Thumb sucking effects on dental and oral health

Thumb sucking is a natural coping strategy whereby young children feel comfortable and secure. The habit is done frequently at infant stage when the baby teeth grow in. During the infancy and young child stages, there is less to worry about because at this stage temporal teeth begins to give way to permanent teeth. Nevertheless, prolonged thumb sucking can lead to dental and oral health problems later in life.

Dental Problems

Some of the dental problems that may result from prolonged or aggressive thumb sucking are Mouth roof malformation, Misaligned jaws, Premature tooth loss, Temporandular Joint Disorder (TMJ), Difficulty in pronouncing words, Trouble Eating and Overbite

Treatments

Despite available treatment ideas for encouraging kids to stop sucking their thumb, it is entirely up to the child to stop the habit. Therefore the most successful of all the ideas is positive reinforcement.

·         Praise and reward your child for not sucking their thumb. Increase the time needed for a reward if the child is older.

·         Cover the thumb or hand with a Band-Aid or cloth. Take your toddler's thumb out of his or her mouth when they're asleep.

·         For older children who refuse to drop the habit, the dentist may recommend a dental appliance or a bitter-tasting solution to apply to the thumb.

·         If the child's permanent teeth come in and the damage to them is already noticeable, orthodontic treatment will most likely be recommended. Depending on the severity of the misalignment of the jaws and the crookedness of the teeth, the orthodontic treatment can involve tooth extractions and the braces and retainers may need to be worn longer. Toward the end of the teen years and early adulthood, the wisdom teeth may need to be extracted to keep the teeth in proper alignment.

If your child is struggling with thumb sucking a visit to the dentist can help.