Many babies suck their thumbs, often as a means of comfort when they are tired or feeling poorly or sleepy. In the early stages, babies can take a lot of reassurance from sucking their thumb, but prolonged thumb-sucking and using bottles and dummies can have serious implications for oral health and the development of the teeth. As dentists, we advise parents to try and discourage thumb-sucking as a baby grows and to try and encourage them to use a cup, rather than a bottle once they reach the age of 12 months old.
What harm does thumb-sucking do?
Thumb sucking can have a negative impact on the development and alignment of the teeth and the front teeth can be particularly badly affected. Children who suck their thumbs are more likely to have misaligned teeth and protruding front teeth, as the action of the thrusting the tongue can cause the teeth to move forward and stick out at an angle.
Thumb sucking can also contribute to speech problems, most commonly the development of a lisp.
How can I stop it?
It can be much more difficult to preventing your children from sucking their thumbs than a dummy because the thumb happens to be attached to them making it harder to simply take it off them; however, there are ways to discourage children. Tips from parents, doctors and dentists include rewarding good behaviour and providing alternatives, distracting children so that they don’t even think about sucking their thumbs and charting their progress on a plan.
A good idea is to avoid nagging all the time, as this can be counter-productive and to encourage children to make it seem like the child is making an independent, grown up choice to stop; focus on the positives and offer constant encouragement. If you have any worries, don’t hesitate to ask for advice.
Thumb sucking is a natural thing when a child is born, in fact, it’s a common thing attributed to apes as well- that’s not to akin people from Leeds to apes! Even from within the womb, a baby tends to suck on anything it can, which is considered to be a desire to suckle on the breast when born- it’s even comforting to a child. But when it comes to the way the teeth grow, it can be exceedingly detrimental if the process is not nipped in the bud. Thumb sucking before the teeth start to appear is perfectly acceptable as it helps to break the teeth through the gums during these early days. But after that, it needs to be stopped. For a start, teeth at this stage of a person’s life are ambiguous in themselves as they are very suceptible to infection and tooth decay from the foods that are put into a mouth full of erupting teeth through gums. But the pressure put on the teeth and gums at this very delicate from the sucking process can cause the teeth to grow out of synch and produce unnecessary inflammation in the gums. This can also lead to early tooth decay, so to wean a child off this habit at this early stage, can only be healthy for their teeth in the long term future.
Thumb sucking is a natural thing in babies- it’s comforting, relaxing and helps them to sleep. As strange as it sounds in Leeds, some adults still suck their thumbs too- maybe for the very same reasons. But for all the soothing qualities of having a thumb in the mouth for a child (and adult), it has also been linked to teeth that grow incorrectly, altering the way the teeth position themselves as they come through- leading to a higher cahance of having to wear braces in the future. This is especially if the sucking is aggressive and repeated over and over again. Normally, and quite naturally, this will stop as the child grows older and should not overtly interfere with the growth of teeth. But doctors and parents do prefer to see children start to wean themselves away from the problem from around the age of four, by trying to incorporate various methods. Some may sound bizarre, some way outdated. Things like informing the child about the risks- although as we well know, parents can get a bit ‘colorful’ by adding what will happen, should they continue to suck their thumbs; they will fall off or, a man will burst through the door and cut them off with scissors! Some parents will even dip the thumbs is something that is revolting to the taste- whatever the method used, it’s certainly a difficult problem to break.
Amongst children, thumb sucking remains a common habit. In those under two years of age it is associated with a desire for food. Almost a third of infants have the habit although most grow out of it by the age of five. It is not harmful to your teeth unless it is done during the period of development of permanent teeth, around the ages of five or six.
Does your child persist in thumbsucking long after he or she has crossed infancy? This habit will no longer look cute and it is most certainly a cause for worry for you. If thumbsucking persists into childhood, it can create a lot of problems for the child. For starters, he or she will be emotionally dependant on the thumb. This is not even a pacifier or a toy that you could just fling away.
Sucking is a natural instinct that leads some babies to suck their thumbs during the first few months of life, or even before birth. The natural urge to suck usually decreases after six months but many children continue to suck their thumbs as a soothing or comforting habit. This habitual sucking usually fades in most children between the ages of three and six.
Thumb sucking in infants is a natural reflex action and can be very comforting for them. It is also a very common habit with recent studies estimating that between 75 and 95 per cent of infants suck their thumbs at some stage. This in itself is no cause for concern. This very comforting reflex is important for making children feel comfortable, many children suck their thumbs as they fall asleep, and nearly all children will stop sucking it on their own between the ages of two and four. It is simply a case in most instances of outgrowing the habit.
