It’s common to see a toddler or baby sucking a thumb. Some people even think a child sucking their thumb is cute. But after a certain age, a prolonged thumb-sucking habit can damage a child’s teeth and jaws.
Thumbsucking isn’t limited to children. Adult thumb sucking isn’t as common, but it does still occur, and it can continue to damage your teeth and jaws. That’s why breaking the thumb-sucking habit at any age is essential.
Beavers & Broomfield Family Dentistry has ways to help you break a thumb-sucking habit, and we offer those options to any patient of any age without judgment. It’s not easy to stop thumb sucking once you start, but it’s worth it to prevent dental problems and speech problems and preserve your oral health.
Is Thumbsucking Bad?
Thumb sucking is common in infants and toddlers. Infants who are nursing use their thumbs to mimic the movements of their mouths when they eat. The thumb can also substitute for a pacifier, which many parents use to soothe a baby until they can be fed.
Most children break the habit by age 3, as recommended by the American Dental Association. But some people don’t. Others may break it in childhood but take it up again later in adulthood.
The problem is the damage to teeth from sucking the thumb. Pressure from the thumb can push upwards on the palate, distorting the roof of your mouth. It can also cause the teeth — particularly the upper teeth — to move forward and outward. This can create an overbite or an open bite. Sometimes, prolonged damage from thumbsucking can create a severe open bite, sometimes called “buck teeth.”
Thumb sucking can damage the lower teeth, too, pushing them downward or inward. The misaligned teeth make it harder to bite and chew, and the damage to the palate can result in breathing problems from narrowed airways.
The Psychology of Thumb Sucking
Babies often use thumb sucking to develop instincts and feeding skills, although they can also use it as a comfort mechanism. Adult thumb sucking usually has a very different reason behind it. It’s estimated that 1 in 10 adults have sucked their thumbs at one point or another.
What is the psychology of thumbsucking in adults? For some, they just never broke the habit from childhood. Like any bad habit, the longer you go, the harder it is to break, and the less motivation you have to end it. For others, continued thumb sucking is a way to reduce their stress or anxiety. It provides comfort or relaxation.
The psychological effects are still being studied, but most doctors and dentists agree that the habit should be broken for the patient’s oral health.
How to Stop Thumb Sucking
How do you stop thumb sucking? It isn’t always easy, even for infants and toddlers. It’s a habit that can happen even in their sleep, so just pulling their thumbs away isn’t always the best solution.
We recommend talking with the child about breaking the habit, particularly when they’re older. Explain that they’re growing into big boys and girls and need to leave the toddler-age habit behind. Never be confrontational because the anxiety you create could backfire and reinforce the habit rather than break it.
Positive reinforcement can help as well. Awarding a child a sticker or coloring page for every day they go without sucking their thumb could encourage them to break the habit. Some people recommend placing a bandage or glove on the child’s thumb. This could also cause anxiety, or the child could simply pull it off, so we recommend only doing this as a last resort.
Thumb Sucking Treatment
Breaking the habit may take more work for adults. Thumbsucking in adults often comes from deep-rooted anxiety that must be addressed. Adults should find ways to relieve stress, such as a healthy hobby or exercise, meditation, deep breathing, or cognitive-behavioral therapy. Lightening their daily workload could improve stress levels and help them break the thumb-sucking habit.
Some home remedies could help you stop sucking your thumb. This can include wearing gloves, a bandage, or a sock on your hand. There is also a nontoxic fingernail polish available that creates a bitter taste when the thumb is sucked.
Myofunctional Therapy
There are other ways to break the habit through dental thumb-sucking treatment. Beavers and Broomfield Family Dentistry offers treatment for thumb sucking using myofunctional therapy techniques.
Myofunctional therapy focuses on building the muscles of the mouth, particularly the tongue. The exercises are designed to help you talk, eat, and breathe better while helping you stop your thumb-sucking habit.
We may use these therapies in conjunction with the use of a thumb sucking appliance, such as a thumb sucking guard like a boil-and-bite mouthguard. You may also use a tongue crib placed by an orthodontist.
Myofunctional therapy can be used as you break the habit and after to mitigate the damage from thumb sucking. The therapy isn’t painful and can last a few months to over a year. If necessary, we can also recommend whether you should consult an orthodontist to repair damage to your teeth.
Thumb-Sucking Treatment in Fayetteville, AR
Thumb sucking is a difficult habit to break, but there are many health benefits to doing so. Sucking your thumb can damage not only your teeth but also your nasal passages, making breathing more difficult. Thumb sucking can even make it harder for your displaced tongue to speak properly.
If you or your child needs help breaking a thumb-sucking habit, schedule an appointment with Beavers and Broomfield Family Dentistry in Fayetteville, AR. We will work with you to find the best way to end your thumb-sucking habit.
