Among baby products, the pacifier is certainly the most used thanks to its ability to reassure the newborn when it is still unable to communicate, but needs comfort and to feel reassured.
To choose the best pacifier for our baby, in addition to assessing the age factor, we must also take into consideration the materials, such as rubber and silicone, and the shape, drop, or icing.
Right here we had listed out the best pacifiers you can choose which one suits your baby.
Pacifiers Buyer Guide
Forms and Structure
Since the first months, the use of pacifiers is indispensable in the daily life of families with small babies, for this reason, many parents try to leave with an advantage by trying to get culture on it already during the period of sweet waiting so as not to be caught unprepared.
It is an accessory so well known and used that it has become a real must without which it is often difficult to console the baby’s cry or make it fall asleep.
On the market, there is a myriad of models that can personalize the offer as much as possible and guarantee the baby the opportunity to choose the soother that best suits his tastes and desires.ย Which type to choose, depends a lot on the tastes of each individual baby, because each of them develops personal preferences that are felt immediately.
Each one will look for a model with which he feels most at ease and manages to calm him in a unique way, and what perhaps was fine for a brother or cousin may not be suitable or not satisfy the tastes of the newcomer. But how is the pacifier made and what parts make it up? We can always identify 2 elements present, that is
- Mask or shield
- Teat or teat
The widest part is precisely the mask or shield, and the teat is joined to it. it is also an indispensable element because it serves as a protection for the child so as not to swallow or completely put the pacifier in his mouth.
At the same time, it allows, by means of a ring, a button or a soft semicircular handle, to be attached to the clothing of the baby boy or to the anti-suffocation pillow or to the sheets where he sleeps.
The mask can be round or oval, the most classic and frequent shape in cherry pacifiers, or butterfly, typical of drip pacifiers, anatomically suitable to accommodate nose and chin without hindering proper breathing and typical of 6+ months models.
The most important thing is that the mask is soft and not too large to not bother the babies, especially during bedtime. In this way, they cannot scratch or injure themselves, but thanks to the shapes suitable for the faces of the little ones they are truly perfect.
Materials and Characteristics
Every child feels the innate need to suck, and then feels the need to bite once the growth of the teeth and the first pains in the gums have started. All types of silicone or rubber pacifiers are studied and designed not only by designers but also by dentists who take care of their correct orthodontic conformation.
For this reason, they are suitable for the shape of the oral cavity not interfering in the correct and healthy development of the palate and mouth of the little babies. In addition to the shapes, however, materials also play a leading role in the correct choice of the product.
They must not only be suitable to meet needs related to the various stages of growth and other more personal tastes as regards the baby, but also the requests of the parent, who will surely look for products that meet the need for particular resistance, comfort of use and speed of sterilization.
The most popular materials for making both teats and masks of the best pacifiers are:
- Silicone
- Rubber
- Latex
- Hard plastic
Odourless and tasteless, resistant and long-lasting, silicone is widespread in the production of various models. Excellent for very frequent sterilization because it does not deform and hardly breaks, it is perfect especially during the first months.
As it does not have a porous structure, therefore it does not absorb odors and flavors and, more importantly, it does not favor the proliferation of germs and bacteria.
100% natural rubber is a kind of rubber obtained from the homonymous plant. The pacifiers in this material are very resistant, elastic and soft. However, having a particularly porous structure they easily absorb odors and flavors, for this reason, they need more frequent and deep cleaning and more frequent replacements.
Extracted from different types of plants and then processed and refined with appropriate technologies capable of making it more resistant and long-lasting, latex has the same characteristics and almost the same color as rubber is elastic and resistant and resists well to the first bites of the teeth of the baby.
For this reason, it is indicated in the weaning and subsequent phases. Finally, it is good to mention in some pacifiers the presence of hard plastic, used for the construction of the mask. Obviously, in compliance with the en 1400 standard, these are completely BPA free and phthalate-free materials.
Absolutely suitable for coming into contact with the delicate mucosa of the baby’s oral cavity and with the skin of the face, essential requirements when choosing our model. Preferred.
When and Why to Use It
Although there are conflicting opinions on the use of the pacifier, as indeed in any other topic concerning the care and health of children, it is undeniable that this has advantages to mention.
