How often should baby toys be cleaned and/or sanitized? - Page 2

[beckyand3littlemonsters]

Originally Posted by lovermont

they have to be sanatized?!?! lol

Yeah, I think you might be overthinking especially given how few babies are using these toys (mostly just your lo). I wouldn't worry. I think every once in a while we boiled pacifiers but that's it. Obviously, like you said, if a toy gets dirty by something being spilled on it (food, body fluids) then I would throw toys in the sink to be washed with dishes or in the washing machine if that seems most sensible. Otherwise wipe things down.

only time i wash them is if they are dirty like the above poster, if plastic toys get dirty they either go in the sink or get wiped down with a baby wipe and soft toys like teddies etc go in the washer but only if they are dirty otherwise not very often at all.

[tessie]

Originally Posted by Peony

Umm, if a child pukes on them. Other then that never.

That. Or the occasion when she decided to assist with a nappy change by wiping her butt with a rag doll.

Germs help build healthy immune systems, right?

[november]

I wash Piper's toys a lot but they are in her mouth constantly (and on the floor). Maybe once a week or so? I don't let her play with it again if she drops it out in public, lol. Has to get washed first, that just grosses me out. I think I've watched too many gross Dateline shows about how filthy public floors are. Yeah, yeah, I know...first time mom alert, haha.

However, she only has a few in the rotation right now so it's not a big deal, I just wash them right along with the bottles (scalding hot water, Dawn, toothbrush). She has a couple teething rings, Sophie, and two or three other little things so I just wash them with hot, hot water and soap. I wash her stuffed animals every so often as well (gentle cycle in the washing machine).

[MamaPhD]

I used to wash toys either in dish washer (plasticky ones) or in washing machine (plush) about once a month or so when DD was < 9-10 mo, when she was mouthing a lot. Now at 18 mo, I haven't washed any of them for several months now.

[Mom2M]

Toys at home get washed if there is obvious dirt but if they are dropped while we are out somewhere, especially if they are slobbery and get chewed a lot, they get washed before she gets them back.
Stuffed animals that are really dusty or the ones that are very well loved and get grimy looking get washed in the washer.

[Bellabaz]

I clean a toy if its gets spit up on. Otherwise, probably never. =)

[noobmom]

It seems pointless to me to sanitize toys, for the most part. As soon as the kids play with them, the germs are back. So I only clean/sanitize when they are dirty or if a sick friend slobbers all over it.

I do wash toys that have been in public, like the PP. I guess it's a "my" germs versus outside germs thing.

[Asiago]

Originally Posted by november

I wash Piper's toys a lot but they are in her mouth constantly (and on the floor). Maybe once a week or so? I don't let her play with it again if she drops it out in public, lol. Has to get washed first, that just grosses me out. I think I've watched too many gross Dateline shows about how filthy public floors are. Yeah, yeah, I know...first time mom alert, haha.

However, she only has a few in the rotation right now so it's not a big deal, I just wash them right along with the bottles (scalding hot water, Dawn, toothbrush). She has a couple teething rings, Sophie, and two or three other little things so I just wash them with hot, hot water and soap. I wash her stuffed animals every so often as well (gentle cycle in the washing machine).

I do the same mama. Most of the toys I clean are the ones that go out with us to stores or restaurants. Those are cleaned with straight vinegar or soap and water when we get home. The toys at home are not cleaned unless dropped in obviously germy places (like the vicinity of where my dog had a potty accident )

[PoetryLover]

Thanks for the responses. I feel so much better after reading this. I really wasn't sure if people did this or how often.

[confustication]

We have two who play with and chew on the them, and I wash them immediately when they get dirty (spit up or stolen by a dog or something similar) otherwise, about once a month I toss them all in the sink with hot water and tiny bit of bleach- or through the dishwasher now that we have one that works again to really sanitize them.

I have a compromised immune system, so to be quite honest, I'm more worried about MY exposure to germs than I worry about the kids- they have strong immune systems and some exposure to germs/dirt is just fine with me. I also will sanitize everything frequently when there is an infection in the house of any sort. At the moment, I am dealing with a resistant cellulitis myself, so everything is being cleaned more often than usual, and I am using bleach a lot, which is absolutely not my norm.

[claddaghmom]

I was going to say never, but then I remembered that recently the plumbing broke in our kitchen and the dishwasher flooded...and some of DD's fridge toys were caught in the flash flooding....

I soaked them in some vinegar and then rinsed with water.

[barefootmama0709]

I don't sanitize our toys. Ever. I occasionally clean some of them (Canaan's special bedtime ponies get FILTHY) either by tossing in the wash or washing in the sink, but not frequently. I don't feel that sanitizing the toys is good for kids; I'd rather that they played in their own germs than in chemical residue.