Will my husband offering his finger for the baby to suck on cause nipple confusion?

Question

He does it like CONSTANTLY! It drives me absolutely nuts & it makes me want to scream. It seems to me if a pacifier or bottle can cause nipple confusion, so would his damn finger. He gets all offended and pissed off when I ask him not to do it. But God all I want is for breast feeding to be as least stressful as possible because both my baby and I are still learning.

Sorry for the rant. Can baby sucking on his finger cause nipple confusion? He does it specifically to check & see if baby is hungry, to see if he latches on.

Answer

No. Our lactation consultants frequently recommended this to us with my first as a way to soothe baby without a pacifier. Just make sure he washes his hands first.

Answer

I think your biggest issue would be the baby later sucking his fingers, not nipple confusion.

Answer

That is how a lot of people check to see if baby is hungry as long as he is just checking and does it for a few seconds not just letting baby suck and suck and suck it ain't gonna harm anything.

Answer

I used to offer my kids my pinky knuckle to see if they were truly hungry (when fussy...as I was pulling out a boob) as a way to soothe them until I could get them latched.  (The sucking reflex doubles as a soothing action, that's why pacifiers are so effective.)  It never caused confusion.  It's just more frustrating when other people do it, because sometimes the baby isn't really hungry and they are soothed by sucking on something  (pacifiers, fingertips, pinky knuckles...et.) and don't need the breast you just frantically pulled out to try and comfort/feed your baby with.  We all go through it when we first start out with nursing.  Be patient with hubby, as infuriating as his behavior can be, he's probably just in awe of how your baby reacts to his simple gestures.  Good luck mama...you will get through these first days/weeks!

Answer

I've never heard of nipple confusion. My first sucked on fingers and pacifiers and trust me he was not confused about nipples and where the goods come from 😂

Answer

Nipple confusion is an outdated theory. You're fine. Make sure his hands are sparkly clean!

Answer

If your baby is breastfeeding without a problem I wouldn't worry about it.  And remember, he's a parent too.

My husband does this, and introduced the paci.  Hasn't been an issue.

Answer

I wouldn't worry so much. I'm sure you're just trying to do what you believe is best for your new baby, but he will be just fine!

Let your hubby bond with his new son :)

Will my husband offering his finger for the baby to suck on cause nipple confusion?

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