No matter how clean you keep your home, bacteria and germs will still find its way. If you have small babies at home, then you need to be extra careful as they are more vulnerable to attack by germs. It is very important to take care of babies who are bottle fed as they are more prone to infection. But, what is the best way to clean their bottles efficiently? Sterilizer is the ultimate solution.

What Are the Different Types of Baby Sterilizer?

There are 3 types of sterilizers available in the market- Cold Water, Electric and Microwave.

• Cold Water Sterilizer- This is the most preferred method to clean bottles owing to its cheap cost. All you need is a special cold-water unit, strong plastic tub or a bucket with a lid. The sterilizing tablets or liquids are added to the water and then the bottles are submerged in the water for about 15-30 minutes. One of the biggest advantages of using a cold-water sterilizer is that it can be carried along as there is requirement for electricity.
• Electric Steam Sterilizer-They are used to clean baby bottles and other accessories like breast pump. As the name suggests, steam is used to kill germs and bacteria. The sterilizer is plugged in to the electric supply and as the water heats, steam is generated, and this sterilizes the items that are inside it. One can sterilize around 5-6 bottles at a time depending on the brand. Even though it is bulky, it is very easy to use and gives good results.
• Microwave Sterilizer- Just like electric steam sterilizer, this also uses steam to sterilize bottles and breast pump. This equipment need not be plugged into the electric supply. Instead, bottles need to be kept inside the microwave. This is smaller than electric sterilizer, hence cannot hold many bottles at a time. It is bulky, but it takes up less space than an electric sterilizer. Like electric sterilizers, microwave sterilizer also does the job quickly and is easy to clean.

Factors to Consider While Buying A Sterilizer

When it comes to buying a baby sterilizer, there are many hundreds of options available in the market. You can choose between cold water, electric or a microwave sterilizer. Each of the type comes with its own pros and cons, so here are some factors to consider while purchasing a sterilizer.

• Capacity: Decide how many bottles you want to sterilize at a time. Do you want a bigger sterilizer that can clean many bottles at once or you want a smaller one? Based on your needs, you can choose a sterilizer that best suits you in terms of capacity to hold the bottles.
• Portability: Are you a person who often travels with your baby? If yes, then it is best recommended to go for a sterilizer that is small and light weight for easy portability at the same time it should be affordable too.
• Kitchen space: Some parents might want sterilizers that do not occupy too much space on their kitchen counters. If your kitchen is spacious, this not be a problem for you. But if you do not have too much space in your kitchen, then a bulky sterilizer is not the best option for you.
• Ease of use: In today’s fast paced life, everyone prefers an item that is simple and easy to operate. Electric sterilizers are often easy to use, but with so many advanced features, it can be quite confusing for a person to operate. So, look for the options in the market and shortlist the one that is easy for you to operate single handedly.
• Drying feature: Even though microwave sterilizers sterilize quickly, the bottles remain wet. So, if you are using a microwave sterilizer, you need to dry them after removing from the microwave. Isn’t that too much of a work? Look for sterilizers that come with the drying feature so that it can decrease your work load and clean and dry your bottles efficiently too.

Getting the best bottle sterilizer will ensure your kids to remain healthy and safe from the variety of germs.