Thumb Sucking?

Question

My son is 4 and will be going up to primary school in september , he still sucks his thumb , i love him and i know it conforts him but i don't want him to really go to primary school sucking his thumb and also i think it will miss shape his teeth .

can you suggest something i can put on his finger that won't hurt him but will help stop him sucking his thumb !

Terry....................

Answer 1

My parents tried painting my fingers with some nasty tasting stuff you could buy at the drugstore, made specifically for that purpose. It didn't take me long to figure out how to wash it off, though! (I wasn't sucking my thumb, but instead was biting my nails, btw).

What might work better is for you to try to find something else your son can use to comfort himself -- maybe a small toy that fits in his pocket that he can rub when he needs some comfort. Or a stuffed animal or blanket. And it might also help to offer him a reward whenever he goes a certain amount of time WITHOUT sucking his thumb -- a tactic that can make him more mindful of it (since it's now a habit he probably doesn't even realize he's doing).

But really, many kids do this and most of them grow out of it on their own. Talk to your pediatrician and let him/her know about your concerns. They may have some good suggestions, OR just be able to reassure you that this is nothing to worry about.

Answer 2

Leave him to grow out of it, he won't be the only one sucking his thumb at school. I too sucked my thumb until about 10 I have good teeth. When at school I tended to stop, it was when I got home I used to do it more. Lets be honest here it's not the worst habit a little boy could have.

Answer 3

Why would you want to stop your four year old son doing something that comforts him? He is a child and children suck their thumbs. Do you think he is the only kid that sucks their thumb? He will soon learn that sucking his thumb in class is'nt ok and he wont hate you for putting some bitter tasteing muck on his only comfort in his four year old brain.

Answer 4

My previous boss sucked her thumb. She sucked her left one even as she became writing and her top one some thing of the time - she's 30+ and has very similar formed enamel as Josie! one in each and every of my granddaughters only stopped even as she became 16 !

Answer 5

I sucked my thumb right up until I was 14 years old. I have perfectly straight teeth without any need for a brace, so that is one myth dispelled. Also when I went to school I found it embarressing to suck my thumb in public, as did my brother who also sucked his thumb - I would say just let your son grow out of it natuarally, he will x

Answer 6

Don't know if you would want to try this or not, but my mother put Vick's Vapor Rub on my brother's thumb to stop him from sucking it. It worked! I guess that stuff is nasty-tasting enough to do the job.

Answer 7

i sucked my thumb until i was 14. my parents tried everything. my dad, who was also a thumb sucker till he was 14, tried to stop it early by using everything from hot sauce to the special nail polish and even tape, but it didn't phase me. my teeth weren't affected though. that was his main concern. let your kid spend the night at his friends house often. then he'll be too embarrassed by his habit and want to stop on his own. i didn't care what my friends thought so it didn't work for me, but it might for him.

Answer 8

I know there is a nail-polish sort of thing that you can put on his thumb that tastes bitter. It's supposed to be very effective.

Answer 9

There's this product you put on your fingernails to avoid biting them. I guess it would serve to avoid thumb sucking as well.

Answer 10

have you ever thought of getting him excited about school, and then telling him he cant go if he still sucks his thumb?