McDowell Mountain Ranch Dentistry: Thumbsucking

McDowell Mountain Ranch Dentistry

At Mcdowell Mountain Ranch, we are a dental practice devoted to restoring and enhancing the natural beauty of your smile using conservative State-of-the-Art procedures that will result in beautiful long lasting smiles.

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Tuesday, September 18, 2012

Thumbsucking

Does your child still suck their thumb? Are you getting tired and a little embarrassed? Maybe your child still sucks their thumb and you are just now realizing that they should be stopping and want to know more. There are many reasons why sucking their thumb is detrimental to the growth of their mouth, jaw, and teeth. It can also lead to speech problems.
Some babies develop the thumb sucking habit while in the mother's womb while others start after their birth. It is a natural instinct for survival and can be attributed to psychological needs as it gives comfort to them. It can quickly become a habit and most tend to stop at around 1 year old but research shows that if they still are in the habit beyond the age of 5, it can be very detrimental.
Thumb sucking can create a variety of problems:

The upper front teeth are pushed forwards and the lower front teeth are pushed backwards.
the roof of the mouth will be pushed upwards causing a range of problems including speech problems.
It narrows the dental arches, reshapes the jawbone, and mis-aligns the teeth.
Infection of the thumbnail, pinworms, and other infections arise.

How to stop: Lets look at the approach we want to use. Shouting at children, punishing, or mocking them is not the way for them to quit and will most likely, they will go deeper with the habit. Here are some remedies:

Admit the problem in front of them. Let them know it is a habit that he should do away with. Relay it in a casual manner.
Try finding the cause of thumb sucking as it is usually either a casual habit or stress related.
Offer a reward for not sucking.
Wrap a cloth around the child's thumb, put some bitter material on it.
Make the child sit in front of the mirror daily for a few minutes while they suck on their thumb, eventually, the child will feel embarrassed and want to quit themselves.
An orthodontist can place an orthodontic appliance that will deter thumb sucking.
You can also get a thumb guard

Bottom line is this though, unless the child really wants to quit, he will find a way to suck his or her thumb. Small steps can be taken such as only sucking while they are at home and then only at nap time. Then only right before bed and slowly but surely, they will grow out of the habit.