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Night Time Nursing and Cavities
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by Jennifer Sprague
Can nursing at night cause more cavities?
This is a question that came up in my own life with my son. I researched on the internet, by asking trusted friends from the La Leche League and with research in books; I found an answer that I believe in, which I want to share with you.
First some background:
I have a 28 1/2 month old son who has been "diagnosed" with sensory dysfunction disorder with a speech delay. With these two issues mixed together, for Zachary at least, it means that eating a regular diet is difficult if not, at times, impossible.
However, in Zachary's favor before he was born, I made myself a deal, I would nurse him for AT LEAST the first 3 months. No matter how hard it was, I would deal with it, find the answers to our issues and work though all the problems. Which quite frankly is another post, coming soon!
But anyway, to make a long story short, breastfeeding for us worked after many trials. We are currently still nursing, which, again is in Zachary's favor. With his not eating many "traditional" foods, nursing is a main source of intake for him. My guess is, depending on the day, somewhere between 60% to 70%. Zachary is smaller than your average 2 year old, at just 23 pounds.
With all of this going on, it has been our mutual decision that we continue to nurse during the day, and also at night. Now, a lot of you are probably thinking I am nuts! I have had many people comment saying things like:
* If you stop nursing him at night, he will eat more during the day.
* Nursing at night is bad and has to be uncomfortable for both of you.
* Nursing at night is going to give him cavities.
So that brought me to my questions. The first comment was pretty easy for me to test. For several nights I denied Zachary. It was HORRIBLE, not only did we not sleep, but also the nights were filled with screaming. I did it for 1 1/2 nights; I could not handle any longer than that. But what I did learn, is that in no way did not nursing at night make him eat more, as a matter of fact, it made him eat less. He was mad at me, ate much less during the day, and struggled to nurse as well!
The 2nd issue that other people brought up, is that its not good for either of us. Most of these people pointed out that it must be hard or uncomfortable for us to sleep. Well this one too was easy to disprove, as we both SLEEP, though sometimes its less comfortable than others, we do sleep! I am also ok with his nursing at night, we co-sleep so I sleep while he is nursing, as does he!
The 3rd one really bothered me however. Zachary has been to the pediatric dentist twice in his life, with no cavities present. Unfortunately, when I asked the dentist about our nursing and what he had to say was all very negative. His only response was that I quit breast feeding as soon as possible! Which, with the other situations going on, was NOT something I at all wanted to do, or felt like I could do!
So I went in search of answers.
Is breastfeeding at night, really going to cause my son to get cavities?
My conclusion - there is no direct link between night nursing and children getting cavities.
The reasons for this conclusion are as follows:
1. Bottle feed babies given bottles at night have more cavities, because milk flows out of a bottle even if the child is not sucking. Where as with breastfeeding, milk does not flow unless the baby is actively sucking.
2. Breast milk also enters a baby's mouth well behind the teeth, as you can see from the picture, a mothers nipple is well behind where any teeth might be.
3. The bacterium that causes cavities is strep mutans. However, there is a component in breast milk that fights and actually kill’s strep mutans, it's called lactoferrin.
4. The other antibodies in breast milk also counteract the bacteria in the mouth that causes cavities and decay.
In conclusion, generally children will get at least one cavity in childhood, it's almost unavoidable. There are also as small number of children that have a genetic susceptibility to having many cavities, and it seems that no matter what we do, as parents to prevent them, nothing works! Though there are things you can do to help prevent them such as
* It is a good idea to brush your babies teeth in the morning when they get up and at night before they go to bed (even if you nurse after that brushing).
* It is a good idea to keep teeth clean especially after eating sugary juices or foods.
* It is a good idea not to let your baby carry around a bottle or cup all day.
* It is also a good idea to avoid sticky foods, in young children.
* It is a good idea not to let babies bring bottles to bed, or let them drink from them while lying down.
With our research, it is my conclusion that nursing is not going to cause my son to get more cavities and in fact my nursing might in turn cause him to get less cavities!
Jennifer Sprague is co-owner of All Natural Mommies, formerly at http://www.hightopbabydesigns.com. She has several years of teaching experience, working with infants through adults and has a passion for helping children live happy, healthy and secure lives. Jennifer has been a nanny, daycare provider, teacher, and is currently studying to become a Doula and a Lactation Consultant.
Article Source: www.ladypens.com
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