So I know I've been MIA for a few days, but this last week has been busy!
Allow me to break it down for you: my Mom received a kidney transplant and my little sister was her donor, I have been helping to create a new CME for my WFH job, I was getting out late almost everyday at my regular job, we had to finish up some home improvement projects that should have been done months ago, and my baby turned six months old! On top of all this, I have been testing out some new pacifiers for Clara and I'm ready to review them.
The whole reason why I have (what seems like) 8 billion pacifiers lying around my house is because Clara has GERD. While she was staying in the Children's Hospital, some of her doctors informed us that GERD babies do very well with pacifiers for the simple fact that it keeps them from spitting up so much. The constant sucking reflex helps keep the acid down, as well as soothes them when their tummies hurt. Clara had already been using the Avent Soothies in between feedings but, and they were alright, but she tended to spit it out more often than not. I needed to find something she would take all the time, and hoped it would help keep her from spitting up her entire bottle.
A day or so after Clara was discharged from the hospital, I was shopping at Target when I came cross the MAM pacifiers. I had never seen a paci with that shape before, it was flat! I thought to myself, “What the hell, its only a few bucks. Might as well give it a try.” I bought a two-pack and brought them home. She took to it immediately! Loved it so much I had to go out at buy more just ot make sure we had extras for the house and the diaper bag. We started off with the 0-6 month size and it was perfect for her. As the months went on of using this paci, I have found it doesn't really keep her from spitting up, nothing does, not even her meds. However, it does seem to keep her tummy aches at bay.
Recently, I decided I wanted to have her try a paci made of 100% natural rubber. I have heard these pacis are better for the environment and better for baby. There are a few brands out there of natural rubber pacis, but what seems to be a favorite among mommies is the Natursutten. This all-natural pacifier is made in Italy, doesn't contain any cracks, crevices, or joints where bactieria can hide, is produced from sustainable plantages, and (best of all), allergen-free! That's right, they have removed the most common protein that causes a latex allergy. As someone that works in the medical field, I find that really fascinating.
The Natursutten is about $12 on Amazon. It's also on Prime, so not a bad price, but most pacis average about $6 or so. I started looking into “knockoff” rubber pacifiers and came across a brand named Sweetie. It is considered a close second to the Natursutten and its only about $9 on Amazon. However, no where on the listing does it say it is allergen-free. So, I ordered both and decided to do a comparison. They were delivered to my house within a few days and we gave it a whirl.
The first one we tried was the Sweetie, since it arrived at my house first. As soon as I took it out of the packaging, I noticed what felt like latex powder coated on the pacifier. I immediately washed it off according to the directions and told my husband not to go near it. Mike has a serious latex allergy, he starts having a reaction as soon as he's in the same room with stuff. Well, he decided he wanted to be a guinea pig for this experiment and rubbed the pacifier all over his arm (I begged him not to, but he's stubborn). With just a few minutes, he began forming hives all over the area he rubbed the pacifier and complained of itching and burning. Insert an “I told you so.” from me. Anywhoo, he treated the hives and went about his day, I put the pacifier back in the baggie is was shipped in and waited for the other one to arrive.
The Natursutten arrived the next day and Mike tested it on his skin, no reaction whatsoever. Like, at all. The pacifier held true to it's claim of being allergen-free! Next step was to give it to Clara and see what she thinks. Long story short, she wasn't a fan. She chewed on it mostly. It looked pretty and hip and eco-friendly, but she wasn't having it. My dreams of converting her to a more sustainable paci were crushed, she will forever be a MAM baby. However, in the week I was trying to get Clara on board with the different paci, I was able to notice some differences between the Sweetie and Natursutten. Though both nipples are round and meant for 6-12 month babies, the neck of the nipple on the Sweetie is shorter than that of the Natursutten, and the tip of the nipple is wider. Now, this has no effect on my life since Clara REFUSED to take it, but that little bit of info might help anyone else looking to purchase a rubber paci.
So yeah, this was my small contribution in trying to make our lives more sustainable, but it failed. Oh well, on to the next thing.
-The Upstate Blonde