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How to clean bottles for newborns


How to Clean Baby Bottles

We know babies require a lot of stuff. And by a lot, we mean, a lot! All of those bottles, bottle parts, nipples, pacifiers, and sippy cups need to be cleaned. Over and over. Day after day. Here’s everything you need to know on how to clean baby bottles and parts, so you can worry less about all the “stuff” and spend more time with your little duckling!

How to Hand Wash Baby Bottles

It can seem daunting to have to hand wash your baby bottles, nipples, caps, and sippy cups after every use, but with the right steps you’ll find that scrubbing right away isn’t always necessary. So, you can pay more attention to tummy time and less on cleaning.

Here’s how to wash baby items by hand:

1. Things You’ll Need.

In addition to a sponge, we recommend purchasing a dedicated bottle brush with a nipple brush to clean all the hard-to-reach spots inside your baby’s bottles. For a gentle clean that’s free of dyes, use Dawn® Free and Clear.

2. Rinse Directly After Use.

As soon as you have finished feeding your baby, give your bottle a quick rinse with warm water, just to get rid of most leftover residue. You can come back to thoroughly wash a full day’s worth of bottles when you have more time.

3. Fill A Bowl with Hot Soapy Water.

Apply a squirt of Dawn® to a bowl of hot water. Dawn® works great for cleaning baby items because it does not leave a soapy residue on bottles when rinsed appropriately.

4. Separate the Bottle Parts.

It’s important to take apart every part of the bottle. Old milk can build up between the bottle, the ring, and the nipple.

5. Wash Bottle Parts Separately.

Place all of the bottle parts into hot, soapy water and wash them individually. Use a soapy bottle brush for the bottle and the nipple brush for the plastic nipples and rings. Next, gently squeeze soapy water through the nipple hole to flush out any trapped milk.

6. Rinse Bottle and Bottle Parts.

Rinse off the bottle and bottle parts thoroughly under running water to remove any remaining soap residue.

7. Dry Bottles and Attachments.

Place bottles and nipples upside down in the dish rack to dry. Your baby items are now clean and ready for another feeding. Prepare to do this several hundred more times, even in your sleep.

Handwashing Versus Dishwashing Baby Bottles

Baby bottles can pile up, especially with a newborn! It’s recommended to wash baby bottles after each use, especially during the infancy stage—but don’t worry! You do have a few options when it comes to protecting all those bottles from messes, so you can be more confident with every feeding. You can wash baby bottles and attachments in the dishwasher every few days, but make sure they’re dishwasher-safe before running the cycle. *

To clean baby bottles in the dishwasher:

  • Rinse baby bottles, nipples, caps, sippy cups and other attachments with warm water

  • Soak with warm water and a gentle dish soap like Dawn® Free and Clear, which is free of dyes

  • Rinse off bottles and attachments with warm water

  • Load into the top rack of your dishwasher

  • Set to a hot water washing cycle and heated drying cycle

  • Remove from dishwasher and place on a clean surface or baby bottle drying rack

In cases where your baby bottles aren’t dishwasher safe or your dishwasher is full, handwashing is also a great go-to when it comes to keeping bottles clean and safe for your little bundle.

How to Sterilize Baby Bottles

You’ll also want to consider using a baby bottle sterilizer during the early days. Sterilizing baby bottles and attachments helps remove germs and bacteria—especially if your little duckling is primarily bottle fed. If you’re using a bottle for the first time, you should always hand wash and sterilize it before giving it to baby. This helps ensure you’re starting off with a clean and sanitary bottle, every time.

  • Allow the baby bottle and parts to soak in warm, soapy water

  • Rinse off with warm water

  • Place in baby bottle sterilizer and follow the instructions provided for your particular brand of sterilizer

  • Once complete, store on a clean drying rack before use

You can also sterilize your baby bottles by placing them in boiling water—but be careful to not damage the nipple or any other attachments.

Can I Reuse My Old Baby Bottles?

When kept in good condition and thoroughly washed, you may be able to reuse your baby bottles with your next baby. However, it’s best to get new bottle attachments, such as nipples, as these can undergo wear and tear over time.

Whether new or used, always be sure to soak your baby bottles in warm, soapy water and sterilize before using.

Best Dish Soap for Baby Bottles

When it comes to ensuring your baby is getting the best, we understand that same notion extends to the dish soap you use as well. Here are our recommendations for top dishwashing liquids to use when cleaning baby bottles, bottle attachments, and first utensils:

  • For Soaking: Before sterilizing or running your baby’s bottles through a dishwasher, use a foaming dish soap like Dawn® Platinum Dishwashing Foam. Just one pump creates more than enough soapy foam to penetrate leftover formula and milk residue.

  • For Everyday Handwashing: Dawn® Free & Clear is powerful enough to tackle any leftover messes, including baby food and milk residue, and gentle enough to use on delicate items, while also being free of dyes and phosphates.

