Negative Consequences of Thumb Sucking
Dr. D.Sendhil Nathan MDS, DNB Prosthodontics And Implantology
Thumb sucking is a normal habit in children during their infancy. The sucking behavior helps kids to explore the things around them by putting the things into their mouth. Similarly, this sucking habit helps kids to self-soothe themselves.
We hope that you may also provide your kid toys like pacifiers, teething toys which encourage kids to suck the things. Right?
Even though habits like sucking fingers, pacifiers help kids to reflux themselves, the sucking actions lead them to encounter long-term dental complications.
How does thumb sucking affect your kids?
In general, a kid lessens the habit of thumb sucking when he/she attains the age of 3. If the habit is prolonged when the kid reaches the age of 5 years, it will lead to serious dental complications because permanent begin to develop underneath the gum during this period.
We have listed the common dental problems that arise due to thumb sucking and pacifiers as follows:
1. Malocclusion
A child will suffer from teeth misalignment during adulthood if he/she continues to suck thumbs even after the development of adult teeth. Thumb sucking is effective to push the teeth out of their alignment and lead to misalignment issues like overbite and overbite.
It makes the teeth visible even when the mouth is closed. Then orthodontic treatments are required to straighten the teeth.
2. Abnormalities in the roof of the mouth
The pressure applied to the mouth and teeth while a kid sucking its thumb results in deformed teeth. It also causes deformation on the top of the kid’s mouth.
3. Speech Impediment
Sucking behaviors like sucking fingers, pacifiers interfere with the development of the jaw, palette and teeth. It will lead to the development of lisping. Similarly, the kid feels difficult to pronounce certain letters and words.
This is caused due to the disturbance in the relation between the teeth’s shape and the tongue. Hence a proper dental care is essential to get rid of such speech impediments.
How can you make your child stop thumb sucking?
Researches show that around 30% of pre-schooling kids have the habit of thumb sucking. It is essential for those to stop this habit to avoid further dental issues. Our Dental Health Specialists have suggested a few tips that will help parents to make their children stop the sucking habit.
- The kids are not mature enough to know the negativities of this habit. You should be responsible to make your child understand the issues. Then you need to gently explain the negativities of thumb sucking with patience to your little champs.
- Get a bitter tasting medication from your Doctor and apply it on the finger with which your child sucks.
- Enclose your kid’s finger with tape or clothes when he/she sleep. It will help to take away the finger from the mouth as soon as they put fingers into the mouth.
- Make your kid’s hands busy by giving toys or any appliance when they suck fingers.
- Visualize the progress of your kid’s efforts on stopping this habit and reward them. This will encourage them to avoid thumb sucking.
Conclusion
Apart from dental complications, this habit feeds the kid’s health with bacteria and germs present in the fingers. This will cause certain diseases. Hence every parent should indulge in activities to make their infant avoid the sucking behavior.
Thumb sucking is associated with the emotional needs of a kid. Hence you should not scold or behave rudely to make your child halt this habit. If you do that, it will make the child suck fingers more.
