Despite calming the baby, using the pacifier disrupts breastfeeding because when the baby sucks the pacifier "unlearns" the correct way to pick up the breast and then finds it difficult to suck the milk.
In addition, babies who suckle pacifiers for a long time tend to suck less, which ultimately contributes to decreased breast milk.
So that the baby can use the pacifier without disrupting breastfeeding, what should be done is to offer the pacifier to the baby after he already knows how to suckle correctly. This time can vary from baby to baby but rarely occurs before the first month of life.
It is recommended to use the sleep-only pacifier and that it is suitable for the baby's age and has a shape that does not harm your dentition.
Other problems caused by the pacifier
Sucking pacifiers as a baby still decreases the frequency of feedings, so the baby may have less weight than it would have and the production of breast milk decreases because the higher the frequency of feedings, the more milk the mother's body produces.
Babies and children with more sensitive skin may be allergic to the silicone that is present in the pacifier, causing the area around the mouth to become dry, small wounds and scaling may appear, which may be severe, requiring abrupt discontinuation of the pacifier and use of corticosteroids as an ointment.
The use of the pacifier from the 7 months still disrupts the formation of the dental arch that is crooked, respecting the shape of the pacifier. This change causes the child to not have the correct bite, and may need to correct it years later using orthodontic appliance.
Can the baby suck his thumb?
Thumb sucking can be a seemingly natural outlet that the baby and child can find to replace the use of the pacifier. It is not recommended to teach the child to suck his thumb for the same reasons, and because although the pacifier can be thrown in the trash, one can not do the same with the finger, being a situation of more difficult control. It is not necessary to punish the child if it is caught by sucking the finger, but it should be discouraged whenever it is observed.
How to comfort the baby without a pacifier
A great way to comfort your baby without resorting to a pacifier and finger is to hold her in her lap when she cries, to bring her ear closer to the mother's or father's heart because it naturally soothes the baby.
Notoriously the baby will not calm down and stop crying if you are hungry, cold, hot, dirty diaper, but the lap and a 'paninho' used only by the child can be enough so that she feels safe and can rest. Some stores sell products like cloth diaper or stuffed animals, sometimes called 'dudu'.
