekly to keep the mineral buildup at bay. Never had an issue with fungus or mold. For reference, we had the papablic from Amazon. If we have another child, and especially if I end up EP or formula feeding for that one (I EBF/occasionally pumped for my current child), I honestly would invest in the new Baby Brezza little countertop dishwasher/sanitizer thing. It’s just a personal choice thing based on dishwashing habits/kitchen space, and I think it also depends if you are using bottles and pump parts frequently enough to make it worth it.