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Updated: Jan 19, 2026
Author Spotlight: Implications of Non-Nutritive Sucking on Speech Emergence and Infant Development
Published on: April 19, 2024
Exclusive breast-feeding is associated with reduced pacifier sucking in children: Breast-feeding and pacifier-sucking
Insights
Exclusive breast-feeding (EB) for six months is linked to fewer pacifier-sucking habits in infants. Promoting EB may reduce pacifier use and protect oral health.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Oral Health
Background:
- Infant sucking behaviors can arise from insufficient emotional satiety and stimulation from breastfeeding.
- Pacifier use is a common habit with potential negative impacts on oral development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the association between exclusive breastfeeding (EB) duration (4-6 months postpartum) and pacifier-sucking behavior at 12 months of age.
Main Methods:
- A cohort study followed 1,037 infants for 12 months.
- Breastfeeding type (exclusive, predominant, complementary, none) was assessed at 4 and 6 months.
- Prevalence of pacifier sucking and its association with breastfeeding were analyzed using relative risk (RR).
Main Results:
- Infants not exclusively breastfed at 4 or 6 months showed significantly higher adjusted relative risks of pacifier-sucking behavior at 12 months.
- For example, at 6 months, non-EB infants had an adjusted RR of 3.30 (95% CI, 2.40 to 4.54) for pacifier use.
Conclusions:
- Six months of exclusive breastfeeding postpartum is associated with a reduction in pacifier-sucking behavior.
- Promoting exclusive breastfeeding can mitigate pacifier use and its potential adverse oral health effects.
- Healthcare professionals should emphasize breastfeeding's importance for oral health and habit development.
Background:
Studies suggest that when children do not achieve the emotional satiety and adequate stimulus provided by breast-feeding, they exhibit sucking behaviors. This study aimed to estimate the association from 4 through 6 months of exclusive breast-feeding (EB) postpartum and pacifier-sucking behavior at 12 months of life.
Methods:
A cohort study was conducted with 1,037 infants, born alive and monitored up to 12 months. At 4 and 6 months after birth, the children were classified according to the type of breast-feeding they had received: exclusive, predominant, complementary, or none. The prevalence of pacifier-sucking behavior was calculated, and the association between the 2 events was estimated. Mothers' socioeconomic-demographic characteristics, delivery features, and prenatal care, as well as the biological characteristics of the children, were determined. Relative risk (RR) and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were calculated.
Results:
In comparison with EB infants, the RR of pacifier-sucking behavior at 12 months of life was higher in children receiving complementary breast-feeding or no breast-feeding for both 4 months (RRadjusted, 1.68 [95% CI, 1.39 to 2.02] and RRadjusted, 2.67 [95% CI, 2.24 to 3.17], respectively) and 6 months (RRadjusted, 1.43 [95% CI, 1.03 to 2.00] and RRadjusted, 3.30 [95% CI, 2.40 to 4.54], respectively).
Conclusions And Practical Implications:
EB for 6 months postpartum is associated with reduced pacifier-sucking behavior, adjusted for maternal color, number of prenatal consultations, and family income. Promotion of EB may reduce the use of pacifiers and their potential deleterious effects on oral health. Dental health care professionals should consider discussing the importance of breast-feeding with their patients with regard to the possible development of sucking habits in their children.
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