What You Should Know About Thumb Sucking and Your Child’s Teeth
If you’re the parent of a thumb-sucker, you might be worried about how your little one’s habit will impact his or her teeth. Perhaps you’ve heard that thumb-sucking can harm your child’s oral health and development down the road. While there are some risks to watch out for, there’s no need to panic right away. Let’s take a look at why thumb-sucking is so common, when to intervene, and how to promote teeth-healthy habits with your kids.
Why do children suck their thumbs?
Thumb-sucking is a natural human instinct. Some infants begin sucking their thumbs before they’re even born. For many children, thumb-sucking is soothing, like a soft blanket or a cuddly toy. It can be a useful habit for young children as it helps them self-regulate in stressful or uncomfortable situations. Thumb-sucking also helps some kids fall asleep on their own.
How does thumb-sucking affect oral health?
While it’s perfectly normal and healthy in young children, thumb-sucking can result in numerous issues with permanent teeth, including:
Vigorous or prolonged thumb-sucking is more likely to cause issues, which often require extensive, expensive dental interventions, like orthodontia or other corrective treatment. Prevention is the best policy when it comes to dental conditions related to thumb-sucking.
Not all the health impacts of thumb-sucking are bad. Interestingly, some research suggests that children who suck their thumbs are less likely to develop allergies later in life. Pediatricians speculate this is because thumb-suckers ingest more bacteria than children who don’t suck their thumbs. On the flip side, however, this thumb-sucking benefit also poses a health risk. The pathogens found on children’s hands can make them sick.
When does thumb-sucking become a problem?
Most dentists and pediatricians agree that thumb-sucking poses no serious risks to baby teeth. The problems start, however, when a child’s permanent teeth begin to come in, at around five to six years of age. Luckily, most children will stop sucking their thumbs all on their own between two and four years old.
If your little one is older than four and still sucking his or her thumb, it may be time to start intervening. At this age, children may also begin to face mocking or teasing from their peers. While peer pressure is a powerful deterrent to thumb-sucking, there are other, healthier ways to help your child transition out of the habit.
How should I encourage my child to stop sucking his or her thumb?
Helping your child stop thumb-sucking can be challenging. If you’re a parent navigating this transition right now, hang in there! As with so many things, progress often looks like two steps forward and one step backward.
Here are some strategies you can try to help your little one give up his or her thumb and find other developmentally appropriate ways to self-soothe.
For children who are old enough, a gentle conversation with their dentist, explaining why sucking their thumb can get in the way of their oral health, is all it takes for them to get on board and give up the habit. If you’reconcerned at all about your child’s health, always let your dentist or pediatrician know. They can provide additional support and provide a recommendation specific to your child’s situation.
Has your child been to the dentist yet? Go ahead and schedule their first visit. In addition to a healthy diet and regular teeth brushing, a regular hygiene routine is one of the best ways to protect your child’s dental health. We recommend children come for their first dental appointment as young as one year of age. From our pediatric wing to our “Happy Visit,” we go out of our way to make sure your little one has a positive and comfortable experience in our office.
February is National Children’s Dental Health Month. It’s a great reminder for parents and kids alike of the importance of pediatric dental care. It may surprise you to learn that tooth decay is the most common childhood chronic disease in the country. In fact, more than half of kids between six and eight years old have had a cavity in their primary, or baby, teeth. While a little cavity might not sound like a big deal, poor dental health is actually linked to higher rates of missed days and lower performance at school. Healthy teeth matter more than you might think!
Read MoreIf you have a vague sense of dread when you hear the term “root canal,” you’re not alone. Let’s face it, getting a root canal is not quite as enjoyable as a normal hygiene appointment. But the process is not as scary as it sounds. More often than not, root canals reduce, rather than cause, pain. So what exactly is a root canal and why might your dentist recommend one? We’ll answer that and other questions we receive about this common dental treatment.
Read MoreThird molars, or so-called wisdom teeth, often get a bad rap. That’s probably because people talk about them mostly in the context of people getting them removed. For many patients, wisdom tooth extraction is the only surgical dental procedure they have ever experienced. But wisdom teeth themselves aren’t necessarily bad. In fact for some patients, they’re just like other teeth. So what’s the big deal with wisdom teeth anyway? And, why do so many people have them extracted? Let’s take a look at some of the most common questions we hear about this infamous set of teeth.
Read MoreWhether you’re new to the Williamsburg area, or new to the Norge Dental family… we welcome you to a new dental experience. We are so thankful you are here.
call (757) 564-0804
