Almost everyone begins the early part of their lives by sucking their thumbs. Statistics show that 95% of babies regularly suck their thumbs out of reflex. After a child turns two, sucking their thumbs is done more due to habit than reflex. It’s understandable to be concerned about your child continually sucking their thumbs. If not taken care of, this could lead to health concerns that every parent should know about. With that in mind, here are four health concerns regarding thumb sucking.
- Bite Problems
Bite problems refer to whether a child has an open, under, or overbite. Many of these conditions directly result from thumb sucking. An open bite occurs when teeth fall out of natural alignment once the mouth closes. An overbite occurs when the upper teeth jut out slightly. On the other hand, an underbite occurs where the lower teeth and jaw protrude slightly. Thumb sucking forces the teeth and mouth out of its natural alignment. In turn, not correcting thumb sucking could lead to your child having to undergo corrective dentistry procedures. - Speech Impediments
Thumb sucking doesn’t only affect your child’s teeth. In addition, this habit often causes your child’s jaw and palette to develop in a certain way. Unfortunately, children with deformed palette or jaws often end up speaking with speech impediments. Unfortunately, this could mean that your child is the target of mean spirited children. That being said, enrolling your child in certain classes can help correct these problems. In addition, thumb sucking guards work well to prevent this problem from becoming more out of control. - Being Sick More Often
Statistics show that the average person carries nearly 3,200 bacteria on their hands. Considering that, many children who suck their thumbs out of habit are coming into contact with many of these germs. In turn, this leads to increased doctor’s office visits and your child missing school more often. Children that spend long amounts of time out of school have to deal with the risk of falling behind in class. - Thumb Pain
While you’ve learned about how this habit damages your child’s mouth, it’s important to consider the thumb itself. As children continue to place their thumbs in their mouths, it can damage the skin. The combination of moisture and pressure can seriously damage the skin of a child’s thumb. This habit causes thumb skin to become cracked which could lead to an infection.
In closing, there are several health concerns caused by children who suck their thumbs. Unfortunately these health concerns are often traumatic for a child to deal with. In turn, many parents with thumb sucking children are looking for ways to remedy this situation. If you’re wanting a way to stop this problem, consider buying thumb sucking deterrents. Many parents prefer to utilize thumb sucking guards to remedy this problem. In fact, statistics show that thumb sucking guards including TGuards are 90% effective in breaking thumb sucking habits.