In the case of breastfed babies as well as babies who drink artificial milk, there are times when the milk must be heated. If the baby is crying, the temptation is always to use the fastest method, which is microwave, although its use is discouraged whether we talk about breast milk or if we talk about artificial milk.
Why heat artificial milk?
It is likely that many of you are wondering why heat artificial milk, if once prepared it is given to the baby and what is left over must be thrown away. The answer you have in this post in which we tell you a few days ago that the most recommended way to prepare a bottle is when the water is at a temperature between 70 and 90ºC, because tin powder is not sterile and sometimes it can contain pathogens that, in premature or underweight babies, can do a lot of damage.
As the method of preparation is relatively tedious, because once it reaches a temperature of 100ºC (when it boils) it is necessary to wait between 5 and 30 minutes to make the mixture (so that the water is between 70 and 90ºC), the WHO leaves open the possibility of prepare the bottles before bed, cool them quickly by putting them with cold water, and put them in the fridge. That's when, at the moment when the baby wants to eat, we take it out of the fridge and put it to heat.
In Babies and more Sterilize baby items yes or no?Heat artificial milk in the microwave
The baby starts to cry, you go to the fridge for the milk and think of the fastest way to heat it: the microwave! You are right, it is the fastest way to ensure that it is not cold, however, It is the most dangerous.
It is not recommended to heat artificial milk in the microwave because you never know what will come out of it. Sometimes the container is very hot and the liquid is not so hot; sometimes the opposite happens, it heats the liquid a lot and when it touches the container it seems to be colder than it really is, and we reheat a little more. And sometimes we even put a few drops on our wrist and notice it cold, and it turns out that, as the heating is not uniform with the microwave, there may be hot spots that can burn the baby.
For this reason, for risk of burns in the mouth, tongue and digestive tract, it is not recommended to heat artificial milk in the microwave.
Heat breast milk in the microwave
When a mother removes milk because she is breastfeeding, or because she is supplementing breastfeeding with her own milk, or because she goes to work and has to give it to someone else's baby, or freezes it, or Well keep it in the fridge.
In both cases, it must be heated so that the baby can take it, and again, if you are crying, you look for the fastest method, think about the microwave, and again it is not the best option. It is not for the same reason: heating breast milk in the microwave can cause burns in the baby.
In Babies and more Never leave your baby taking the bottle aloneBut it also is not because with the microwave it is easier to heat it above the ideal, and when breast milk gets too hot (either with microwave, or otherwise), loses many immune cells (defenses), and although the nutrients are not modified and it is still the best possible food, it is a pity that the defenses are thus lost.
How to heat the milk then?
The best way to heat breast milk and artificial milk is by contact: put the container in which the baby is going to drink the milk in contact with something hot, usually water. Then, the microwave can be used for water: water is heated in a container (in the microwave or in a casserole on fire or in vitro) and once the water is hot, the container with the milk is introduced.
The temperature to reach is to the taste of the consumer, that is, the baby. It does not need to be hot, because you may like it warm or cool, but if you like warm we will always have to check that it does not burn (again, if we go over, we can burn it and, in the case of the maternal, you can lose defenses ).