With Dawn® dish soap it’s So Dawn Easy to keep all your baby items clean, so you can feel more confident when feeding your cooing little duckling!

Cleaning and sterilising baby bottles

Cleaning and sterilising baby bottles | Pregnancy Birth and Baby beginning of content

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It’s essential to properly wash and sterilise the feeding equipment when you’re bottle feeding. You'll need to clean and sterilise each bottle, teat and screw cap after every feed. It’s important that you continue sterilising everything until your baby is 12 months' old.

Why is it important to clean and sterilise my baby’s bottles?

Babies have immature immune systems so they aren’t strong enough to fight off a range of infections. One important way to support them in staying healthy is to reduce the chances of their getting sick in the first place.

Milk is the perfect medium in which bacteria can grow. This is why it’s important to sterilise all feeding equipment and keep formula cold until just before feeding your baby.

What equipment needs cleaning and how often?

You need to clean and sterilise all bottle parts, teats and screw caps.

  1. Separate all parts of the bottle and pull the teat out of its screw cap.
  2. Use hot water and dishwashing detergent.
  3. Clean all areas of the bottle with a bottle brush, including the thread where the cap screws on.
  4. Remove any milk still sitting in the teat or the hole with a teat brush.
  5. Squeeze hot, soapy water through the teat hole, then do the same with clean water to rinse the teat.
  6. Make sure to rinse the bottles and equipment well.

Get a new bottle brush once the bristles are worn. They need to be stiff enough to remove all the milky residue from the inside of the bottle.

How to sterilise feeding equipment

Even if bottles and teats look clean, they might still carry germs to your baby so it’s essential to sterilise your feeding equipment properly.

There are 3 ways to do this: boiling, steam sterilisation and chemical sterilisation.

If you’re breastfeeding and only need to sterilise a bottle occasionally, the boiling method may be good enough. It’s also cheaper than buying a steam steriliser. If you’re expressing and/or bottle feeding, then a steam steriliser might be the best option.

The boiling method

  1. Put all parts of the cleaned bottle, including teats, in a large saucepan.
  2. Cover the equipment with tap water.
  3. Make sure all air bubbles are out of the bottles and that they are fully submerged under the water.
  4. Bring the water to the boil.
  5. Boil for 5 minutes.
  6. Let the feeding equipment cool in the saucepan before taking it out.
  7. Place all the feeding equipment in a clean container and put it in the fridge. Make sure the container is covered firmly with a lid.
  8. You can store everything in the fridge for up to 24 hours.

The steam sterilisation method

Steam sterilisers are popular because they work quickly, are cheap to use and are very effective. They heat water to boiling point and the steam kills the bacteria. Some steam sterilisers are designed to operate in a microwave.

  1. Place the clean bottles and feeding equipment in the steriliser.
  2. Make sure there’s enough room between each bottle, teat and screw cap for the steam to circulate around all surfaces.
  3. Follow the manufacturer’s directions about how much water to add.
  4. Turn on and push the button to start. If you’re using a microwave steriliser, place the steriliser in the microwave and turn on for the correct time.
  5. Wait until the sterilisation cycle has finished and the light goes off.
  6. Store all sterilised feeding equipment in a clean, lidded container in the fridge.
  7. Sterilise all equipment again if you haven’t used it within 24 hours.

The chemical sterilisation method

Be careful when using chemical sterilisation. Many methods use bleach, which can also bleach clothing and surfaces, and irritate the skin, if spilt.

Antibacterial chemical sterilisation solutions are available in liquid and tablet form. They need to be prepared exactly as directed on the container.

  1. Make sure you have a container that’s large enough to hold your baby’s bottles and feeding equipment.
  2. Use the recommended amount of tap water to prepare the sterilising solution.
  3. Submerge all bottles and feeding equipment in the solution. Make sure there are no bubbles left in the bottles.
  4. Leave the equipment in the solution for the recommended time – there’s no need to rinse the solution off after sterilisation.
  5. Throw out the solution after 24 hours and wash out the container before preparing a new batch.

Wash your hands before handling sterilised feeding equipment

Make sure you wash and dry your hands before you handle sterilised bottles and teats. It’s easy to contaminate equipment just by touching it with unclean hands.

Sources:
Child and Youth Health (Feeding your baby), Raising Children Network (Bottle feeding: cleaning and sterilising equipment), Karitane (Bottle Feeding)

Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.

Last reviewed: September 2020


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Related pages

  • Expressing and storing breast milk
  • Making formula – dos and don'ts
  • Feeding your baby with formula
  • Breastfeeding your baby

Need more information?

Bottle-feeding: cleaning & sterilising | Raising Children Network

Bottle-feeding your baby? Find out what equipment you need – bottles, teats, rings and caps – plus how to clean and sterilise it all.