Do you need a baby's nipple?

Suckling reflex - one of the first reflexes in the life of the baby. Suck a child knows how to birth, because for him it is the only known way to extract food. If the baby is fed naturally, ie. breast milk, then during breastfeeding the baby calms down, plunges into a state of half-dormancy. This natural mechanism helps the child not yet fully developed digestive system to cope with the load. When a child sucks his chest, he feels safe. That is why very often the pacifier, satisfying the sucking reflex of the baby, brings him peace of mind.

What is dangerous pacifier? Using a dummy can bring a lotproblems and troubles. Firstly, no matter how ergonomic the nipple is, it can not be compared with my mother's breast. The child sucks the nipple completely differently than it needs when sucking the breast. Thus the child can grasp a nipple incorrectly and receive less milk. In turn, the mammary's breast receives a signal to reduce the amount of milk, because the child does not eat everything. There is a sharp reduction of milk the mother. Some babies after a pacifier are generally lost and do not know what to do with the mother's breast.

Great trouble can bring a pacifier, if not observed impeccable cleanliness, and this, you see, is difficult to achieve. The nipple must fall on the floor, touch various objects, and if it does not have a protective cap, it simply collects all the dust and microbes from the surrounding air.

Some psychologists say thatthe dummy-pacifier, among other things, is harmful also by the fact that it disconnects the children from the interest in knowing the world around them. If the child always has a nipple in his mouth, he can not satisfy his need for knowledge of the world "in the teeth", i.e. put in the mouth and gnaw other objects. In addition, the dummy pacifier immerses the child in an apathetic state, when nothing interests him.

Most often there is no direct need for using a pacifier. Only in cases when the nipple is necessary on the recommendation of a doctor for the treatment of any disorders or the baby has problems with the digestive tract, the use of a dummy is justified.

The sucking reflex can not be suppressed, he usually passes by the child by himself withage. If the baby has nothing to suck, he pulls into his mouth a finger, a corner of a cap or a pillow. And in the aftermath, it is much more difficult to wean a child from sucking a finger than to wean him from a dummy, and it's not uncommon for children to continue to suck a finger at the age of 6. That's why some doctors advise parents to give the child a pacifier, as the lesser of two evils. However, it is better not to abuse the dummy and use it as sparingly as possible.

How and when to wean the baby from the pacifier? In our time, many parents have successfully managedwithout this subject in the education of their children. And before the rest, sooner or later this question arises, because even a simple shame does not allow parents to drive their already grown-up child on the street with a pacifier in his mouth.

The more a baby is used to a nipple, the harder it is toshe will get rid of. But do not hurry and wean your baby off the nipple early. Both pediatricians and psychologists say that the natural extinction of the sucking reflex occurs approximately at the age of one and a half to two years. It is during this period that they recommend weaning the child from the pacifier, as this will be as painless as possible for the baby.

If you decide to wean the baby from the nipple, do not tell him that it's already "necessary" or "time" - the child most likely will not understand you. It is better to explain the absence of a nipple by completely real, but understandable to the child the reasons. For example, say that the nipple is dirty,spoiled, torn, lost. You can even show the child that the nipple has really become unusable. It is important to switch the child's attention to something else: a new toy, a fun game. Try to change the situation.

Not recommended wean the child from the nipple, if in the family just appeared or just about to appear another baby. These events cause the child a lot of stress.

If it did not happen the first time to wean the baby from the nipple, perhaps you started too early, give the baby some more time. The main thing in the process of weaning the child from a pacifier - patience and perseverance!