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Tuesday, December 6, 2011 – Daily News FEATURES Don't let pacifier become crutch DEAR DOCTOR K: My new baby wants her pacifier all the time. The moment I take it away, she sticks her thumb in her mouth. How can I break her of these habits? DEAR READER: In general, thumb- and fin- ger-sucking in an infant is not something to worry about. You have little control over it, anyway. Why do babies suck their fingers and thumbs? Who knows? The babies can't tell you. One theory is that nurs- ing is comforting to babies: It provides food to take away hunger and offers contact with mom. When something makes a baby uneasy, even if the baby is not hungry, he or she seeks reassurance and comfort from sucking on something. Thumb-sucking does help some babies sleep. To put some myths to rest, thumb-sucking won't delay your child's language devel- opment. And it won't cause any harm to her mouth or teeth if it is stopped by age 4 or 5. If your infant sucks her thumb, first make sure she is getting enough to eat. If she wants to nurse a little longer or wants a little more formu- la, let her eat. Once you've established that the sucking isn't about food, allow her the comfort of her fingers or thumb. I'm not a pediatrician, but from conversations with my pediatric colleagues here at Harvard, I view pacifiers a little differently. Unlike thumb- or finger-sucking, which is generally your baby's choice, introducing a pacifier is your choice. Once you've made that choice and given the object to your baby, it can be hard to take it away later. Dr. K by Anthony L. Komaroff, M.D. have Pacifiers do some advantages: They satisfy the sucking need, offer comfort and may help some babies sleep. A pacifi- er may be most useful in infants 2 to 4 months old, when the need to suck seems to be strongest. Your baby might lose interest after this time frame — unless the pacifier has become a sleeping aid. If you put your baby to bed with one, she might wake up repeatedly when she loses it during the night. Make sure you don't let the pacifier become a crutch. Before you put the pacifier into your baby's mouth, ask yourself if it is really sucking that your baby wants. If your baby just needs comforting, there are other things you can do. Try talking or singing to your baby, picking her up and swaying from side to side. She may just need to know you are there and that you will protect her. Because your baby already has an alternative to the pacifier — her thumb — my advice would be to grad- ually take away the pacifier. I emphasize "gradually": Sudden changes can be very upsetting. Thumb-sucking may become problematic if it per- sists beyond age 4 or 5. But by that time, it will more than likely be a long-forgot- ten habit. Dr. Komaroff is a physician and professor at Harvard Medical School.Go to his website to send questions and get additional inf or mation: www.AskDoctorK.com. 'Breaking Dawn' stays aloft with $16.5M weekend LOS ANGELES (AP) — ''The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1'' has pulled in $16.5 million to hold on to the No. 1 spot at the box office for a third-straight time a weekend that was Hollywood's slowest of the year. Domestic revenues totaled just $81 million, coming in $500,000 behind the year's previous low over the second weekend of September. Despite a strong lineup of family films, Hollywood was unable to pack fans into theaters after the busy Thanksgiving weekend. The top 10 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, followed by distribution studio, gross, num- ber of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Monday by Hollywood.com are: 1. ''The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 1,'' Summit, $16,535,465, 4,046 locations, $4,087 average, $246,926,409, three weeks. 2. ''The Muppets,'' Disney, $11,082,755, 3,440 locations, $3,222 average, $56,357,170, two weeks. 3. ''Hugo,'' Paramount, $7,557,709, 1,840 locations, $4,107 average, $25,121,185, two weeks. 4. ''Arthur Christmas,'' Sony, $7,401,736, 3,376 loca- tions, $2,192 average, $25,343,487, two weeks. 5. ''Happy Feet Two,'' Warner Bros., $5,919,390, 3,536 locations, $1,674 average, $51,704,566, three weeks. 6. ''Jack and Jill,'' Sony, $5,356,973, 3,049 locations, $1,757 average, $64,165,454, four weeks. 7. ''The Descendants,'' Fox Searchlight, $4,789,741, 574 locations, $8,344 average, $17,677,071, three weeks. 8. ''Immortals,'' Relativity Media, $4,464,889, 2,627 locations, $1,700 average, $75,659,174, four weeks. 9. ''Tower Heist,'' Universal, $3,953,925, 2,404 locations, $1,645 average, $70,598,755, five weeks. 10. ''Puss in Boots,'' Paramount, $3,042,241, 2,750 loca- tions, $1,106 average, $139,514,442, six weeks. Secluded son suspicions Dear Annie: My husband and I have three adult sons. The oldest and youngest are married, but the middle son (age 56) is not. He has his own house in our neighborhood and has had a younger man liv- ing with him for many years. We assume our son is gay, which is fine, but he has never admitted it. Annie's Mailbox by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar The last time we saw our son was Father's Day. I sent him a birthday card in late July and asked why we haven't heard from him. I reassured him that we love him. I received no response. We then called and left phone messages twice. Still no word. When we do get together, our son is friendly, pleasant and charming. However, we are hurt and disappointed that he never invites us over, nor does