Children & Thumb Sucking

As a natural habit for babies, thumb-sucking is routine for finding comfort and soothing themselves. During the first few months of life, this habit can be used as a way to fall asleep, to calm down or just to feel good. During these stages, sucking is considered harmless to a child’s speech development.

For most infants, thumb-sucking is an exploratory stage that ends after a few years, but for the ones who don't break the habit as they grow up, problems may begin to occur. 

The difference between an infant and a child thumb-sucking has to do with the formation of their mouth and teeth. As a child develops, the baby teeth are lost and permanent teeth begin to grow. If your child is still sucking their thumb beyond the age of 4, their likelihood of developing malocclusion (over/under bites), buck teeth, infections or other dental issues is increased.

How you can help reduce the habit & potential risks;

• Try to limit thumb-sucking to a “bed-time” activity only
• Do not tell your child “You cannot do this” - praise when they are not doing it instead of criticizing
• Talk to your child about the habit, and tell them when they are ready to stop you will be there for support.
• If your child has been injured and falls back to thumb-sucking for comfort, don’t prohibit the action as he is putting himself in a comfort zone.

• Try and come up with creative ways to help your child. For example; you can ask them if Dora the Explorer or Caillou suck their thumbs. This will put the idea in their mind, and start the ' i don’t need to do this anymore' process.