Oh boy, is this pacifier issue ever a thorny one! I have done home visits as a
perinatal nurse and found dehydrated babies secondary to inappropriate pacifier
use (ie. to hold baby off for 3-4 hours.) This is the most serious adverse
effect in my mind.

I guess I would like to say that if parents are going to be advised to use
pacifiers by the AAP...maybe the best we can do is to give good reccomendations
as to "appropriate" use. I usually say that a dummie is for AFTER feeding, when
you are sure the baby has gotten plenty, but just wants to suck more. I also
advise a large pacifier, like a NUK because I want babies to suck "with a mouth
full" so to speak.

I also tell moms to be careful about supply if they are using one....if it
starts to drop they will need to pump. Finally, they need to be advised that LAM
is not a method of birth control if a pacifier is in use.

Can anyone think of other advice that we might need to put in our "pacifier"
arsenal?

Susan Keith-Hergert RN, MS, CPN, IBCLC
Mercy Health Partners
Cincinnati

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html