he keep in touch other than a few times a year. Should we just accept this behavior or confront him in person by show- ing up at his home? — Pariahs, Not Parents Dear Parents: Oh, please don't do that. Some children are not comfortable having their parents over, and an unexpected visit would likely make matters worse. If you believe the ''younger man'' is his partner, we hope you have welcomed both of them to your home. Your son might appre- ciate your acceptance of this man as part of his life, and it may make LOS ANGELES (MCT) — It's official: Madonna will perform during the Super Bowl XLVI halftime show on Feb. 5. The news was con- firmed during NBC's "Sunday Night Football" game between the Detroit Lighted house contest Entry forms for the annual Lighted House Contest can be picked up at the Corning Chamber of Commercem 1110 Solano St., between now and the Dec. 14 deadline. It does not cost to enter the contest. Decorate your home, trees, shrubs, etc. with lights and enter today. The TRAX Lighted House Bus Tour will meet at 6 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 16, at the Transportation Center. Reservations must be made by Dec. 14 by calling 385-2877. Please arrive early as buses will leave at 6 p.m. For more information call the Corning Chamber of Commerce at 824-5550. Have a news tip? Call 527- 2151, Ext. 112 ATTENTION ATHLETES Baseball/Softball Fusion Camp Have your best season yet This 4 week camp combines speed training, sport specific conditioning, plyometrics, and core training. This camp will make you a better mover, and more efficient at the movements of your sport! Guaranteed to make you better! December 1st -22nd • January 3rd , 5th Tuesday and Thursdays 4:00-5:00 At Tehama Family Fitness Center Cost $80 paid in full prior to camp Limited to 20 athletes Instructed By: Troy Lalaguna, CSCS and Divsion 1 Softball player Aubrie Stroman Tehama Family Fitness Center 2498 South Main St • Red Bluff 528-8656 www.tehamafamilyfitness.com him more amenable to closer con- tact. But our main concern is whether your son is OK. Is it unusual not to have heard from him since June, despite your birthday card and phone messages? You might want to call once more and tell him you are worried about his well-being. Dear Annie: I remember all of the letters about how to hang the toilet paper. I have a different ques- tion on the subject. Several of my friends just prop the roll of toilet paper on top of the cylinder instead of sticking the roller through the hole in the paper. People then pick up the roll with their hands and remove as much as they need. This might not be so bad, except that some people use the roll more than once on the same bathroom visit. Also, some- times the toilet paper is dropped on the floor before being re-propped. Several times I have made remarks regarding how unhealthy this habit may be, but they just laugh. Although they are otherwise hygienic, these people seem to have more upset stomachs than our other friends. When I visit their houses, I carry folded toilet paper in my purse in order to avoid using their well-handled rolls. They tease me for being germophobic, saying everyone washes their hands before leaving the bathroom. But what if they first brush the hair out of their eyes or touch their mouths before washing their contaminated hands? Is this healthy? — One Who Wants the Tissue Hung Prop- erly Dear Tissue: This seems less an Lions and New Orleans Saints. Rumors had been swirling for weeks that the Material Girl would hit the stage during foot- ball's most epic game of the year. And the timing couldn't be more perfect — the 53-year-old issue of hygiene than one of lazi- ness. We are unaware of any stud- ies that differentiate between using a propped-up roll of toilet paper versus one on a roller. But we can tell you that the probability of hav- ing the roll fall on the floor (or in the toilet) makes it automatically less sanitary than using the roller. And by the way, it is highly unlike- ly that all those who use the bath- room wash their hands with soap and water before leaving. Dear Annie: ''Cool Grandma Doesn't Care'' said her mother-in- law is encouraging her adult daughter to share sleeping arrange- ments with her live-in boyfriend, even though Mom and Dad disap- prove. You said in her own home. Grandma can do what she wants What about the daughter and her boyfriend respecting her parents' wishes regardless of where they sleep? The boyfriend should do the right thing. Better to make a possi- ble future mother-in-law happy than Grandma. — El Segundo, Calif. Dear El: That would be excep- tionally gracious, but Mom cannot force him to do it, and her daughter doesn't seem inclined to ask. Annie's Mailbox is written by Kathy Mitchell and Marcy Sugar, longtime editors of the Ann Landers column. Please e-mail your questions to anniesmailboxcomcast.net, or write to: Annie's Mailbox, c/o Creators Syndicate, 5777 W. Century Blvd., Ste. 700, Los Angeles, CA 90045. Madonna to perform during Super Bowl halftime show singer's romantic drama "W.E." just happens to be rolling out in theaters two days before the game. And she is currently recording an album due for release next year. At this past February's Super Bowl, the Black Eyed Peas performed, while the Who headlined the 2010 halftime show. The 2012 big game, which will air on NBC, is set to take place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indi- anapolis. Madonna will team up with Cirque Du Soleil and Jamie King for the performance. 3B