Non-nutritive sucking (NNS) is defined as any sucking when fluid is not being introduced via the mouth e.g sucking on a dummy

Use of dummies are encouraged on Butterfly

You can help you baby transition to suck feeding sooner and provide them with comfort by allowing them to use a dummy.

It is important to give your baby lots of opportunities to suck as this improves milk digestion. Sucking a dummy or empty breast contact can help your baby to achieve full suck feeds earlier than if they don’t do NNS. Sucking also assists with settling to sleep and calming during medical treatments.

We use gumdrop/jollydrop dummies on Butterfly. The green dummy is for smaller babies less than 2.5kg and the orange dummy is for babies greater than 2.5kg. It is important to remember to wash your baby's dummy with warm soapy water before using it and store it in a clean dry place.

Encourage your baby to suck at the following times:

• Before a feed
• During a nasogastric tube feed
• During medical treatments
• To settle to sleep