Looking to sterilize your baby’s drool and dust covered pacifier that he just spat on the floor? No Sink nearby? Pacifier wipes are the perfect portable solution to sanitizing your baby’s pacifier, bottle nipple, teether and other mouthed on items on the go – keeping them clean and hygienic.
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Or keep reading from top to bottom. It’s all great info!
Why I love pacifier wipes
Me and pacifiers have a love-hate relationship. And if it were not for pacifier wipes it would be a hate-hate relationship.
I love the fact that they keep my baby calm and content. Sucking away without a care in the world. But I hate the fact that they cause extra work for me.
You see, when my baby has decided he has had enough, or something else captures his attention, his pacifier will drop from his mouth. And I don’t know how he does it, but 9 times out of 10, that pacifier will land on the floor.
It’s almost like my baby plans it. Deliberately spitting his binky to the floor then looking all smug as his own personal butler (me) picks it up for the fifth time that hour.
And when this happens, baby’s pacifier gets covered in all kinds of gunk. Hair, dust and other unmentionables you don’t want coming anywhere near your baby’s mouth.
But the most bizarre part – when my baby sees that disgusting, grimy pacifier is when he wants it the most.
To my baby, this dirt and dust looks like extra-tasty seasoning for his pacifier.
If I am at home, this isn’t an issue. I simply sterilize the pacifier the same way I would sterilize my baby bottles.
But the problem comes when I am away from home. And it’s very likely you have the same problem as me. Whether I am shopping, strolling through the park or driving, disinfecting your baby’s dirty pacifier is nearly impossible. And without the pacifier keep him calm, he transforms into a gigantic cry-monster.
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!
And just like that, everyone nearby is giving me that ”Can you please shut your baby up” look. But I can’t. And there is no way I am risking my baby’s health by shoving a dirty pacifier in his mouth just to keep him quiet.
Sure you could< carry around extra pacifiers in your diaper bag. But I have a much simpler solution. And it also takes up less space in your diaper bag.
I am talking about pacifier wipes.
These magical little wipes allow you to quickly disinfect your baby’s in seconds. Simply swipe the pacifier wipe over the nipple and your baby’s pacifier is ready to take another beating.
When it comes to pacifier wipes vs. baby wipes, only pacifier wipes have been specifically designed for wiping down your baby’s pacifier with FDA food-grade ingredients. No harsh chemicals, No flavor left behind – just a sanitized pacifier nipple. Baby wipes often contain chemicals that you would not want anywhere near your baby’s mouth.
So to clarify: You can’t clean your baby’s pacifier with baby wipes.
But pacifier wipes are not just for pacifiers. You can use them to disinfect anything else that goes into your baby’s mouth. Bottle nipples, teething toys, feeding spoons and anything else your baby likes to gum or chew. While you can also clean breast pump parts with them, Medela Quick Clean Wipes are a more suitable solution here.
I love pacifier wipes. And you will too!
Best pacifier wipes
Lucky for you, I have done all the hardwork. I have tested all the popular pacifier wipes on the market so you don’t have to. Keep reading to find out more about my favorite pacifier wipes as well as the wipes that fell short.
Top Pick – Dapple Naturally Clean Pacifiers
Ingredients:
- Water: You know what this is!
- Glycerin: Derived from vegetables
- Decyl Glucoside: Mild Cleanser Derived from sugar
- Malic Acid: pH adjuster Derived from apples
- Potassium Sorbate: Food-grade preservative
- Sodium Benzoate: Food-grade preservative
Dapple is best known for their range of baby detergents that are perfect for removing greasy breast milk and baby formula. If you want your baby bottles clean, Dapple products work amazingly well.
Turns out they also make one great environmentally friendly pacifier wipe as well!
When it comes to convenience, I just could not go past Nuk pacifier wipes. These are my personal favorite for one single reason – they are individually sealed.
Each pacifier wipe comes in it’s own sealed wrapper. Just like the sanitizing hand wipes you get with your KFC meal.
If your diaper bag is already bursting at the seams then you will absolutely love this. No need to carry around a second pack of wipes (in addition to your baby wipes). These pacifiers take up virtually no space – great for traveling light.
Alcohol free, no harsh chemicals and of course non-toxic. And darn simple to use. Simply swipe the cloth over then entire surface of your baby’s pacifier (I also wipe it over the handle as well) and you are done.
You environmentally friendly mommas will be happy to know that these wipes are biodegradable, and will break down when disposed of.