- Help premature babies develop sucking ability
- It calms, calms, consoles and satisfies the baby naturally
- It can relieve pain perception and be used as an analgesic
- It reduces the risk of sids between the first and sixth month, facilitating the opening of the airways
Obviously, each pacifier must be used in moderation, understanding when to give the pacifier to the newborn, how to get used to this accessory, and trying to guess if it is the case, perhaps only to prepare it with the right serenity to face a napping nap.
If you can rather intervene in another way to understand what is the cause of a sudden or inconsolable crying, finding a solution, and fortifying the relationship with your child.
Extras and Customization
Often there is more than one baby in the house, and everyone has the right to enjoy their accessories, identifying them quickly and with absolute certainty, to recognize them and use them when they wish.
In this sense, aesthetics also play an important role in choosing the preferred model, for this reason, the offer of personalized pacifiers is increasingly detailed.
On the market, there are models with specific designs, from cartoon characters to flowers, animals and abstract designs, in a myriad of cheerful and bright colors, but that’s not all.
For babies who start their kindergarten experience, for example, and still don’t know how to distinguish their belongings from others, pacifiers with names are providential to avoid mistakes, and among the personalized pacifiers they are perhaps the most common and useful as well as being welcome gifts as they are a memory that can last forever.
Even the night model enjoys great success thanks to the presence of a fluorescent ring or button capable of shining in the dark. The luminescence, totally harmless to babies, lasts a few hours in the best models of pacifier night.
This allows you to find it with greater simplicity and without having to turn on the light so that even the little ones alone can reach out to their cradle and take it back if they feel like it, completely independently.
In addition to these details, it is possible to enrich the soothers with some extras, to make them even more responsive to the tastes of our frugoletti and practical for us.
One of the most common accessories is undoubtedly the chain, which allows the newborn pacifier to be attached to clothing, avoiding frequent accidental falls or loss while out and out walking, in constant movement.
Sterilization and Care
Since it is an object used daily by our children since they are babies, and moreover put in the mouth, it is very important that accessory tumblers are always absolutely clean and impeccably sterilized.
The sterilization itself will not only depend on the materials and the model but also on the frequency of use and the dirt accumulated during the day and in the various circumstances.
As for sure, it is good to follow the instructions given by the manufacturer on the package, sterilizing pacifier is a simple operation as far as it must obviously be accurate, and it is possible to choose whether to proceed using
- Sterilizer
- Microwave
- Boiling
If in the first case it is enough to place the soothers inside the appliance, with the microwave you can use special containers made for this purpose or use the box included in the package, adding a little water and selecting a power between 700 and 1000 w, for 2 or 3 minutes maximum.
In the event that you are away from home, just boil the pacifier in a saucepan with plain water for no more than 5 minutes. Rubber and latex must be treated with great care, not exceeding the temperatures indicated, otherwise there is a risk of ruining the texture and shape of the pacifier making it sticky in a short time.
Silicone models, especially if in one piece, can be sterilized instead very often and in the way you prefer since they are more resistant and less porous. After sterilization, the pacifier should be placed on a sheet of kitchen paper to dry and let it cool before giving it back to the child.
Sterilization must be done at least 1 time a day in the first 6 months of the baby’s life, but it is good not to exceed and not repeat the operation more than 3 or 4 times a day, because steam and boiling water could cause deformation or cause premature wear-reducing its duration.
As for the habit of some adults to put the pacifier in their mouth after a fall, while perhaps they are away from home and without other resources, it is good to remember that if on one hand, the saliva of the mother can help strengthen the defenses on the other.
It could represent a vehicle for viruses and bacteria, and it is therefore always advisable to limit this practice in favor of traditional methods. Some other good advice on this could help new parents, who will always have to remember to:
- Do not immerse it in chemical solutions, which can annoy the child
- Sterilize it after each use, every time it falls on the ground or gets dirty
- Do not use detergents without an adequate and accurate rinse
- Always use only steam and high temperatures to eliminate germs and bacteria
- Always and only use drinking water, whatever the method is chosen
These little tips will give you a hand especially in the first period, after which everything will come naturally and spontaneously. Finally, it is good to remember how it is appropriate to observe the pacifier daily, and if you notice a surface of the teat that is no longer intact due to some deeper bite.
You must immediately replace it to prevent small pieces from being accidentally swallowed. In any case, it is good practice to replace the pacifier every 2 or 3 months, just as if it were a toothbrush, for hygiene reasons and to be sure that the dimensions are correct and suitable for the baby’s growing oral cavity.
