Ask the Dentist – Sucking Thumbs

It’s hot and sticky and we’re trying to stay as cool as possible at Family Dental Care Park Ridge.  Grab yourself an icy lemonade, find yourself a cool shady spot somewhere and relax while you enjoy today’s Ask the Dentist feature.  This week’s question comes from new Mom, Mandy.  Mandy asks:

“Is sucking thumbs a bad thing? If my baby starts to suck her thumb, is that a bad thing for her future teeth?  I hear all kinds of different opinions.  What is the real answer?”

Thanks for the great question Mandy.  This is a concern of many new parents and, you are right…there are all kinds of theories out there that can be confusing.  I’ll try to clear up any misinformation and myths.

The need for a baby to suck is a strong and natural instinctive urge.  This urge to suck is not just about the feeding experience…it also provides the infant a sense of comfort…an ability to self soothe.  Ultrasounds have shown that many babies are sucking their thumbs while in the womb as a means of self comfort.  So what are some of the facts about thumb sucking?

• The urge for babies to suck is not only related to the feeding experience but to self comfort and self soothing as well
• Babies who “find” their thumb for sucking are more easily able to put themselves to sleep and sleep through the night much more quickly than babies who do not suck their thumbs
• A study by Dr. T. Berry Brazelton indicates that as many as 94% have finished with sucking their thumbs by the time they reach their first birthday
• The American Dental Association feels that thumb sucking does not cause permanent problems with the teeth or jaw line, unless it is continued beyond the age of 4 or 5

Often babies will suck their thumbs out of boredom.  As your baby develops and becomes interested in their environment, keeping them distracted and involved in their new world helps to minimize boredom.  This allows the baby themselves to learn that you don’t need to rely on thumb sucking when bored…by offering your child other alternatives during their waking hours, your child will begin to associate boredom and thumb sucking less and less.  There was an interesting study that showed that when parents drew “negative” attention to the thumb sucking of their child by pulling the thumb out of the child’s mouth or created an issue with the child about thumb sucking, those children were far more likely to carry on the habit longer into their childhood.  While most children stop the thumb sucking by one year of age, as a parent of a thumb sucker, by the time the child is 9 months old, you may want to begin the distraction process so that your child begins to develop new ways to amuse themselves without drawing negative attention to thumb sucking.

If your child is over 4 years old and still sucking their thumb, there are thumb sucking experts called Certified Oral Myologists who can help you.  You can contact the International Association of Orofacial Myology for more information at 303-765-4395 or visit their website here.

So, Mandy, the short answer is that thumb sucking is a natural and soothing habit.  Most babies outgrow this habit before they are a year old.  There is little to no danger to the babies future teeth as long as the thumb sucking is finished before their 4th or 5th birthday.  I hope this has been helpful to you!

If you have a question that you want to see addressed in our Ask the Dentist feature, you can ask your question in the comments below or you can email me at info@ParkRidgeDDS.com We look forward to hearing from you!

And remember, as always…we LOVE making you smile!

Send to Kindle