Warming Botttles

We always used the microwave with my daughters bottles. As long as you don't put the nipple or the insert in the microwave, you are fine. The nipple will get too hot and the formula in the insert boils in a few seconds. So just take all parts out, warm it up, shake with a lid on, then insert the insert and screw on the nipple. Always test before feeding.

I have a seperate plastic cup of water. I microwave it for a minute and then place my bottle in that.

The microwave as others have said... hot spots, BPA issues and messing up the nutrients of the formula.

HTH

i did that also and nothing bad ever happened......i also warmed them by running them under hot water, when i didnt want to go as far as the kitchen....lol

my kids are 24, 14 and 11 and their still breathing and going strong.....

good luck!
H.

I warmed water in the microwave, and then place the bottle in it to warm up the formula. Then I read that cold formula doesn't cause problems for babies. Some just don't like it. So if it's driving you crazy, see if your little one likes it cold. If yes, one less thing to do, if no, then back to warming :)

Hi C.,
The issue with warming a bottle in the microwave is the uneven temperature through out the milk when you're done... in other words "hot" spots that could burn your babies mouth. Also, there's the issue with the plastic "leaking" chemical into the milk while being microwaved. I used to heat the milk in a glass measuring cup and then stir it good (to break up any hot spots)then pour into the bottle.
Hope this helps!
K.

Hi C.,

I only used microwaves with warming my babies bottles but only for 25-30 seconds which made the milk just warm enough for him and always test it on your wrist first after shaking really good!
Oh, I also only heated the water first, then added the formula and don't put the nipple on the bottle while it's heating.
I've never had any problems using a microwave, just make sure it's never overheat the formula and always test on your wrist first!
Take Care!

Hi,

I think the issue is with the plastic releasing some kind of harmful toxins in the microwave. To be honest, I warmed bottles for 4 babies now aged 23 to 6 and they have all survived unharmed. Let's be honest, at 2 in the morning are you gonna warm it quickly or what?! As long as you shake it after warming to distribute the warmth evenly, I think your child will be ok. Unless, of course you already have a health issue where you need to take extra precautions. Of course, this is only one mothers' opinion, but mine all survived!

B.

i used the munchkin bottle warmer and it took 5-10 seconds to warm and i think the microwave warming is not to safe with warming the milk in area way to fast than others

MICROWAVES ARE A HUGE NONONONONONONONONO!!!!! The milk, like everything else you put in the microwave can get " Hot SPOTS" which will burn your childs mouth, it may not feel hot on the outside, but it really HURT your baby.

The issue with warming up bottles in the microwave is that they can cause "hot spots".....where a spot of formula may be much hotter than other places in the bottle. If you use a microwave to warm, be sure to shake the bottle very well afterwards to have a uniform temperature so that you won't scald the baby's mouth and throat.

First of all, it creates extremely hot areas or "hot spots" and others are left cold! These hot spots can be hidden and can burn your babie's mouth!

Secondly, it kills some of the nutrients, especially in breast milk (if you nurse)!

And thirdly, the worst is BAD, BAD, BAD!!!!!!!!!

Are your bottles made of the NEW carcenagen (sp?) free/bisphenol A (bpa)-free plastic like "Born Free" bottles? If you didn't buy them within the last 6 mos. and they didn't explecity say "bpa FREE", they are NOT, and I am suspecting they are not. If this is the case, EVERY TIME YOU WARM THE BOTTLE IN THE MICRO, DISH WASHER, or OTHER WARMING METHOD THAT RELEASES GREAT SPOUTS OR AMOUNTS OF HEAT YOU ARE RELEASING TOXINS THAT WILL LEACH INTO THE FORMULA/MILK/JUICE!!!! Canada and most European countries have banned this substance from use at least for small children and admit that it is toxic but here in Good Ole USA, they still haven't banned it (though many products are free of it now in infant bottles as of the last couple of mos.)! It is found in almost all clear plastic.

