pacifier for infant?

Question

how early can i start introducing pacifier to my baby?

he is just 2 weeks old but loves to suck. he cries as soon as the bottle falls out from his mouth or as soon as i remove it (he emptied out already). im afraid i might overfeed him

Answer 1

If you are sure that your baby is not hungry, gassy, wet, then introduce the pacifier. Babys need to suck to sooth, it is instinct. I worked for a doctor for many years and if a child uses a pacifier they are less apt to suck their thumb. If the bottle is empty put a little more in it, you may not be giving him enough, if he is full , he will more than likely fall asleep or spit some of it up. Good luck with your little one.

Answer 2

Pacifiers can be good for babies who need to constantly suck. I would caution you though to make sure that your baby is not indeed hungry. Some babies are happy to just suck and will take a pacifier when they really need to feed. I would urge you to make sure that your son is eating every 2-4 hours.

As far as feeds are concerned your son will need to eat frequently and will go through periods of growth where they will need to eat more often until it passes. Eating every 2-4 hours (even at night) is normal for a formula fed baby and for a breast baby it will even be more frequently (every 1.5-3 hours). As they get older, their stomachs will stretch and they will go longer in between feeds. All babies are unique and some feed more than others. I would not be too concerned with overfeeding unless your baby is spitting up after feeds. If this is the case, you may need to feed your baby more frequently and decrease the ounces you are giving him..

If your baby is sucking a lot of air, it could create gas on the stomach. Once your son finishes a bottle, you do not want them to suck on an empty bottle for the reason stated above. If your son is taking only an ounce at a time you may need to increase it to 2 or 2 1/2 ounces.

I am attaching a website that talks about the pros and cons of pacifiers. I am not against infants using them as long as all of their basic needs are met. Too many times, I have seen babies upset or needing to feed and instead of the parent picking up the baby and trying to figure out the cries of their infant they immediately stick a pacifier in their mouth. I have also seen babies with poor weight gain when pacifiers are used too often. So, please make the decision for yourself but make an informed decision.


http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/pacifiers/PR00067

Answer 3

babys have a natural sucking mode lets say,,,,they have the need to, maybe you should increase his formula by a ounce if that does not help, yes give him a pacifier. it will not hurt him, and it will give mom a little sleep and peace. he is only 2 weeks, when babies are in the womb, they suck on their hands,toes, fingers, so he just got taken away from his home for 9 months, this bottle thing is new to him, plus he might just be a "binky baby",,,needing a pacifier to keep him satisfied. I would also talk to your Baby Doctor

Answer 4

I would have been grateful if my middle daughter had taken a pacifier in the early weeks. I was nursing and she never wanted to stop! I won't go into detail about how painful it can be, but trust me, it is.
Much to my mother's chagrin I tried pacifiers (all shapes) but she wouldn't go for it. She never did suck her thumb.
I did finally give a bottle at about 3 weeks, with a bit of cereal in it and that seemed to work. She slept through the night then!

Answer 5

at birth My daughter had one from birth but I got tired of sticking it back into her mouth when it fell out in the night so I took it away. She rediscoverd it when she was about 2 months old and had it till she was 4 years old when I made her throw it away. the upside it that it will keep a child quiet betwee feedings and it can be taken away unlike the thumb the downside is it is addictive just like the thumb but to avoid overfeeding and pacifiy the sucking need a pacifier is fine. better and easier to break than the thumb let me tell you

Answer 6

i am a firm believer in a pacifier. Mine came home from the hospital with one. i have 3 children all of which have had a paci when they came home from the hospital. my oldest is 17 and i have a 21/2 year old and a 4 month old. my son the oldest came home from the hospital taking 16oz of milk every 2 hours. he is now 6foot 2 and 180 pounds. size 14 shoe. so it all depends they will let you know when they are full. they will push the bottle out of their mouth or they will spit up what they can't hold. my middle one was right on target everything done by the book and now my new one she is writing her own book. she has been on cereal since she was 2weeks old and she has been eating fruit since she was 2 months old so it is up to the mom who knows her child better then anybody else.

Answer 7

my kids had binkies from day one weather they needed it or not there are tons of benifits to binkies 1 the prevent sids it keeps the baby just a bit more awake so they dont fall into a deap sleep and stop breathing 2 they are a great way to get the baby to calm down for a second while you make a bottle 3 if he has an extra need for sucking beter a binki than a hand that can become dry and chaped and4 its so cute to see ababy with a binki

Answer 8

Pacifiers are a bad idea. Starting a pacifier is the easy part. Getting it out of their mouth when their THREE is harder! And those three years in between, when you lose THEIR pacifier is torment. They won't just suck on any pacifier, it has to be the exact same kind and their crying will make you so crazy that you will start looking at other baby's mouths to see what their pacifier is and if it's a match. You stalk other babies in Walmart looking for the right kind. You would snatch it out of their mouths just to give it to your screaming little monster!! Or pay $1,000s of dollars just to get the last one in town. It can get ugly. I figured this out with my first daughter and didn't make the same mistake with my second. I pulled her fingers out of her mouth too when ever I saw her sucking on them. As a result, she didn't develop the bad habit. Have you ever seen a four year old that sucks his thumb? I have, and it's not cute at all. But as a mother they are hard habits to break, expecially after they were encouraged when they were younger.
Good luck.

Answer 9

I used a pasifire and trust me, it was my lifesaver! BUT it became a pain because just as soon as we lost the pacifire we seriously had to run and buy another cause she would cry! she loved it.

One day, I took the pacifire away and never gave it to her again. Thats how you gotta break it so they dont get bucked teeth when they are older! I say once the baby is getting teeth, take it away

Answer 10

Yes, give him a paci!! Babies need to suck and by feeding him everytime he wants to suck you could be overfeeding him which could cause gas and tummy problems for him. And he may eventually become a thumb sucker.
Get him the Platex paci's...my daughter has been using them since she was 3 days old and she loves them.