Part of these responsibilities includes keeping their baby free from illness whenever possible, promoting growth, and aiding in their mental development. New parents have reason to worry about the health of their newborn.
Studies show that a baby has a higher risk of getting disease or illness since their immune system has not yet developed well enough to fight germs and viruses [1] .
A large part of keeping your child healthy is maintaining a clean environment, from a sanitized floor to their baby bottles. To accomplish this, new parents must research various products so that they make correct choices in all aspects of their baby’s care. Part of this process is choosing the best baby dish soap.
Still, you may be asking, why do I need a baby safe dish soap? Aren’t all soaps the same? A baby safe dish soap is a necessity. Conventional liquid soaps are sometimes full of potentially dangerous chemicals that can leave chemical traces behind your bottles, nipples, sippy cups, pump parts, and pacifiers
Even a little could mix into the formula or water, and be dangerous for your infant over time. Also, the potential danger of sucking on harsh chemicals left on the nipple exists.
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Related Best Baby Bottles In 2019 – By Price And Benefits
Why Organic Dish Soap For Baby Bottles Is Essential
Many parents look to glass bottles, as plastic bottles may contain potentially toxic ingredients. BPA, a common ingredient in many plastics, is one such toxic compound. BPA has been known to seep out of plastics, especially when exposed to high heat. Even in low amounts, BPA has been found to be dangerous, especially to infants and young children [2].
But, parents must be equally cautious about their dish soap for baby bottles, how they care for these bottles, and their parts as well. Dish soap for baby bottles fall under the category of personal care products. Since baby bottles come in direct contact with your infant, it’s necessary to understand the effects of cleaning products, especially dish soap for baby products.
In the U.S., personal care products are not regulated as they are for food products. For the former products, the terms “organic” and “natural” have no definition as set forth by the government.
A manufacturer can deem a product as an organic dish soap for baby bottles without a predetermined amount of natural ingredients in them. The natural ingredients can be inefficient also as a result of the manufacturing process.
So, how do discerning parents choose a truly safe soap for baby bottles? Manufacturers can have their products undergo voluntary testing through various accreditation processes.
Some of these are USDA Biopreferred, NSF Organic, Leaping Bunny, Vegan Certified, and EWG Verified. Each of these certification processes deals with the different ingredients and the processes they undergo to create the product.
Even with the accreditations above, how do you know you’re getting the very best baby bottle dish soap? MADE OF has taken this process a step further. In addition to the above certifications, all MADE OF baby products include the Ultimate Transparency Promise.
On their website, you can access their products, what ingredients they contain, where the ingredients are sourced, and where the end product is manufactured.
What Ingredients Are Harmful In Regular Baby Dish Soap?
It’s important to use organic dish soap for baby bottles from the onset as it can help you protect your baby’s skin and growing body. As a parent, you should always be careful when it comes to the ingredients contained in your baby bottle dish soap if you want a truly baby safe dish soap.
These are the harmful ingredients you should stay away from when looking for best baby dish soap:
Parabens
Ingredients ending in -paraben are under the class of substances that may adversely affect the endocrine glands. Parabens are preservatives added to extend the shelf life of consumer products. Scientists are researching whether they contribute to the growth of cancer and organ-system toxicity [3].
Fragrance
You will see the word “fragrance” in many product descriptions. Fragrance is an umbrella term that describes chemical formulas that are used for many skin care and baby products.
Manufacturers create scents by mixing chemicals. Consumers are often left in the dark as these formulas are hidden under the term of “trade secrets.” It’s not worth the potential health risk, just for ensuring that personal care products have a fresh scent.
Numbered dyes
Numbered food dyes that are used for adding coloring are synthetic substances. They can be potentially harmful and have been associated with cancer and behavioral problems in children, including hyperactivity [4].
Methylisothiazolinone and Methylchloroisothiazolinone
These substances serve as preservatives, as they inhibit the growth of bacteria. In dish soap, these compounds may be associated with allergies, lung toxicity, and possible neurotoxicity [5].
Formaldehyde and formaldehyde-releasing substances
These ingredients can be included when making personal care products, or they can be released during their manufacturing process.
Based on the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, Formaldehyde, imidazolidinyl urea, DMDM hydantoin, glyoxal, quaternium-15, polyoxymethylene urea, sodium hydroxymethylglycinate, 2-bromo-2-nitropropane-1, diazolidinyl urea and 3-diol (bronopol) are some of the ingredients to check and avoid when buying dishwasher baby bottle soap and other personal care products [6].
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate
Sodium Lauryl Sulfate is a common ingredient in bath and body care. It is the ingredient responsible for the foaming agent in many products. It also happens to be potentially harmful. SLS is often associated with skin irritation, impairment of organ systems, and weakening of the endocrine organs [7] .
