The Air Force Safety Center is a Field Operating Agency with headquarters at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M.
The Finnish researchers are unsure why the use of a pacifier might lead to an ear infection, but theorized it may have something to do with the change in pressure equilibrium inside the ear caused by the sucking.
People of all ages get ear infections. However, such infections are especially common in young children. This is because the eustachian tubes of children under age five are very small and soft, and so they are easily blocked. Another reason that young children get ear infections is because of their adenoids (AD-e-noidz).