S
Shifter
Guest
I'm not a fan of dummies. We haven't bought any and so far (touch wood) Jack has shown no need for one. He is a bit sucky sometimes, but usually only when he is genuinely hungry. He sucks his thumbs and fingers, which I prefer to dummies - his hands get wiped pretty regularly and besides, babies need a few germs if their immune systems are going to be any use to them!
Hopefully without offending anyone, I can say generally why I'm not a fan. They can lead to lazy parenting, no they don't always, but it can be easy to let the dummy become the default, rather than finding out why a baby is crying. I'd rather not have them around, just so that it eliminates that possibility.
Also, they can interfere with language development when used at bed time to soothe/in fear of SIDS. Babies are practising making sounds long before they are producing any words and one of the key times they do this is when settling themselves in their crib/cot etc. If they have a dummy in their mouth they can't babble.
One theory as to why they might help prevent SIDS is that they may prevent babies entering the deepest stage of sleep. Everyone needs to get that deep sleep, including babies. I think it's better to let young babies figure out how to soothe themselves to sleep, rather than relying on a prop for sucky babies. It could be a very hard habit to break later.
They can also cause nipple confusion for BF babies, so are best avoided in the first month-six weeks.
Hopefully without offending anyone, I can say generally why I'm not a fan. They can lead to lazy parenting, no they don't always, but it can be easy to let the dummy become the default, rather than finding out why a baby is crying. I'd rather not have them around, just so that it eliminates that possibility.
Also, they can interfere with language development when used at bed time to soothe/in fear of SIDS. Babies are practising making sounds long before they are producing any words and one of the key times they do this is when settling themselves in their crib/cot etc. If they have a dummy in their mouth they can't babble.
One theory as to why they might help prevent SIDS is that they may prevent babies entering the deepest stage of sleep. Everyone needs to get that deep sleep, including babies. I think it's better to let young babies figure out how to soothe themselves to sleep, rather than relying on a prop for sucky babies. It could be a very hard habit to break later.
They can also cause nipple confusion for BF babies, so are best avoided in the first month-six weeks.
