Mum's baby bottle warning after 'explosion peeled half her nipple off'

She says the pain made her feel as if she was "going to die."

Lauren Robinson

@L_Robinson96

2 min read

May 21, 2025 - 9:53AM

Parenting

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A mum has issued a frightening warning after scalding hot formula “exploded” on her chest when the bottle shattered.

Leona Downie says she had been preparing her five-month-old son’s feed when the incident occurred. The 18-year-old was left with horrific burns and now claims “half her nipple peeled off.”

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"The hot milk went all over me"

Leona's mum, Jenni, shared a publicly available post in May to Facebook, with shocking photos and this warning:

“Just a warning for any parents using MAM baby bottles. Leona was making Arlo’s bottle last night and it exploded all over her chest causing second degree burns. Seems to be a common issue with these so please just be careful."

As per The Sun, Leona says she waited to let the boiling water cool down in the kettle, before pouring it into the bottle and adding her son’s milk formula.

When she began to shake the bottle to mix the contents, it burst open at both ends with the hot liquid exploding across her chest.

"All the hot milk went all over me. My whole body started burning and I thought I was going to die,” she revealed.

Leona says she raced to jump into a cold shower to begin treating the injury and ease the burning, adding that it felt as if she was “continuously being stabbed.”

Leona had been preparing her son's bottle like any other day when disaster struck. Image: Facebook

Leona wants her experience to be a warning to others

The mum was rushed to hospital for further treatment, and she says that doctors told her she had second-degree burns. In photos that Jenni shared on Facebook, Leona's injuries are clearly horrific.

To treat her hospital staff removed dead skin from the burn site - which stretches 11cm. Leona says the burns have meant she can now no longer wear tops that are low-cut, particularly in public. She feels people will judge her and think her scarring is “ugly”.

She says she now wants to use her experience to send a warning to other parents.

Leona sent a complaint to the manufacturer of the bottle, MAM, who have issued the following statement:

"The safety of our customers and their babies is at the forefront of everything we do and MAM is committed to ensuring the highest quality standards.

"All of our products are rigorously tested and meet applicable safety standards. The bottle type in question is certified to EN standard 14350:2020.

"We are very concerned about Leona's injury and are currently arranging for her bottle to be collected to enable us to thoroughly test it and investigate the circumstances around the accident.

"Clear instructions on safe use are supplied with every bottle. These include never pouring boiling water into the bottle and allowing boiled water to cool for at least 20 minutes before introducing it to a bottle to reduce the risk of scalding.

"While preparing a bottle, we recommend that you should never do it with a baby close by and always shake gently with the base facing away over a sink while wrapped in a towel or cloth."

Kidspot reached out to MAM for further comment.