- October 13, 2020
- MKB Team
How to choose the best baby bottle sterilizer
All of these come with a promise of good health for your precious baby!
Buying a sterilizer for baby bottles is often seen as an extravaganza. What is all the fuss behind these bottle sterilizers? Are they even that important?
Isn’t cleaning baby bottles with soap and water and boiling it in a vessel on stovetop enough for sterilization? Well, yes and no. Yes, because it is very inexpensive. No, because-
- It is time-consuming. Time is something you are always short of when a new human has entered and dominates your responsibility zone.
- You could spill boiling water on yourself while taking out the bottle in a haste (which could happen often when a hungry baby is around). Always in a rush is your new normal.
- The bottles are often not evenly sterilized, which takes away from the ‘clean bottle, healthy baby’ goal.
Unsterilized bottles can be a breeding ground for bacteria resulting in frequent stomach infection, diarrhoea and vomiting in babies. Once the baby develops an infection from having a portion of food, they develop an aversion to that particular food, and you will have to find a new formula brand that the baby might like. Not an easy task, mom! And we know, with everything overwhelming you, you don’t need another task on your already occupied hands.
Moreover, if you are a working mom and if you depend heavily on bottles for feeding, investing in a steam sterilizer is the best bet for your little one’s health and safety. Mainly because steam sterilizers kill a whopping 99.9% of germs.
Now, if you’re curious about buying a steam steriliser, we’ve put together a list of the best ones available in the market. Not just that, we also took the time out to talk to a bunch of working moms who use steam sterilizers, read reviews and researched online and went to the stores in an attempt to make this list. Here are the parameters that we took into consideration to put together this list.
Features
We considered the product features like capacity, ease of use and safety for rating the products. If your child is completely bottle-fed, you might need as much as 6-8 bottles a day. Working moms might also have to sterilize breast pumps. Once the baby starts weaning, bowls, spoons will also have to be sterilized. So, ample space was a priority.
Time consumed, safety and maintenance are other aspects also factored in.
Price
Electric steam sterilizers are available in the price range of Rs.1000 up to Rs. 16,000. But we have considered only those models in the price range of 1000 to 8000 because we found that moms prefer an economical option as the product is usually used just for a year or two.
MKB PRO TIPS
- As water quality is an important factor for all steam sterilizers, use filtered/bottled water.
- Check the heating coil of sterilizer and clean it by soaking it overnight in a mixture of water and vinegar every 2 weeks or as frequently as scaling appears.
- A frequent remark by customers who buy sterilizers is that “the cord is ridiculously small.” But, products like kettle and sterilizers are designed this way for safety purposes. Long cords can hang down from table tops and may result in serious injuries if your baby pulls it and the device topples down.
- Don’t limit the use of sterilizer to just disinfection. Most of the sterilizers can be used for warming and steaming food. But do ensure that you clean the sterilizer properly after use.
SO LET’S GET TO THE TOP 5 WINNERS IN OUR BEST STERILIZERS COMPETITION!
1. Philips Avent 3 in 1 Electric Steam Sterilizer
Why do moms love it?
- At a time, it can sterilize 6 bottles, breast pump, nipples, bottle lids, teethers and small toys.
- Can be used to sterilize plastic, glass as well as metal.
Features :
Philips Avent 3 in 1 steam sterilizer is the top seller across India. As it comes in adjustable sizes, you can sterilize smaller items like soothers, teethers, medium-sized objects like breast pump, cutleries, cups and bowl and large objects like feeding bottles all together or each independently. Being pretty spacious, you can sterilize up to 6 x 330ml bottles at a time- both narrow neck as well as wide neck. We moms are usually a tad forgetful. So, the automatic cut off comes to our rescue and shuts itself off after completing the sterilization process (which usually takes 6 minutes). As the coil is open, cleaning is also pretty easy.
Philips claims that the bottles remain sterilized for up to 24 hours if kept inside the sterilizer with lids closed.
2. Chicco Sterilizer 2 in 1
Why do moms love it?
It is safe , fast & effective.
Features :
This amazing sterilizer has made it to our list because of the many advantages. It can hold 5-6 bottles at a time. It operates from a single button, making it a fuss-free choice for a new mom. Besides, it uses 100 % natural pure steam to sterilize and uses no chemicals. Since it is an electrical sterilizer, you don’t need to boil the bottles on a gas stove for hours. The biggest plus point is that Chicco Natural 2 in 1 Sterilizer is so tall that it can sterilize the bottles of all sizes. It can be adjusted in 2 different sizes, making it travel-friendly. As long as the cap is closed, the objects will remain disinfected.
3. Dr Brown's Deluxe Bottle Sterilizer
Why do moms love it?
Simple and easy, two-button operation. The steamer begins to sterilize right at the press of the button.
Features :
This special Sterilizer has electronic controls with cycle indicators plus an auto shut-off when the cycle is complete. The removable tray is designed to position bottles so steam is directed in each bottle. The built-in accessory tray holds bottle parts, nipples and even pacifiers.
This sterilizer also includes tongs and measuring cup and features attractive new grey and white design. Dr Brown's bottles are made of BPA-free polypropylene plastic or BPA-free borosilicate glass.
4. Trumom Microwave Steam Sterilizer
Why do moms love it?
- Economic compared to other brands that offer the same capacity.
- Can fit 6 bottles or 4 feeding bottles and 2 breast shields.
Features :
Trumom microwave steam sterilizer can hold 6 regular and wide-mouth bottles or 4 bottles and 2 breast shields at a time and is yet compact enough to fit inside most microwave ovens. The sterilizer also features a locking tab to prevent accidental spilling.
5. Philips Avent Microwave steam sterilizer
Why do moms love it?
- Quick and economic.
- It is very handy and convenient while travelling.
Features :
The best thing about Philips Avent Microwave Steam Sterilizer is that it is pretty quick. It takes just 2-6 minutes to sterilize and keeps the objects sterile for 24 hours provided you do not open the lid.
It can fit practically any microwave oven. But the problem with this model is that if you do not have a microwave oven or if your oven breaks down, your sterilizer too will be pretty much defunct. At a time, you can sterilize up to 4 bottles and its accessories. This is one of the few sterilizers presently available in the market that has safety clips.
Sterilizers are useful for babies, to ensure that nothing gets in the way of their wholesome nourishment. We hope this guide is of help for you in picking the best one for your home! Do you have any name to add that we might have missed? Enlighten us in the comments below!
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