Question
My child has been crying and fussy lately, and doesn’t eat much. When can a baby stop wearing an umbilical cord belt?
Answer
After the baby’s umbilical cord naturally falls off, the umbilical cord area might be a bit moist and have some liquid seepage. This is because the surface where the umbilical cord fell off has not yet fully healed, causing the liquid in the granulation tissue to seep out. At this time, it is not necessary to use Danggui’er umbilical cord patches, as they are mainly used to treat childhood diarrhea, and should be avoided if there is any skin damage around the umbilical cord. Although no pacifier can completely replace the sensation of breastfeeding, you can choose some pacifiers that are closer to the feeling of breast milk. We have tried Ainyi, Beiqin, and NUK pacifiers, and found that NUK’s yellow silicone pacifier is softer and seems to be more favored by the child. Additionally, Beiqin has a pacifier that is said to be very close to the feeling of breast milk, although we haven’t tried it because it’s more expensive and we worry about wasting money. If you can afford it, you might want to give it a try. There’s also another suggestion to boil the pacifier to make it softer, which may make it easier for the baby to accept.