The ingredients are pretty mild too. While I couldn’t find any strictly organic pacifier wipes, Dapple is as good as it gets. If you know of any organic pacifier wipes, please let me know!
Best Value – Mam Pacifier Wipes
Ingredients:
- Water: You know what this is!
- Glycerin: Derived from vegetables
- Xylitol: Derived from sugar
- Aloe Barbadensis Leaf Juice: Aloe extract
- Citric Acid: Derived from fruit
- Sodium Benzoate: Food-grade preservative
- Potassium Sorbate: Food-grade preservative
- Natural Flavor
If you are a frugal mom who likes to break things down by cost then the MAM pacifier wipes offer the best value for money. Coming in a pack of 40, you can pick them up at the same price as my top pick.
MAM pacifier wipes are not individually wrapped. Instead they come in a small dispenser similar to a regular pack of baby wipes.
And they work really well. Made in America and containing no alcohol, dye or parabens and have a smell that reminds me of vanilla. There is a whole lot to like about these pacifier wipes.
Now I must warn you that the packaging does have a quirk. Once opened, it allows the wipes to dry out. If you use pacifier wipes every day or so then this won’t be an issue. But if you are a thrifty mom who only uses pacifier wipes when there are no other options, you may find yourself left with half a pack of dried out and unusable wipes.
If you are the second kind of mom, you will be happy to know that I found a work around. Simply wrap the wipes container in a plastic bag and they will remain as moist as the day you bought them.
While they are not perfect, MAM were the cheapest purpose-made pacifier wipes around.
Best Pacifier Sanitizing Spray
Not feeling the pacifier wipes? I do have one more solution to sterilize your baby’s pacifier. And it’s as low effort as it gets.
Pacifier spray. CleanSmart currently offers the only purpose made pacifier spray in the united states. And it works great.
Simply spray it on your baby’s pacifier. Wait 60 seconds and. You don’t even have to rinse your baby’s pacifier before it goes back in his mouth since it leaves no resuidue!
SimpleClean claims that the spray can kill 99.9% of bacteria, viruses, and fungus. Exactly what you need in cold and flu season!
The best part about the pacifier disinfecting spray is that it lasts and lasts and last. You don’t need a much foe each application. By comparison most pacifier wipes come in packs of about 25. That’s 25 uses. You can expect to get a lot more use out of this spray.
And the rest…
The following brands of pacifier wipes fell short in one way or another. While they are still capable of satisfactorily disinfecting your baby’s pacifier, they were outclassed by the top-rated pacifier wipes (and spray) I covered above.
Nuk Individually Wrapped Pacifier Wipes
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Nuk offers the only other pacifier wipes on the market that are individually wrapped. And that is a feature that I love to bits.
But Nuk was outclassed by my top pick, which in addition to being individually wrapped were also biodegradable.
Munchkin Arm and Hammer Pacifier Wipes
Munchkin were my favorite pacifier wipes. That is, until I researched the ingredients a little more closely. Turns out that one of the main ingredients, polysorbate 20 is treated with ethylene oxide, which risks a 1,4-dioxine contamination – a dangerous byproduct and known animal carcinogen.1
Sure, the chances of contamination may be low, but when other pacifier wipes don’t contain this potentially hazardous ingredient, why would I take the risk.
Dr Brown’s “Healthy Wipes” Naturally Cleaning Pacifier & Bottle Wipes
I normally love Dr Brown’s products, especially their baby bottles. But the Pacifier & Bottle Wipes did not maintain the same quality.
The wipes left behind a sticky residue, something that no other pacifier wipe left behind. The wipes also claimed to reduce saliva transfer, yet my pacifiers and baby bottle nipples were just as covered in drool as ever once my baby was done.
The First Years Gumdrop Pacifier Wipes
First Years Pacifier Wipes left an oily residue behind after wiping. They also had an unusual scent that lingered behind on the pacifier. These were my least favorite baby wipes.
Okay, so the big downside to pacifier wipes is that they are not exactly environmentally friendly. Once you have used the wipe to disinfect your baby’s pacifier, you will have to dispose of it in the trash.
But the whole point of pacifier wipes is convenience. And if you are stuck in the middle of nowhere with a dirty pacifier or bottle nipple, you will be thanking your lucky starts that you decided to pack pacifier wipes in your diaper bag.
Or you can always go the commando route, wiping the diaper on your jeans or even putting it in your mouth first. The argument for this is that germs are everywhere. And your baby already puts everything in his mouth anyway.
But I think I’ll stick to using pacifier wipes.
Do you use pacifier wipes for your baby? Let me know in the comments below!
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