Adult pacifiers trending in China for stress relief and sleep; doctors warn of health risks

Adult pacifiers which claim to relieve anxiety and improve sleep have become a trending product in China, sparking concerns from doctors and internet users.

Some online shops claim they sell more than 2,000 such items a month.

They are described as being bigger than the baby version and sell for between 10 and 500 yuan (US$1.4 and US$70), the news outlet The Cover reported.

Many shops say that adult pacifiers offer stress relief and help with sleep.

(Online shops claim the adult-sized dummies can help relieve stress and aid sleep. Photo: Handout)

Some say the products can also help people quit smoking and assist with proper breathing.

The nipple part is transparent and the shield comes in a variety of colours, the Post found.

“It is high quality, soft, and I feel comfortable sucking it. It does not impede my breathing,” one buyer said on a leading shopping platform.

“It is amazing in helping me quit smoking. It gives me psychological comfort and makes me not so fidgety during my smoke cessation periods,” said another person.

(Some retailers claim the pacifiers can also help people stop smoking. Photo: Handout)

A third buyer said: “When I am under pressure at work, I suck on the dummy. I feel I am indulged in a sense of safety from childhood.”

But doctors have warned of potential health hazards.

"The potential damage to customers' mouths by the pacifiers is intentionally played down by their sellers," Tang Caomin, a dentist in Chengdu, Sichuan province in southwestern China, was quoted as saying.

Using pacifiers over a long period may limit a person's ability to open their mouth and cause pain when chewing, he said.

"By sucking the dummy for more than three hours a day, the position of your teeth might change after a year," said Tang.

The doctor also warned that parts of the dummy could be inhaled while a person is asleep.

(The adult dummies are larger than those traditionally used by babies. Photo: Shutterstock)

Zhang Mo, a psychologist in Chengdu, said the emotional needs of a person using a dummy may not be being met.

"The real solution is not to treat themselves as a child, but to face the challenge directly and to solve it," she told the media.

This product has provoked a lively debate on mainland social media after being viewed 60 million times on one platform alone.

"This world has become so mad that adults are using pacifiers," said one online observer.

Ref: Adult pacifiers trending in China for stress relief and sleep; doctors warn of health risks