As advised by the NHS it is important to sterilise all your baby's feeding equipment, including bottles and teats, until they're at least 12 months old. This will protect your baby against infections, in particular diarrhoea and vomiting.

Before sterilising, you need to:

• Clean bottles, teats, and other feeding equipment in hot, soapy water as soon as possible after feeds.
• Use a clean bottle brush to clean bottles (only use this brush for cleaning bottles), and a small teat brush to clean the inside of teats. You can also turn teats inside out then wash them in hot soapy water. Do not use salt to clean teats, as this can be dangerous for your baby.
• Rinse all your equipment in clean, cold running water before sterilising. After washing, sterilise your equipment by placing it in boiling water for around five minutes.

Alternatively, you can use an electric or microwave steam steriliser, a UV Steriliser or a traditional cold-water steriliser, but please read the manufacturer's instructions.

Once everything has been sterilised it's best to leave bottles and teats in the steriliser or pan until you need them.

If you do take them out, put the teats and lids on the bottles straight away.

Wash and dry your hands before handling sterilised equipment or, better still, use some sterile tongs.

Assemble the bottles on a clean, disinfected surface or the upturned lid of the steriliser. If you would like a little more information, then we would suggest taking a look at our blog - here