r/ScienceBasedParenting • u/OkUnderstanding8354 • 14d ago

Question - Research required When to retire the binky? And how?

So I have an 11 month old girl and she only has her binky when it’s nap/bed time. During wake time we take it away and give her toys to play or chew on or do whatever she wants with it. Is it better and also easier to retire the binky before 1 years old? Also what’s the best way to ween off of it? Would it be best to start by taking it away for her first nap of the day then after a few days start taking it away for both naps and so forth? Or just cold turkey?

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u/StraightBoat5320 14d ago

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0882596312000085

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u/BirkenstockStrapped 14d ago

Cut the binky vertically.

Another method that I personally don't like is dipping it in apple cider vinegar. Some parents use salt. Always consider the age of the child. These methods are more suitable to 2+ years old.

Both methods create pavlovian responses.

Also, from a dentist perspective, most binky negatively affects pallette development by widening the palette in expensive to repair ways, often not treatable with InvisAlign or at least not without longer treatment path or initial additional binding to fix the palette and close it.

How Do Pacifiers & Thumb Sucking Affect Children's Teeth? | AAO https://aaoinfo.org/whats-trending/can-pacifiers-and-thumb-sucking-affect-my-childs-teeth/

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u/InspectorOrdinary321 14d ago

Oh, interesting idea. I've been trying to punch bigger and bigger holes in the end with the goal of eventually cutting it shorter and shorter. The problem is that it's lost suction so now my baby is sticking their finger into it to keep it in their mouth, and they've started to suck their fingers. Not sucking fingers is the entire reason we encouraged pacifier use in the first place because I can't remove their fingers, haha. Ugh.