thumb sucking

[Marine07]

My soon to be 4 year old never did the paci thing. He was always more content with his thumb. At first it was cute when he was a baby and made thing easy. He couldn't lose or drop his paci so it had its benifits. Now he is about to be 4 and we have tried everything fom bitter thumb to tape to some spicey no thumb stuff. Nothing has worked. Are we over reacting? Some kids never grow out of it and I don't want him being teased over it let alone the problems with teeth that it causes.

[kiddie]

Originally Posted by Marine07

My soon to be 4 year old never did the paci thing. He was always more content with his thumb. At first it was cute when he was a baby and made thing easy. He couldn't lose or drop his paci so it had its benifits. Now he is about to be 4 and we have tried everything fom bitter thumb to tape to some spicey no thumb stuff. Nothing has worked. Are we over reacting? Some kids never grow out of it and I don't want him being teased over it let alone the problems with teeth that it causes.

Hello. You are not overreacting. Has his teeth started shifting outward yet? If so, this can cause problems which could result in expensive orthodontic (braces) work later. If you are seeing tooth movement you may want to consider what is called a habit crib. It is a "cage" that is cemented in the childs mouth so that suction cannot be achieved and the thumb stays off the teeth. The child will still be able to eat fine and the crib generally stays in for about 6 months or until the habit ceases. Here are some pics of some kids that have been sucking their thumbs for awhile. Notice the changes that can occur. I hope this helps.

[Anna78]

My 4 1/2 year old still sucks her thumb and I'm fine with it. She only does it when shes tired or upset. Her teeth are fine, shes destined to have bad teeth anyway, mine were horrendous lol. If hes still sucking it when hes starting secondary school then ok maybe then I would be worried but while hes still so little and it comforts him then I don't see why not