But just for safety precautions, you should NEVER heat a plastic bottle full of toxins with any "power" heat source to avoid toxin leaching and the break-down of the plastic

Granted it has been three years since I needed a bottle, so I am not up to date on name brands, but the original reason for not nuking the bottles, was due to "hot" spots in the milk, and it could scald the baby. Also, bottle liner type bottles, the liners do not hold up to microwave heating as well as a conventional bottle. I have heard tale of it killing the good bacteria in the milk and formula, and of the plastic leaching toxins into the milk, but like I said, those are tales I heard, my kids are quite normal, and exceptionally healthy, even though I nuked their formula. If you are truly concerned, a crockpot, filled 1/4 up with water, set on low, and this heats a bottle quite nicely, although not as quickly.

There has been a new study released recently reaffirming the risk of exposure to BPA, which is unfortunately in many bottles, including Dr. Browns that aren't brand new. Microwaving, or any other high heating, increases this exposure. I also second (third, fourth) the advice about hot spots and nutrient loss. For whatever it's worth, we pretty quickly weaned our daughter from the need to have warmed bottles. It was wonderful not to have to worry about it when we were out and about. She would often even take them straight from the fridge! Not the easiest thing to do - I think we were lucky in that we just stopped bothering and she didn't mind.

Not sure if you are heating Breastmilk or formula, but either way there is going to be a loss of vitamins. Much more if you are heating BM than forumla.

Also, the milk can heat unevenly and be too hot even after being shaken.

The issue is that it can get 'hot-spots' where the formula doesn't heat evenly, and can potentially burn your baby. That being said, we too would microwave for about 10-15 seconds, just to take the chill off (we were using breast milk kept in the fridge). I used the Ventaire bottles, and we would just shake them really well to mix the milk, and we never had any problems. I would definitely test it first to be sure though.

i think a big issue now with warming the bottles (besides hot spots) in the microwave is BPA. if you have the new dr. browns glass or polypropylene plastic then they are BPA free but the polycarbonate plastic bottles Do contain BPA. if they are not BPA free then you may want to beware of warming them.

Hi C., there is no problem with microwaving bottles as long as you shake them or stir them really well after you take them out. The microwave can make hot spots in the formula that would burn the babies mouth and throat, by mixing them up good it prevents this.

I say, as long as you shake it up well and test the temperature, I think you're fine. 15 seconds is a reasonably small amount of time.

Nothing! They say to warm bottles in boiling water cause it warms it more evenly and when you micorwave it, it has a tendency to just heat the milk on top. My daughter is now 3 1/2 and I have always microwaved them. Just make sure to shake it up real well when done. And I know, she should not have bottles, but she has them in the morning and before bed. Good luck!

I use the microwave. We use BPA free Avent bottles and do not put the nipple in there. Plus, we only do it for 10-15 seconds at a time - and give it a REALLY good shake after (to prevent hot spots) and always test it before giving it to the baby. I found our bottle warmer was not consistent and overheated the bottle far more than the microwave!

I always did! The deal with the microwave is un-even warming of the milk. As long as you shake it up to distrubte the heat... My kids turned out just fine!

There is an issue with leaching from the plastic. They think that it can cause cancer, diabetes and other health issues later on. Also, the microwave does not heat evenly. There could be "hot spots" in the milk that are undetected just by touch; and could burn. The best thing to do is warm water in a cup in the microwave, then put the bottle in the hot water. It should warm pretty quickly.

If you warm a bottle in the microwave the middle getts warmer than the outside. Then, noramly people shake the bottle up. This will mix up the formula and get rid of the hot spot but it also will cause the baby to have gas too. Never heat up breast milk because it will zap the good stuff the baby needs. Also, if you leave the nipple on the bottle, it will mess it up and make some of them sticky or gooey. Some people use a crockpot to warm the bottles. This works great if you know about when your baby is going to eat next. You can get a head of the game and have it ready before or by the time your baby is ready to eat.

