If you are the parent of a child who just can’t help but love, love, love his or her pacifier, you know the torture it is to try and get your kiddo to give it up. And let’s face it: babies and toddlers need comfort.
It’s not a sin to have a kid that’s attached to a pinky or a pacifier, but it is a challenge to separate the little one from his or her favorite sucking comfort. As hard as it is though, you still should try to let the binky part ways from your little one.
4 Reasons to Cut Out the Pacifier
1- Do You Enjoy Reaching For it at Night?
When your baby loses his or her binky, does all hell break loose? What about for a toddler? Well, a toddler can find that pacifier without any problems, I assure you, but if it drops somewhere out of sight or perhaps you can’t find the binky before bedtime, how hard is that? It’s a nightmare for parents to have to keep running in and out to pop a binky back in the child’s mouth. Makes you wonder how useful it is!
2- For Teeth’s Sake
According to Colgate, too much pacifier use, especially after baby teeth fall out, will cause issues such as
- The top front teeth to slant out
- The bottom front teeth to tilt in
- The upper and lower jaws to be misaligned
The reality is many kids will be fine using a nuk or whatever name you use to call the old paci, but if the child sucks too long and frequently, it can affect teeth and…
3- Help Good Speech Production
This is debatable. Some research shows paci use is fine and others say to stop it after one year of age. In fact, most speech pathologists will suggest to cut out pacifier use after one year of age in which many babies are babbling and speaking. Overall, it seems the general rule is cutting it off after one year of age, but every child is different.
4- Not Having To Worry if A Favorite is Lost or Broken
Cutting out the paci means not worrying anymore about it’s whereabouts! It’s almost as if it takes on a personal quality– the paci is EVERYTHING to that attached child. You want to almost give it a name.
No matter when you start to wean off a pacifier, give positive reinforcement and be patient. Pacifier use is a source of comfort and often, a hard habit to break.