Pros and Cons of Using Pacifiers for Babies

Pacifiers for Newborns - Pros

This includes:

• Comfort-

As the name indicates, a pacifier’s main work is to pacify the baby and make him/her feel less startled by his/her new surroundings. As the baby suckles on the pacifier, he/she finds immediate comfort, and the baby’s mood improves instantly.

• Supports good feeding-

Some babies may have problems sucking during breastfeeding. Giving them pacifiers will help them suck on your nipple without any trouble. This is more common in the case of premature babies needing help with feeding.

• Reduced risk of SIDS-

According to certain studies, pacifiers play a significant role in reducing the risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) in babies when sleeping. This condition causes the maximum number of deaths in babies aged less than 1 year.

• Supports good sleep-

If your baby doesn’t fall asleep quickly, you can give him/her a pacifier to suckle on. However, please note that a pacifier can only enable your baby to sleep faster than before; it cannot ensure the quality or longevity of your baby’s sleep.

• Pain relief-

During vaccinations or any other treatments, your baby will be given an injection. This causes pain and inflammation in the area where blood was drawn. Giving him a pacifier will distract him/her from the pain and provide much-needed relief.

• Travelling with newborns made easy-

Babies can get cranky while travelling. This is where a pacifier can rescue you. Pacifiers keep them relaxed and quiet during the journey. During air travel, babies less than 6 months old can be given pacifiers to relieve them from the pain due to the air pressure.

• Easy to wean off-

Kids find it difficult to break away from some habits like thumb-sucking even until they are 5 or 6 years old. However, the good news is that they can wean off pacifiers easily. Most babies are done with pacifiers by the time they turn 6 to 8 months old.

Pacifiers for Newborns- Cons

You shouldn’t be overdependent on pacifiers to calm your baby, as these rubbery/silicone things come with the following disadvantages:

• Ambiguity during feeding routines-

Although pacifiers may encourage sucking habits in babies, it works well only if you introduce pacifiers at the right time. Start breastfeeding or bottle-feeding first, and ensure your baby is comfortable feeding that way. Introduce a pacifier only after this. This way, your baby won’t be confused about whether you are offering him/her a nipple/bottle or a pacifier. The effort taken in breastfeeding/bottle feeding is more, as your baby needs to suck milk. However, with the pacifier, surface-level sucking is enough to provide comfort.

• Addiction to pacifiers is possible-

If you use pacifiers to make your baby fall asleep quickly, you should ensure he/she doesn’t get too addicted to them. Sometimes, during deep sleep, the pacifier falls off the baby’s mouth, and he/she wakes up crying in the middle of the night. This over-dependency on pacifiers can disrupt the baby’s and your sleep cycle.

• Hampers dental growth-

Overuse of pacifiers, especially during the teething stage, can hamper teeth alignment in babies. Pacifiers can cause problems in teeth spacing and shape. Hence, babies overdependent on pacifiers may have to resort to using braces in their later stages. This applies to the habit of sucking thumbs as well. Hence, gradually stop using pacifiers by the time your baby is about 6 months old.

• Prone to ear infections-

When babies suck on pacifiers for longer than necessary, it opens up the tubes inside their ears. Hence, it is easy for bacteria and germs from throat secretions to enter their ears, thereby causing mild to severe ear infections. In future, babies prone to many such ear infections may face difficulties speaking and listening.

• Risk of choking-

If you don’t use a good quality pacifier, you are likely to put your baby at risk of choking. To avoid this, Use pacifiers with at least a 1.5-inch, ventilated base. Also, refrain from using two-piece pacifiers. Check your baby’s pacifier regularly, and replace it when the material is worn out or damaged.