We are very lucky to have in our area a pro-breastfeeding dentist who has
breastfed all three of her children.  This dentist, for quite a few years, has
been the HCP we refer to when a baby needs the frenulum clipped and the
ped/family practice doc won't do it.  (Unfortunately, far too often here.)  This
dentist has an interesting theory on nighttime breastfeeding and dental caries.
Please note two things:  she is NOT against nighttime breastfeeding and she
admits this is only a theory because she has not had a way to run a scientific
study on it.  But it is an interesting theory and I pass it along for your
consideration:
       This dentist thinks that *perhaps* the babies who stay attached to
breast all night long, rather than feed and come off, do lots of fluttersucking.
This fluttersucking *may* cause the breast to drip a drop of milk every so
often.  But because it's not a mouthful of milk, the baby does not swallow, so
the drops accumulate slowly before there is a big enough bolus to trigger a
swallow.  This allows those drops to bathe the teeth in breastmilk and *may*
contribute to dental caries.  She suggests that moms really try hard to stay awake
until the baby falls asleep, or set a timer for the length of time baby
usually nurses so the timer will wake up mom, and then remove baby from breast.
Removing baby from breast will cause him to swallow, so there won't be any
residual breastmilk in the baby's mouth, just sitting for hours until the next
active feeding.
       I think this is an interesting theory that may have some merit.
       Dee


Dee Kassing, BS, MLS, IBCLC
Collinsville, Illinois, in central USA

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