Sodium Laureth Sulfate
Sodium Laureth Sulfate differs from Sodium Lauryl Sulfate in their processing. It is also a common ingredient used in many shampoos, soaps, detergents, and other products we expect to create a foam.
It has surfactants, a very effective foaming agent. With this chemical ingredient is a concern about potential skin irritation and deterioration of the organ system [8] .
Antibacterial agents
Benzalkonium chloride and triclosan are some of the antibacterial agents that are used in antibacterial soaps. These agents can remain on the baby bottles even after a thorough cleaning.
The FDA has been discouraging the use of antibacterial soaps since their benefits aren’t proven yet.
They are associated with long-term damaging health effects and also antibiotic-resistant microbes. Kids who have been exposed to triclosan were discovered to have a higher risk of hay fever, developing other allergies, and immune-related sensitivities [9].
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Looking For A Safe Baby Bottle Soap? Choose MADE OF Organic Baby Dish Soap
A product certified by NSF verifies that the item is at least 70% organic by dry weight. MADE OF Foaming Dish Soap is the best baby dish soap because it contains 81% natural ingredients which are certified by the NSF.
This makes it the perfect organic dish soap for babies. MADE Of Foaming Dish Soap is a gentle and pure alternative to the many different types of liquid soap on the market.
In addition to being an excellent organic dish soap for babies, MADE OF organic baby dish soap has these attributes:
Allergy-Free
There are no nuts, soy, nor any of the other top 8 allergens included in the making of this product.
Vegan and Non-GMO
All the ingredients used are vegan and non-GMO. There are no animal-based ingredients used in the product.
No harsh chemicals
MADE OF’s baby bottle dish soap doesn’t have sulfates, phthalates, parabens, or other synthetic ingredients.
As you can see, making baby safe dish soap is a process. Making baby safe dish soap is a process.
As mentioned earlier, they have made this job easier by not only voluntarily putting their products through multiple certification processes but by creating their brand-specific Ultimate Transparency Promise. Their organic dish soap for baby bottles is second to none.
How To Properly Sterilize Bottles With Organic Dish Soap For Baby Bottles
The reason why parents regularly sterilize baby bottles and other baby products is to kill the bacteria that remains after washing. While this has long been a part of the cleaning process, the CDC recommends that it is not needed every time.
However, you should sanitize new baby bottles after purchase to help get rid of germs that have long been sitting from the time of its manufacturing to shipping [10].
The CDC recommends the following way to wash baby bottles
- Gather 2 water containers that you use only for washing bottles.
- Wash your hands for 20 seconds.
- Take apart all individual bottle parts.
- Rinse thoroughly by holding the bottles under running water. Do NOT set them in the sink.
- Wash them in one of the clean containers that are used only for this purpose.
- Fill one container with hot water. Add dish soap.
- Scrub using a clean brush used only for this purpose.
- Squeeze water through nipple holes by hand.
- Rinse again under running water in a separate basin used only for this purpose.
- Allow air-drying on a paper towel. Protect from dirt and dust. (Do not pat dry with a dish towel as this can transfer germs.)
- Wash both containers. Brush well and allow to air dry after each use. Also, wash them every few days in the dishwater with hot water and a heated dry cycle.
Cleaning Baby Bottles in the Dishwasher
If the baby bottles are dishwasher-safe, they can be cleaned in the dishwasher. However, don’t assume all bottles are dishwasher safe, as high heat can cause baby bottles to leak chemicals into the formula.
Organic Dish Soap For Baby Bottles Resources:
[1] Cleveland Clinic; Is Your Newborn Baby’s Immune System Strong Enough?, Pregnancy & Childbirth, November 24, 2017.[2] Scientific American; Consumer Alert: Plastics in Baby Bottles May Pose Health Risk, David Biello, April 21, 2008.
[3] Campaign for SafeCosmetics; Parabens, A project Of Breast Cancer Prevention Partners.
[4] National Center for Biotechnology; Diet And Nutrition: The Artificial Food Dye Blues, Carol Potera, October 2010.
[5] Know your environment. Protect your health; Methylisothiazolinone.
[6] Breast Cancer Prevention Partners; Personal Care Products, 2004.
[7] Know your environment. Protect your health; Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, 2007.
[8] Know your environment. Protect your health; Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, 2007.
[9] National Center for Biotechnology; Benzalkonium cholide, benzethonium chloride, and chloroxylenol – Three replacement antimicrobials are more toxic than triclosan and triclocarban in two mode organisms, Sreevidya VS, Lenz KA, Svoboda KR, Ma H2, 2017.
[10] Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; How to Clean, Sanitize, and Store Infant Feeding Items.
