>My second child was a chronic thumb sucker and a happy breastfeeder.  =
>She went on to continue this habit right up to age 12.  She could even =
>do a handstand with her thumb in her mouth!  And by the way, she has =
>lovely even teeth.
>
>Karen Palmer
>Independant midwife, New Zealand
>Mother of 4

Likewise, my second child was a thumbsucker from about 2 weeks of 
age, and was breastfed for over 2 years, but sucked her thumb for a 
further 5 years, until peer pressure convinced her to stop. (She 
didn't want her school friends to think she was 'a baby'. ;-)

Her teeth are also fine.

I believe that a breastfed baby sucks his/her thumb in a different 
way to a bottle-fed baby. It is placed further back in the mouth 
(like the breast) and the tongue has the ripple motion also seen with 
breastfeeding. I know this because as my daughter fell asleep while 
cuddled on my lap, her thumb would come out of her mouth but the 
tongue movement kept going for a while.
-- 
******************************************************************
Joy Anderson B.Sc. Dip.Ed. Grad.Dip.Med.Tech. IBCLC
Australian Breastfeeding Association counsellor
Perth, Western Australia.   mailto:[log in to unmask]
******************************************************************

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