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Prefers Binky to Breast

Help! My 14-week-old son sometimes prefers the pacifier to my breast.Infants are born with an intense need to suck, and sometimes they go through a stage where the sucking need intensifies. It can be even more frustrating when, for unexplained reasons, your baby prefers a pacifier to you.

To decrease your little one’s dependence on the pacifier and woo him back to the breast:

  • Feed him more frequently. Sucking on a pacifier won’t meet your baby’s nutritional needs.
  • Eliminate distractions during nursing. At this age, your infant ‘s more acute visual development makes him more easily distractible during nursing, so that he becomes Mr. Suck-a-Little-Look-a-Little. At feeding time, take him into a quiet room and get down to the business of nursing.
  • Establish a routine. A daily nap-nursing routine has worked for our family. At least twice a day lie down with your baby and nap nurse – much like you did when he was a newborn. This peaceful reconnection in a quiet room is likely to bring him back to the breast.
  • Offer your finger. Periodically, let your baby suck on your finger instead of the pacifier – even during the nap-nursing time – if he doesn’t want to feed.
  • Try nursing on the move. When one of our babies went through a similar nursing quirk, Martha wore him around the house in a baby sling and nursed him frequently while she tended to other things.
August 23, 2013 August 23, 2013 Dr. Bill Sears
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AskDrSears.com is intended to help parents become better informed consumers of health care. The information presented in this site gives general advice on parenting and health care. Always consult your doctor for your individual needs.

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