One of the thousands of things that I am thinking about raising my baby is the use of the pacifier. There is so much information and so different about it, which has become one of the issues that I will probably end up deciding 'on the fly' once I am born. Of course, what I have done is make a list of things that have seemed to me keys regarding what can happen if I decide to give it to you or not and that it seems important to me to share here.
The first thing to keep in mind when we start reading about this topic is that you are going to find both detractors and defenders. Of course, this is like everything else… everyone will speak for themselves according to their experience, but as I have already said Every kid is a world: You may be determined to use it and your baby may not want to see it, as you may eventually realize that it is a very practical tool to calm him.
From when should the pacifier start to be used?
In the words of the Breastfeeding Committee of the Spanish Association of Pediatrics, it is best to avoid the pacifier during the first days of life and even when breastfeeding is well established (usually from the month), age at which the risk of Sudden infant death syndrome, since apparently its use can prevent it and that is one of the issues for which I consider using it.
I know that there are several sizes and types on the market (including anatomical ones, which simulate the mother's nipple and are made of different materials), but it is clear that no matter how much you try, neither the texture nor the shape will be identical and this can cause the baby to change the way of sucking. The difference is that when the mouth is suckled it is completely open until the areola is covered, while with the pacifier it is not.
Additionally it is shown that if the child's teeth are predisposed to be crooked, their use for a long time can increase these oral problems, especially if the nipple is made of silicone.
However there is an even worse scenario: that the child has a habit of sucking his finger, since it can be even worse for your teeth and the habit is harder to remove ... much harder even than the pacifier, since the object could be damaged, but the fingers will always remain there.
Does its use cause less curiosity to express yourself orally?
One of the things that has surprised me the most and is something that had not been taken into account, is that pacifiers can cause speech disorders, since using them regularly causes the muscles of the oral cavity not to be properly exercised.
I have read in some pages (for example, in parent forums), that many have observed very marked differences between children who do not use a pacifier and others who do so in excess: the latter do not show curiosity or have the habit of expressing themselves orally , They usually do it through signs to avoid removing it from the mouth.
The problem ?: falling into excess
Speaking the other day on this subject with a friend who is the mother of two children, she told me that because of many studies I read or however convinced I was, the time could come when the pacifier was the only tool that worked to calm the baby when nothing else turns out. I think he's absolutely right, but, Are we not over-using it as an instrument of quick comfort?
I understand that the crying of a child is one of the sounds that most stress their parents, but usually if a child cries it is because something happens. Maybe by wanting to shut him up quickly without observing him, without trying to help him calm him down otherwise he is depriving us of approaching and understanding his needs.
As I said at the beginning, it is clear that in the end the decision is in each one of us as parents, but it is important to inform us and contemplate all the possibilities before resorting to it, not because it is completely harmful, but because the same thing can happen that the child can be perfectly without him (especially if he has his mother's chest available), and it is we who ultimately believe the need.
I would love to read your experiences. Have you used it with your children? Has it turned out to be a good or bad idea?
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