Tips on Cleaning Baby Bottles
Make baby feeding safe
All new parents understand the importance of feeding babies every day with nutritional food. It is equally important to properly wash and sterilize your baby’s feeding equipment to prevent infection or diarrhoea.
Please note that these instructions mainly apply to Richell Japan’s baby bottles or feedware. Please check with manufacturer of your products for detailed cleaning instructions.
After every feed, wash your baby bottles as soon as possible with a soft sponge/ brush and baby-friendly dishwashing detergent. Please only use the sponge/ brush for baby bottle purpose and avoid using it to wash other household dishes.
Do not scrub with salt, polishing powder, chemical cleanser or other hard objects. This could result in scratches that collect germs, or you would risk leaving chemical residue that can be dangerous for your baby.
Before sterilizing, rinse all your equipment in clean, cold running water
Do not use household cleaning products e.g. pink cleaning paste or bleach on baby bottles or feedware.
Methods of Sterilization:
Cold Water Sterilization
Always follow manufacturer’s instructions
Sterilizing solution needs to be changed every 24 hours
Make sure there are no air bubbles trapped in the bottles or teats when putting them in the sterilizing solution
Choose organic and baby friendly sterilizer without harsh chemicals or fragrance
Steam Sterilization
Check the manufacturer’s instructions carefully before use
Take extra caution to avoid burning when sterilizing the baby bottles
Avoid putting the products near the heat outlet as it may cause deformation
Simply putting in microwave will not properly sterilize the bottles
For Stainless Steel bottles:
Same as other materials, it is better to avoid using salt, polishing powder or chemical cleanser for your stainless steel baby bottles. Chlorine leach should be avoided on any feedware.
Wipe dry immediately after rinsing, do not soak in the water. Moisture left could cause rusting
You can also regularly use citric acid for removal of red rust and scale.
We generally do no recommend using boiling hot water to sterilize baby bottles. If baby bottles are mistakenly brought into contact with hot pans or heat source, it can cause deformation. Do not boil the bottles for over 5 minutes.
Lastly, if you start to see cracks or scratches on the baby bottles, it is best to start replacing them. If you are looking for affordable and practical baby bottles, check out the Richell Japan bottle & mug series!
Reference: Richell Japan instruction manual; https://www.nhs.uk/baby/breastfeeding-and-bottle-feeding/bottle-feeding/sterilising-baby-bottles/
