How to choose a Baby Pacifier?

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Baby Pacifier for children playing in the park

Why do you want to use a baby Pacifier for your beautiful child?

If you have an infant and are looking for a way to comfort your baby, chances are you are looking for the best pacifier. For those who don’t know, a baby pacifier is a synthetic nipple that is attached to a handle and designed to entertain and comfort your baby. The sucking motion has been proven to soothe and pacify babies when they are irritated because it induces a psychological benefit to your baby.

Your baby has been trained to realize that sucking on a nipple usually leads to good things such as acquiring milk and nutrients, so by sucking on an artificial nipple, there will be the placebo effect. Pacifiers are made of several parts: the nipple, the guard, and the ring. The nipple is exactly what it sounds like: it is usually made of plastic and goes into the baby’s mouth. The guard prevents your baby from taking in the entire nipple and choking on it. The ring acts as a way for you to easily remove and insert the pacifier into your baby’s mouth.

Generally, you can tell if your baby needs a pacifier if he or she is constantly sucking on other things like fingers, thumbs, toys, and baby bottles. They are suitable for babies of all ages but generally use your best judgment for figuring out whether or not your baby needs one. If you plan on breastfeeding, you should probably hold off on using a pacifier until you think your baby has fully adjusted to breastfeeding routines.

How to choose a Pacifier for your Baby?

Using the best pacifier on your baby is a great way to help your baby calm down. Sucking on things has been a product of evolution, as it usually leads to milk and nutrition. Your baby instinctively practices sucking because it is beneficial. But it does not always go your way. It may take some time to introduce your baby to a pacifier and you should try to do so when your baby is calm and relaxed. It maybe easier to get your baby to get used to sucking on a baby bottle first.

You can try and tap the pacifier on your baby’s cheek and bait your baby to naturally take in the pacifier. You can even try dipping the nipple into breast milk or even peanut butter and try enticing your baby to take in a pacifier. You should be changing your baby’s pacifier when it breaks down, has tears in it, becomes discolored, stretched, or if it looks loose or dirty. If you don’t replace it when you see these signs, you run the risk of choking your baby or having your baby get sick. You may want to also clean you pacifier when it gets dirty instead of just replacing it. You should use any anti-bacterial soap and leave it out for a while to dry. The best pacifier can come in many sizes and types and it becomes a bit hard to pick one, if you or your baby is picky. We have outlined some things to consider below:

Type of baby pacifiers

You can have multiple piece pacifiers and single piece pacifiers. Multiple piece pacifiers have the nipple, guard, and handle made separately and joined together. Sometimes you can even unscrew the nipple and replace it with a replacement nipple. A single piece pacifier is not replaceable as the nipple and ring is one unit. You can also have pacifiers with ornaments attached, such as a stuffed animal or a glow in the dark pacifier. You also have feeding pacifiers, which are basically mini baby bottles.

Size of a baby pacifier

Baby pacifiers actually come in many sizes and you should choose one based on the age group of your baby. In general you should use small pacifiers for infants under 6 months, medium pacifiers for infants from 6 months to 18 months, and large pacifiers from 18 months and older. If the pacifier is too small for your baby, he or she could reject it. Also, if the pacifier is too big, you run the risk of choking your baby. Be very careful on reading the recommended age group on the label of each pacifier.

Material used for a baby pacifier

The nipple of your pacifier can be made of many different kinds of materials. It can be made of silicone, which is easy to clean and does not retain odor. You can even clean silicone pacifiers in the dishwasher. Then you have latex pacifiers, which are softer and more flexible than silicon. However, they are usually not dishwasher safe and are less durable than silicone nipples. Finally, you have hard plastic, which is not a common material but sometimes exists. It is very durable and easy to clean. In terms of the guard, they are usually all the same and measures around 1.5 – 2 inches in diameter. They also should contain some ventilation holes, which allow your baby to breathe properly with the pacifier all the way in your baby’s mouth.

Construction

In general, you want a pacifier that is built sturdy and presents very little risk that your baby can choke on it. If it is made of multiple pieces, be sure that these pieces are easily detachable but not so easy that they fall apart. We like single piece pacifiers more because there is absolutely no risk of the pieces falling apart and your baby accidentally choking on something. The trade off to single piece pacifiers is that you have to replace the entire thing if it gets damaged.