A too-large pacifier can crowd the mouth, causing a domino effect of health issues in your child. Yet, reasonable pacifier use is healthy and soothing for baby. What should a mom choose?
To read the background of this post see this post on Big Pacifiers, Big Problems.
Letting your child develop a healthy mouth and a healthy suck doesn’t mean giving up pacifiers and sippy cups. It simply means choosing the right ones.
In general, stick with the newborn size pacifiers–don’t move up to larger ones as the child grows. The smaller the pacifier, the more the mouth works to keep it in place. Nipple shape is also important. The right type of pacifiers will have the label “orthodontic,” “anatomical,” or “symmetrical.”
The same goes with the bottle–stick with the newborn size. Children with a healthy suck do not need more holes in their nipple, and often, they end up gulping too fast and taking in too much air.
When it comes to sippy cups, choose one with a narrow straw and clip the top so only a little bit goes into the child’s mouth. This forces him to use more oral pressure to suck.
See more information in each product description below.
|