Steam steriliser be gone forever (Mothercare Steriliser Bottles)

Member Name: wishywalshy

Product:	Mothercare Steriliser Bottles
Date:	07/02/03 (3273 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Convenient, easy to use and clean, time saving, no chemicals, great for travelling

Disadvantages: Difficult to remove cap, Teat and screwcap will not independently sit in the lid, A bit expensive to start, but ecomical in the long run

Babies wide neck bottles capable of accommodating up to 9oz of liquid(That?s just under 260ml in English)
Made of clear plastic and supplied with silicone teats, clip on lids and screw tops.

With a difference???????.
These bottles can be independently sterilized in the microwave.(Although they can be sterilized by all other methods too.)
Sold by Mothercare in double packs for 5.99 and six pack at 19.99.

As a sucker for new innovative ideas and products I couldn?t help but be drawn to these ingenious bottles.
Fed up with the space that my conventional steam sterilizer takes up, and the constant dribble from the lid onto the worktops, I decided that there had to be a cleaner and quicker option, which could save valuable space in my shoebox for a kitchen.

I had bought a double pack for a friend at work who had nothing but praise for them.
Edens arrival meant it was time to practice what I was preaching.
Having always been a big fan of Avent bottles I was slightly dubious about changing over.
I have used them with my other 4 daughters why would I want to change now.

I was fortunate enough to buy 5 Mothercare sterilizer bottles for a tenner from ebay and waited anxiously for their arrival.
As promised they duly appeared, complete with instructions.

To the untrained eye they just resemble standard wide necked bottles with the only tell tale sign of their uniqueness is the small chart on the side giving time and quantity details.
These can be used in any microwave from 450-1100 watt, and really are child?s play.

There are real benefits to steam sterilizing baby?s items instead of the traditional chemical method.
The chemical method apart from being smelly and time consuming leaves chemical traces on the items which then all need rinsing in boiling water.
There is also a financial benefit to steam sterilizing whether using a steamer or the microwave, there are no tablets or liq
uid to buy.

Steam quickly and effectively removes the bacteria that can cause gastric problems, leaving no smell or taste and requiring no rinsing.
It is recommended that babies feeding equipment is sterilized until they are a year old, however this a point for debate as too meticulous cleaning and sterilizing prevents a babies gut building up immunity and had on occasion been attributed to repeat bouts of gastroenteritis.
When to stop sterilizing is a personal choice.

These bottles are extremely easy to use following the comprehensive instructions supplied by Mothercare.

After thorough cleaning and washing the bottles can be sterilized in record time.(And yes they are extremely easy to clean, no nasty little nooks and crannies for old milk to be trapped in.
They have a larger than average tough plastic lid which has a fill level moulded into the side preventing over/under fill (about 30ml I think 1oz).
To use you simply place the screw cap and teat into the prefilled lid and snap the bottle (upside-down) onto it until it clicks shut and voila ready to sterilize.
Follow the time instructions on the side of the bottle (Which are conveniently printed the right way up, so you don?t have turn your prepared bottles upside-down again and spill the contents.)
Simply place you bottles into the microwave and ZAP in less 6.5 minutes you have 6 sterile bottles.
It takes only 1.5 minutes for one.(Perfect if like me you find yourself caught on the hop with a howling starving baby, and not a prepared bottle in sight)

Cautionary note.
Steam sterilizing makes your bottles and teats really really hot, unless you have asbestos fingers do not attempt to remove them until they cool,(Or until the howling becomes a blood curdling scream, then if you really must get them out, use gloves or something sensible).
There is a convenient lip on the robust lid, (which doubles a substantial feeding cup for later on
) ens
uring that you can actually remove the lid (which by now has suctioned itself to the bottle).

The markings are nice and clear and easy to read in both ounces and milliliters, and the bottle has a nice shape which sits easily in your hand.
Almost any wide neck teat will fit, and currently I have a combination of Mothercares own, Avent variflow, and Avent disposable, Eden is not bothered which teat she has, they all fit nice and snuggly without leaks and all have good seals.

Ater the bottle is made there is no spillage in the lid laying in wait unlike many other brands.
They seem to be robust and made of sturdy plastic.

Teeny tongs are supplied, but I found these more of a nuisance than a help.

I did however discover a couple of slight drawbacks with these, they are really difficult bottles to undo single handed, in fact nigh on impossible unless you have thighs to crack nuts with, so that you can wedge it between them whilst you use every inch of your strength just to get the damn lid off.
And the teat and screw top does not fit onto the lid independently, quite a nuisance when making 5 bottles.

These are also sterilisable by all other conventional methods.

Eden?s dummies also fit nicely into the bottles, and can be sterilized in half the time.
As well as superb for use at home, they are extremely practical for traveling and ideal for spares at nannies etc.


I feel that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages by far and would thoroughly recommend these bottles for any new mum.
They may seem a little expensive at the outset, but these eliminate the need for bulky sterilizers and smelly solutions that stain your clothes given the first opportunity.

Out with the Avent, in with the Mothercare
Steam sterilizer be gone forever.

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