So pacifiers are popular for good reason. In Western countries, up to 75 percent of babies use binkies at some point. This may mean waiting up to four weeks for your baby to avoid nipple confusion. Well, sucking on a nipple is different — clearly from your side of things, but also for baby — than sucking on a pacifier. Some newborns may find it easier to suck on the pacifier. This can make it more difficult for them to latch on for breastfeeding.
Or, they may use their energy to suck on the pacifier and then fall asleep or be less interested in breastfeeding when feeding time comes. Breastfeeding can be even more difficult for preterm babies.
This is because they may have smaller sucking muscles. Your nurse or doctor may recommend waiting to use a pacifier. However, every baby is different. A AAP study suggested that offering pacifiers may help babies breastfeed only. The research followed babies in a newborn unit who were breastfed with and without also being offered pacifiers:. So, one theory is that pacifiers may help keep babies content and distracted between breastfeedings.
Without them, some mothers may offer the bottle between breastfeeding sessions. If you baby is exclusively bottle-feeding from the start, you should be able to give a soothing pacifier right away. Pacifiers are also linked to lowering the risk of sleep-related death in babies. Sudden infant death syndrome SIDS is the most common cause of death in babies between 1 month and 1 year.
Several medical studies have found that giving your baby a pacifier while they sleep may be associated with a reduced risk of SIDS, possibly by more than half. Medical organizations are taking note, too.
Pacifiers may help protect your baby from SIDS and suffocation during sleep for several reasons. They might make it harder for your baby to roll over onto their stomach. Not all babies like dummies. Do not force a dummy onto a baby who has their mouth shut or turns away.
They are a little bit of both, is probably the best answer. Medical experts have found evidence both for and against dummies, which is why the topic is so confusing for parents. In The American Academy of Pediatrics reported that dummies protect against sudden infant death syndrome , for example. However, in the World Health Organization stated that breastfeeding infants should never be given artificial nipples.
This conflicting advice demonstrates that there is medical evidence for both sides of the argument. In addition, parenting is a complex process so scientists cannot always study dummies separately from other parental influencing factors.
They therefore cannot say with certainty whether the dummy alone causes attachment, distress or other issues. This is because in the first few weeks of life your baby is learning to breastfeed or take milk from the bottle. They have to learn how to use their tongue, lips and swallowing action to get milk from the nipple or teat.
If you give them a dummy too early, it can create confusion between feeding and suckling, which could lead to feeding problems. Try to give your baby a dummy for limited time periods, and only when associated with sleep. If you give your baby a dummy throughout the day and night, they will become more attached to it and it will be more difficult for them to let it go at a later stage.
Try not to put your baby to sleep with a dummy. Use self-soothing methods to get your baby to sleep initially, and only use a dummy as the last resort if they wake up during naps or in the middle of the night. You can stop using a dummy at any time. This study also suggested that thumb sucking behaviours may be protective These findings imply one of several possibilities: that dummies have to be used consistently for all sleep periods; or that the absence of a dummy is a marker for an as yet unmeasured disruption in routine.
Recent studies have also shown that in countries which have shown a reduction in prevalence of dummy use, rates of sudden infant death have also decreased This finding suggests that the decreased incidence of SIDS cannot be attributed to dummy use alone.
The potential disadvantages of using dummies or pacifiers must also be considered. Given the many benefits of breastfeeding an issue of consideration is that dummy use may negatively impact the establishment, frequency and duration of breastfeeding. Several studies have demonstrated a significant relationship between frequent and continuous dummy use and reduction in breastfeeding 23, , although it is unclear whether the relationship is causal or if dummy use is a marker for reduced motivation to breastfeed 7, A Cochrane review, comparing dummy use versus no dummy use in healthy full-term newborns who had initiated breastfeeding, found no significant effects of dummy use at three months and at four months of age A recent systematic review of 29 studies also examined the association between dummies and breastfeeding.
These studies included 4 randomised controlled trials RCTs , 20 cohort studies, and 5 cross-sectional studies Whilst RCTs are generally considered as providing stronger evidence of causality, an acknowledged limitation of this review was that randomisation of mothers to dummy use or non-use may not be truly representative of the behaviours and motivations typically seen in mothers who would make this decision on their own A further review, that included several RCTs, recommended that as dummy use may be associated with early weaning from the breast or may be a marker of breastfeeding difficulties, it should be avoided until breastfeeding is well established 6.
Few studies have examined the effect of thumb or digit sucking on breastfeeding outcomes. Aarts and colleagues 40 conducted a prospective, longitudinal study of mother infant pairs, examining thumb sucking and dummy use on breastfeeding patterns in exclusively breastfed infants.
Dummy use was associated with fewer feeds and shorter suckling duration per 24 hours, shorter duration of exclusive breastfeeding, and shorter total breastfeeding duration compared with no dummy use. Then start cutting back on the times in the day when they have the dummy. For example, only use it in the car or the cot.
This gives them a chance to get used to being without it. Once they are comfortable without the dummy, set a time and a date and then take the dummy away. Make it a big celebration or give your child a special reward.
Expect there to be some protests. You can offer them a blanket or a teddy for comfort instead. But try not to go back and give them the dummy again. Remember, sucking a dummy never becomes a lifelong habit. Many children will stop using a dummy by themselves.
Comforters are an object that a child uses to help relax and can include blankets, soft toys or thumbs. If you see that your child is choosing a special blanket or soft toy, you could buy another one like it, so that they can both wear out at the same pace and can be changed when one needs washing. Sucking thumbs or fingers is natural in babies and young children. Most children grow out of finger-sucking around 2 to 4 years of age. Learn more here about the development and quality assurance of healthdirect content.
Thumbsucking, or the use of a dummy by a baby, is little cause for concern before permanent teeth appear. Read more on Queensland Health website. Dummy independence is when babies can put their dummies in by themselves. This helps if your baby uses a dummy to settle. You can teach dummy independence. Read more on raisingchildren.
Babies can be at risk of choking or infection from old, poorly made or poorly maintained dummies. Make sure you buy dummies that cannot be easily pulled apart and discard dummies when they start showing signs of wear. Read more on Product Safety Australia website. Dummies soothe some babies and help them settle. But dummies can be a hard habit to break, and babies also need help to manage them.
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