Hi there. We saved the bottles (not the nipples) from our youngest child who was born in 2007. We are pregnant with baby # 3 and plan on resuing the bottles but my neighbor said she had to replace all her bottles when she had her son in 2009 b/c of the plastic used to make the bottles. We have AVENT and we purchased them in 2005 (with our first son) and purchased some extra bottles in 2007 when we had our daughter. Does anyone know if they need to be replaced?
Thank you!
Thank you for all the great information! After just a few replies we decided it is better to be safe than sorry. Thanks again!!
I am not sure if there was a recall, but i know plastic degrades. 2005 was a long time ago. And those bottles would not be BPA free. I would replace them.
I don't think they were actually recalled but the company switched to a BPA free plastic as did most other bottle manufacturers. It's a judgement call on your part, but I guess I'd go with better safe then sorry.
Good luck with your 3rd,
K.
Hi Jessica,
You should replace them and here's why. I work on research related to BPA. If you're old bottles have BPA in them (you know by the recycling number on the bottle as R.M. said) every time they are heated, be it by warm water or the dishwasher, the BPA is leached from the plastic. BPA is an estrogen like compound so it affects organs that are sensitive to estrogen, including reproductive and neourological systems. It is almost impossible to avoid exposure to BPA, for either you or your little one, but taking steps to limit exposure, especially during development, is only going to help you child be healthy.
Please don't be alarmed by this, as there are still a lot of unknown questions regarding BPA exposure, but I would strongly encourage you to switch to BPA free bottles.
BTW, all US manufacturers have stopped using BPA in baby bottles.
L. M.
Look at the number on the bottom of the bottle. Don't use #'s 3, 6, and 7. If they are #'s 1, 2, 4, or 5, then they are probably ok. You might want to call the companies and find out if they were PBA free.
Also, you never should heat food in plastic, that includes formula. Heat it in glass then put it in the bottle. Plastic shouldn't be heated (microwave, dishwasher, etc...). Glass bottles are the best for your baby. You don't say if you're using them for pumped breastmilk or formula, I assume you know that you shouldn't microwave breastmilk at all if you pump.
Here's info about formula and heating it:
Almost all powdered infant formula is contaminated with a bacteria called Enterobacter sakazakii. This bacteria is responsible for infection and death in babies. It is a bacteria that is found in most all of the powdres out there.... jello, suaces, just about anything that comes in a powder can contain it. The problem is that it doesn't adversly affect adults, at least not often, but it is very very very harmful to babies!!! The only way to protect your baby from this contaminant, one of many, is to heat the water you use to mi your formula to at least 150 degrees... prior to feeding. This must be done with each bottle then cooled to appropriate feeding temps.
Also do not pre-mix bottles and store them in the refrigerator for future use. Please mix each bottle according to this guideline and feed immediately.
I may be wrong, but I don't think they have passed any laws against using BPA in baby products yet. They are trying to, but I don't think it has happened. I think Avent was doing a voluntary exchange at one point, I would check with Babies R Us for info about that. Personally I would not use BPA bottles. Chances are yours do have BPA in them.
This website can tell you which ones don't now, I'm not sure about if they will say if the item used to have it or not. http://www.zrecsguide.com/
If your bottles have recycling symbols on them, you can also tell by that. #2, 4, 5 are the good numbers, I believe, #7 is the worst. Here is an article about that: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Avoid-BPA-in-Baby-Bottles-...
You don't HAVE to replace them. It is still up for debate whether BPA and pthalates are dangerous. I choose to avoid whenever possible to be safe. The amounts of harmful chemicals in our systems builds up so even avoiding them sometimes is helpful, in my opinion. And I agree that was quite a while ago and plastic breaks down. I used Playtex drop ins and the liners are BPA free.
I too had Avent from my 2005 baby. I replaced them with the new Avent bottles that are now BPA free. Babies r us was giving some sort of discount for exchanging bottles, but I don't know if they still are doing that.
I personally felt that if all companies were changing to BPA free, there must be some merit to it.
Good luck.
I agree with the others that you should go ahead and replace them. My first was born in 2005 and my Avents from then are not BPA free. I bought new BPA-free bottles last year for my baby. I feel there is enough research to show that we should try to limit exposure to BPA. Best wishes!
