When can I stop sterilising bottles?

Why 12 months, when baby is eating off the floor by 8?

Fair question, and the answer is specific: milk. Formula (and expressed breast milk) is an ideal growth medium for bacteria in a way that solid food and toys aren't, and milk-feeding equipment has crevices — teats, valves, pump parts — where residue hides. The floor-licking your 9-month-old does is a different (lower) risk category than bacteria multiplying in milk residue at room temperature.

What needs sterilising, and what doesn't

• Until 12 months: bottles, teats, and pump parts — everything milk touches — after every use, washed first (sterilising doesn't clean).
• Weaning bowls and spoons: hot soapy water or the dishwasher is fine from the start of weaning.
• Dummies: sterilise in the early months; hot soapy water is reasonable once baby is mobile and sturdier.

After the first birthday

Thorough washing in hot soapy water or a dishwasher is enough. Keep the steriliser through any winter illness though — it's useful for a quick reset after a vomiting bug works through the house. Our steriliser guide compares steam, cold-water and prep machines.