MAM bottle users know that the best way of cleaning their baby feeders is self-sterilising. There are a few methods to achieve germ-free MAM bottles, but we will focus on how to sterilise MAM bottles in the microwave.
The process is straightforward, but there are a few precautions you need to take every time you decide to self-sterilize the MAM anti-colic bottles.
Especially, with microwave sterilization, heat handling remains the top concern. So, before moving to the process of microwave sterilization of MAM bottles, let’s see if it is safe to do so.
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Is it Safe to Microwave MAM Bottles?
Yes, it is safe to microwave MAM bottles. Polypropylene (PP) is used to manufacture MAM bottles, and this type of plastic is moderately heat resistant, rigid, and strong. In ideal conditions, a microwave can heat up to 100°C after which it will start burning the object being heated inside. Luckily, MAM bottles can withstand that heat due to their sturdy nature.
Moreover, PP is non-reactive to the skin, and it doesn’t emit any harmful radiation that affects the environment. Therefore, sterilizing the MAM bottles in the microwave is completely safe.
Apart from the plastic parts, the second material a MAM anti-colic bottle uses is silicone. The teats of MAM bottles are made up of food-grade silicone — a material that doesn’t react with other materials that it comes in contact with and which is highly heat-resistant.
MAM bottles use a special kind of silicone (Skinsoft) which is softer than normal silicone, but microwave-safe. So, a MAM bottle is completely safe to go inside the microwave for sterilization.
The same type of material is used to microwave soup and other foods safely. The only thing you need to take care of is handling the recently sterilized bottles which can cause burns if not handled through protection to the hands.
How To Sterilise MAM Bottles in the Microwave
To convert an anti-colic MAM bottle, you need to disassemble the bottle in three simple steps.
- Open the protective cover of the bottle.
- Unscrew the nipple from the screw ring.
- Open the silicone valve of the base.
- When you get done with the disassembly, the first step is to clean each part thoroughly. For that, you need tap water and soap.
- Make a mixture of both and thoroughly wash each part of the MAM Anti-Colic bottle before putting it through the sterilization process in the microwave.
- Rinse every part with clean, tap water. After you are done with the washing part, you can start the sterilization process.
Process of Sterilizing MAM Bottles in the Microwave
- For sterilization, measure 20 ml of tap water (using the protective cap of the MAM bottle) and pour it into the silicone base.
- Place the teat and then the screw ring of the nipple on top of the base. Make sure to tighten it to avoid spillage from the base.
- Place the body of the MAM bottle on top of the base and then put the protective cover on the body.
- Put the reassembled bottle inside the microwave for three minutes if you are sterilizing only one MAM bottle at a time.
Special Instructions
- Keep in mind that as the number of bottles increases, you need to increase the microwave minutes.
- Once get done with the sterilisation process, make sure to use a cloth or a kitchen glove to remove the MAM bottle(s) from the microwave as they can cause a burn due to high temperature.
- It’s better to wait for the bottle to cool down inside the microwave, then remove it.
- After removing the bottle from the microwave, discard the water poured into the base of the bottle and store the MAM bottle in a cool, dry place to avoid contamination.
- Never tilt a MAM bottle when taking it out of the microwave because it will cause hot water spillage.
- After sterilisation, do not touch the nipple with bare hands, instead handle the teat with the screw ring only.
- If you notice smoke coming from the microwave, you’ve probably had the MAM bottle in too long. Turn the microwave off at the switch and let it cool.
Can You Sterilise More Than One MAM Bottle in the Microwave?
Yes, you can microwave more than one MAM bottle in the microwave at once. However, for every additional MAM bottle inside the microwave, make sure to increase the timer by one minute.
So, starting with three minutes for a single bottle, you can go up to eight minutes of microwave sterilization for six bottles, because six is the maximum number of MAM bottles that you can microwave sterilize at once.
How to Stack MAM Bottles in The Microwave
MAM bottles need to be disassembled and then stacked in a particular order before getting inside the microwave. Unscrew the silicone base and then pour 20 ml of water through the protective cap inside the base.
Put the teat secured inside the screw ring on the base, followed by the bottle body and the cap on top of all the parts.
How Long to Sterilise MAM Bottles in The Microwave?
A single MAM bottle needs to be sterilized in the microwave for three minutes. But, when you’re adding more bottles in the microwave, increase a minute of heating with every additional bottle.
This way, you can go up to eight minutes if you’re sterilizing six bottles at a time (six is the maximum number of MAM bottles that you can sterilize in a microwave at one point in time.
Sterilise MAM Bottles Without Microwave
Although microwave sterilization for MAM anti-colic bottles is handy, there are other methods too such as:
- Boiling water sterilization
- Electric sterilization
- Cold water sterilization using chemicals.
Boiling water sterilization uses a pot of boiling water in which you submerge the MAM anti-colic bottles after disassembling them. The method requires boiling the bottles for at least ten minutes while ensuring that none of the bottle parts touches the hot walls or base of the pan.
The second method is electric sterilization which requires you to set up an electric sterilizer and stack the MAM bottles in it. MAM offers its electric sterilizer that allows up to six MAM bottles inside depending on the size of the bottle.
The third method is cold water sterilization which you can carry out by making a solution of a sterilizing liquid or a sterilizing tablet in cold water.
Submerging the bottles in the solution and taking them out after fifteen minutes will make the MAM bottles germ-free. However, do not forget to follow the manufacturer’s instructions for these chemical sterilizers before using them.
