Arly, You might like to add that although sucking is a reflex activity, integrating the oral motor skills into the smooth pattern neccessary for optimal milk transfer is a learned skill requiring organization in the infant. Since pain has a disorganizing effect, this integration is hampered, reducing breastfeeding efficiency. (This won't work on those dinosaurs that justify operating on babies' genitals without anesthesia by convincing themselves that they don't feel pain, but it is true.) Good luck. Catherine Watson Genna, IBCLC