text: Pacifiers were settling into their modern form around 1900 when the first teat, shield and handle design was patented in the US as a "baby comforter" by Manhattan pharmacist Christian W. Meinecke.  Rubber had been used in flexible teethers sold as "elastic gum rings" for British babies in the mid-19th century, and also used for feeding-bottle teats. In 1902, Sears, Roebuck & Co. advertised a "new style rubber teething ring, with one hard and one soft nipple". In 1909, someone calling herself "Auntie Pacifier" wrote to the New York Times to warn of the "menace to health" (she meant dental health) of "the persistent, and, among poorer classes, the universal sucking of a rubber nipple sold as a 'pacifier. In England too, dummies were seen as something the poorer classes would use, and associated with poor hygiene. In 1914, a London doctor complained about "the dummy teat": "If it falls on the floor it is rubbed momentarily on the mother's blouse or apron, lipped by the mother and replaced in the baby's mouth."
  Early pacifiers were manufactured with a choice of black, maroon or white rubber, though the white rubber of the day contained a certain amount of lead. Binky (with a y) was first used in about 1935 as a trademarked brand name for pacifiers and other baby products manufactured by the Binky Baby Products Company of New York. The brand trademark is owned by Playtex in the U.S. (and other countries).
  Drawbacks
  There are negative effects from using a pacifier during breastfeeding for healthy babies. The AAP suggests avoiding pacifiers for the first month. Introducing a pacifier can lead to the infant ineffectively sucking at the breast and causing "nipple confusion". Babies will take their suck out on the pacifier instead of nursing or comfort nursing at the breast which is good for the mother's supply.  Evidence in premature infants or infants that are not healthy is lacking but shows that it can have benefits. It may have clinical benefits for preterm babies, such as helping them progress from tube to bottle feeding.
  Infants who use pacifiers may have more ear infections (otitis media). The effectiveness of avoiding the use of a pacifier to prevent ear infections is not known.