Nipple mess

and Sabine Schrör, medical journalist Updated on

Nicole Wendler holds a PhD in biology in the field of oncology and immunology. As a medical editor, author and proofreader, she works for various publishers, for whom she presents complex and extensive medical issues in a simple, concise and logical manner.

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Sabine Schrör is a freelance writer for the medical team. She studied business administration and public relations in Cologne. As a freelance editor, she has been at home in a wide variety of industries for more than 15 years. Health is one of her favorite subjects.

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With a nipple confusion, the baby has difficulty sucking milk from the mother's breast and soon refuses to breastfeed. The triggers for this "breast strike" are usually aids such as pacifiers and bottles, with which the infant unlearns its innate sucking reflex. You can find out what other causes there are and how you can resolve or prevent nipple confusion here.

How breast sucking works

Breastfeeding is a coordination challenge for the baby: controlled by the central nervous system, chewing, sucking, swallowing and breathing take place almost simultaneously. To do this, the tongue, lips and jaw must work together synchronously. If the infant has well enclosed the nipple (nipple) with its mouth wide open, it has to work the breast with its toothless chewing ridges. When the child pushes the tongue under the areola, creates a vacuum with the lips and roof of the mouth, and finally sucks, the milk begins to flow.

Babies master suckling immediately after birth. The reason for this is their innate sucking reflex. After a few weeks of training, the reflex is no longer necessary as the correct technique has now been perfected through diligent repetition.

What is a nipple mess?

In the first few weeks, however, this learning process is very prone to failure. If a baby is offered various suction aids too often during this time, his or her sucking reflex can quickly become "confused". Hardly any work is necessary on the bottle: With your mouth slightly open, without vacuum or suction, the milk flows more or less by itself into your mouth.

If the reflex atrophies before the baby has learned to drink from the breast, nipple confusion occurs. Breast milk does not flow or flows poorly, and the baby is dissatisfied with the result: it refuses to breast and goes on a breast strike.

However, nipple confusion is not always the reason when babies refuse to breastfeed. Some children are simply too tired or weakened by an illness so that they do not have the strength to suckle on their breasts. The taste of breast milk can also make a baby feel less willing to drink from time to time.

Nuckle Confusion: Causes

Different aids - used too early, too often and in combination - encourage nipple confusion. In many cases this becomes a nipple mess

• through pacifiers,
• by bottle teats or pacifiers and / or
• promoted by nipple shields.

Improper application can also add to nipple confusion. Occasionally, babies have already trained their sucking reflex in the womb when they have diligently sucked fingers or thumbs while swimming in the amniotic fluid.

Prevent nipple confusion

Of course, you have no control over what your child is up to in the womb. However, it is easy to avoid nipple confusion after the birth. Mothers should avoid switching back and forth between bottle teats, pacifiers, pacifiers and breasts, especially in the first six weeks after giving birth.

• Use the pacifier only carefully - "as little as possible, as much as necessary".
• If you need to express milk, nipple teats are advisable.
• Also, make sure that you are laying your baby on correctly.

Nuckle Confusion: Symptoms

There are some signs that indicate nipple confusion, but can also appear with other breastfeeding problems.

Signs in the child:

• refuses the breast and weeps
• sucks briefly, but stops - crying or not - right away
• is extremely restless and upset while breastfeeding
• "Sucks" on the nipple, does not drink properly (no swallowing can be heard), and the milk does not flow
• easily loses the nipple
• instead of swallowing, clicking or smacking noises can be heard
• When sucking, dimples form, similar to sucking on a straw

Signs in the mother:

• after breastfeeding, the breast is not "empty" and soft
• Feeling of tightness, congestion of milk, inflammation of the breast (mastitis)
• sore nipples

What to do with nipple confusion?

Fixing nipple confusion is possible in principle, but requires patience. The earlier babies learn other drinking techniques, the more difficult it can become. Here are some tips:

• Don't put yourself under pressure and stay calm!
• Outsmart the child while half asleep: A hungry and awake child is seldom willing to compromise.
• Manually trigger the milk donor reflex before breastfeeding. This facilitates the flow of milk and the baby succeeds more quickly.
• Body contact and a few drops of milk soothe a restless child before breastfeeding.
• Check the breastfeeding position and positioning: The mouth must enclose the nipple and areola.
• C-handle or DanCer-handle improves the vacuum in case of nipple confusion.
• If possible, do not use any aids such as bottle teats and pacifiers if you are confused about nipples.
• Nipple shields can sometimes make the way from the bottle to the breast easier, but should only be used for a short time.

Don't take nipple mess personally!

When an infant rejects the breast due to nipple confusion, it is often difficult for the mother to endure. But be aware that your baby may refuse to breastfeed, but not you as a mother! Babies are "reluctance-avoiders": If, due to the confusion of nipples, they are unable to become full and satisfied while breastfeeding, they would simply prefer to go to more easily accessible sources of milk.

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