This article is about the baby pacifier. Pacifier is also a term describing someone that trys to turn a situation towards peace. Pacifier was also a short lived name for the band Shihad.

Pacifier, (AmE) or dummy (BE) is a rubber or plastic nipple given to an infant for it to suck upon.

History

While pacifiers have taken on a general standard appearance (teat, mouth shield and handle) they can be anything that baby the baby can suck on for comfort. The current incarnation evolved in the early 20th century from teething rings and were manufactured with a choice of black, maroon or white rubber – the white rubber of the day contained a certain amount of lead. Parents in the 1600s used white candy sticks as pacifiers for their children.

In the 1800s, the expression "born with a silver spoon in his mouth" could be taken literally – silver seethers were often given to babies born to wealth. Other expense materials were also used, with mother-of-pearl or coral being thought to ward off sickness. Cheap alternatives included the "sugar tit", a piece of dampened cloth wrapped around a small amount of sugar.

Problems caused by their use

It has been commonly advised that, should the baby not take to the pacifier, it should be dipped in a sweet substance such as honey. This has been shown to cause problems for the development of the baby's teeth.

In common culture

Maggie Simpson from animated television show The Simpsons is rarely separated from her pacifier, and her constant "suck, suck, suck" sound has been one of the only sounds made by the baby.

In the mid 1990s, soothers were featured in the world of U.S. fashion, becoming a teen trend to wear pacifiers as accessories.