The only problem with it is that formula in the bottle can get too hot very quickly - just be sure to check the formula by dropping a few drops on the inside of your wrist before giving it to your baby.

Our pediatrician gave us good advice on the issue of bottle warming before we even brought the baby home from the hospital. Don't do it - it isn't necessary. The baby doesn't know the difference until you start doing it and they develop a preference for it. If using formula, use lukewarm tap water to get the benefits of fluoride. If a bottle is really cold from being in the refrigerator, microwaving is not recommended. On the rare occasion that I had to warm up a bottle, I ran hot water over it or dropped it into a large plastic glass of hot water for a minute.

With loss of nutrients, hot spots and BPA issues, I didn't microwave bottles. I just put them in some hot water for 10 minutes or so before feeding. My daughter wouldn't drink them cold, but if they will it won't hurt them. Once we switched over to formula, I just kept my Britta pitcher out on the counter and used that water to mix it. Then it was room temp, and there was no need to warm.

C.,
IF I am not mistaken, by heating your bottles in the microwave, you are not only heating up the milk, but the plastic bottle as well. When you do this, it will release toxins/chemicals into the milk, that are in the plastic bottle. It is just not safe to heat up the bottle. If you need to, pour the milk into a coffee cup or another type of cup...heat the milk...then pour the milk back into the the bottle. This way, would probably be safer practices.

I think I remember reading that the big thing was uneven heating in the microwave which could burn the baby's mouth/throat.

C.~
I agree w/the others about the hot spot issue. I also use an Avent bottle warmer. It is great. We just keep it on the counter and turn it on when we need. Very low maintenance.

N.

I'm not sure what the problems with the bottles is, but I do know that heating the formula and especially breast milk in the microwave breaks down the nutrients in the milk. Also, heating milk in the microwave also causes hot spots which can also be an issue. Hope this helped.
Amadna

Hi C.!
I think plastic has some kind of reaction in the microwave, and possibly, nutrients are lost in the warming up process. What we do is measure in the bottles, then transfer to a mug and warm up in those. For formula, if we're using room temperature water, sometimes we don't even heat it up - depends how fussy the little guy is at the time. Hope that helps.
-Christina

It's not safe. The milk/formula could be "hot" in parts and "warm" in others. It heats unevenly.

I used an Avent bottle warmer and it was great and quick. OR you can do it the old fashioned way and put the bottle in some warm water and heat it that way.

Microwaves dont heat evenly one part can be scolding hot and the other part can be cold. Use a bottle warmer, or have your water room temp.

I mostly breastfeed and if I pump, I don't use the microwave b/c it kills the antibodies in the milk. But I always heat formula for just a bit in the microwave. I think the issue is "hot spots" but if you shake it a bit those would even out - and 15 secs probably doesn't even make any. I also use Dr Browns but I take all the stuff out and lay it on a napkin and just put the bottle and formula or water for the formula in. Good luck!

1. Hot spots - the microwave doesn't warm easily, and parts of formula that feel almost cool can be near boiling. You can avoid this hazard by warming the water, then adding the formula, then shaking like a crazy person.

2. Chemical leakage - I don't remember what the chemical is, but microwaving the plastic bottle (or drying it in the dishwasher's high heat drying cycle) damages the plastic and causes this chemical to leach into the formula. It was found by a researcher who was using the bottles to water rats, who all got kidney cancer. It was linked back to the chemical, found to be leaking out of the bottle.

S.

I see that you have had plenty of responses to your question:) I can not emphasize enough how bad the microwave is to use. I work for a Dr. in cancer research and there has been many articles confirming the danger of microwaving and heating up plastic; there is a harmful chemical that is released from plastic when it is heated up and it is linked to cancer. The microwave also kills all of the nutrients in any food. Lukewarm or just sitting the bottle down in a cup of hot water is fine.
I know there is plenty of kids that have turned out just fine w/ microwaved bottles. Cancer is also a horrible disease and hits all ages and although a lot of things are blamed for it, why take a chance.