In times of stress, people have many ways to comfort themselves. For adults, it can be habits such as eating, drinking, or smoking. For children, it is often sucking their thumb, fingers, or a pacifier. Babies have been observed in scans to suck on their fingers and thumbs even before they are born. It makes them feel secure.

When is thumb sucking a problem?
Sucking on fingers or thumbs can be a problem when it is done too vigorously and too long. A young child's jaws are soft and can change their shape to make room for the thumb if the child sucks too hard and too often. If thumb, finger or pacifier habits continue too long, the upper front teeth may tip toward the lip or not come into the correct position in the mouth.

How do you know if your child falls into the group that will suffer from the results of too much thumb sucking? It's best to visit our office so we can check on how the child's teeth and jaws are developing.

What can be done about thumb and finger sucking?
Most children naturally stop sucking their thumbs, fingers, or pacifiers between the age of two and four. The pacifier habit is easier to break than the thumb or finger sucking habit, probably because it is always easier to find their fingers or thumbs. It is a good idea to try to transfer your child's habit to a pacifier at an early age. The next steps are to cut down pacifier usage and gradually stop by 18 months.

If your child is still engaging in these habits at age three, we can recommend strategies for cutting back and stopping. Remember that positive reinforcement, in which a child is rewarded for the desired behavior, always works better than punishment for the behavior you don't like.

Also remember that finger and thumb sucking is normal. Help your child to feel safe, secure, and comfortable as the behavior will probably disappear by itself. If you are worried about your child's sucking a pacifier, thumb or fingers, please visit us to put your mind at rest.

Contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss your questions about children's thumb sucking. For more information, read “Thumb Sucking in Children” in Dear Doctor magazine.

Sucking their fingers or thumbs makes young babies feel secure and is completely normal behavior. Babies have been observed to suck their fingers or thumbs even before they are born. But like many comforting habits, over-doing pacifier, thumb, or finger sucking habits may be harmful.

Stop Pacifier Use by 18 Months

Studies have shown that pacifier use after the age of two may cause long-term changes in a child's mouth. We recommend that pacifier use should stop by about 18 months. A pacifier habit is often easier to break than finger or thumb sucking.

Stop Thumb and Finger Sucking by Age Three

Most children naturally stop thumb and finger sucking between two and four years of age, but some children continue this habit much longer. This may cause their upper front teeth to tip towards their lips or to come into position improperly. It can also cause their upper jaw to develop incorrectly. The American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry recommends that children stop these habits by age three.

Use of Behavior Management to Encourage Quitting

We offer creative strategies for gentle ways to cut back and stop pacifier use, including behavior management techniques that use appropriate rewards given at predetermined intervals. Meanwhile, make periodic appointments with us to carefully watch the way your child's teeth and jaws develop.

When your child is old enough to understand the possible results of a sucking habit, just talking about what may happen to teeth as a result can often encourage him/her to quit. As a last resort, a mouth appliance that blocks sucking may be needed.

If you are worried about your child sucking a pacifier, thumb, or fingers, please visit us to put your mind at rest. For more information read “Thumb Sucking in Children” in Dear Doctor magazine. Contact us today to schedule an appointment to discuss your questions about children's thumb sucking.

Expectant mothers expect to deal with tooth-related milestones in their child's early years, such as teething and even the eventual shedding of those baby teeth to the Tooth Fairy. But there are many facets of children's oral health that may not be as well known. For example, did you know that using sugary fluids in your baby's bottle too frequently could promote constant acid production in your child's mouth leading to early childhood decay? Did you know that parents and caregivers who have decay transmit the bacteria that cause decay to their children?

Baby or primary teeth serve as guides for permanent teeth and, therefore, their health sets the stage for the health and proper function of their permanent successors. A comprehensive examination during a child's first visit can help uncover any underlying conditions that might be indicative of future problems, like tooth decay that can start as early as the age of six months when their first teeth appear. So the “Age One Visit” is the right time for a first dental visit.

What else do you know or want to know? Take our short quiz to help your child. The answers are listed at the bottom of this article.

The Quiz

1. Mounting evidence suggests that a child's oral health is most closely tied to which relative?
1. Mother
2. Father
3. Brother
4. Sister
2. Parents should bring their children to see a pediatric dentist:
1. Once they turn two?
2. Before they start kindergarten?
3. Preferably before their first birthday?
4. When they start to lose their baby teeth?
3. Tooth decay that occurs in infants and young children is referred to as what?
1. Primary tooth decay
2. Early Childhood Caries
3. Diapers to Decay Disease
4. Pediatric Dental Caries Syndrome
4. To help diminish the likelihood that your baby/infant will develop a cavity, you should:
1. Restrict the amount of sugary fluids your child drinks to mealtimes
2. Maintain proper oral hygiene to reduce harmful bacteria
3. Use fluoride to make the teeth more resistant to acid attack
4. All of the above
5. Infants are most susceptible to tooth decay when:
1. Breast feeding
2. Drinking milk from a bottle during meal times
3. Sucking on a pacifier that has been dipped in jam
4. Sleeping on their sides

The Answers

1) a = mother 2) c = before their first birthday 3) b = early childhood caries 4) d = all of the above 5) c = sucking on a pacifier that has been dipped in jam

Your baby's first visit to the dentist will cover a lot of ground, including diagnosis, prevention, education, and treatment as we help start him or her on the path to long-lasting oral and dental health. Call our office to schedule an appointment now. You can also learn more about pediatric tooth decay by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Age One Dental Visit — Why It's Important For Your Baby.”

The eruption of your child's first permanent teeth is a milestone in his or her development. As parents, you want to help your child preserve and protect their new permanent teeth so that they can last a lifetime. Dental sealants are one easy, simple, and inexpensive way to protect them from decay.

How do cavities develop?

The back teeth (premolars and molars) are formed with deep grooves on their biting surfaces that we call “pits and fissures.” These crevices are too deep for toothbrush bristles to reach. Bacteria can therefore grow and thrive inside them. The acid produced by these bacteria begins to dissolve the tooth enamel, starting the decay process.

Are new teeth more vulnerable?

Yes, the enamel surface of newly erupted teeth is more permeable and less resistant to tooth decay. As the enamel matures, it becomes more resistant.

How can you prevent decay in these new teeth?

Good oral hygiene habits, nutrition (including low sugar consumption), together with fluoride, sealants, and regular dental visits strengthen the teeth and can dramatically reduce tooth decay.

How does fluoride protect these teeth?

Fluoride makes the enamel surface harder and more impermeable and, therefore, less susceptible to acid attack and decay. Fluoride adds some protection to the deep pits and fissures of the teeth but they are still at high risk because of their shape and they often need further protection.

What are sealants and how do they work?

Sealants are protective coatings placed in the tiny pits and fissures to seal them from the bacteria and acids that promote decay. They actually “seal” the pits and fissures to prevent decay and can be used in the treatment of very early decay by arresting it. Greater use of sealants could reduce the need for subsequent treatment and prolong the time until treatment may become necessary.

Contact us today to schedule an appointment or to discuss your questions about dental sealants for your children. You can learn more about them by reading the Dear Doctor magazine article “Sealants for Children.”

Ensuring that your children have good oral health is (or should be) the goal of every parent or caregiver. But how confident are you about this topic? The following true/false quiz will help you evaluate your expertise while learning more about keeping your child's teeth healthy.

Questions

1. All children older than 6 months should receive a fluoride supplement every day.
2. Parents should start cleaning their child's teeth as soon as the first tooth appears.
3. Parents should start brushing their child's teeth with toothpaste that contains fluoride at age 3.
4. Children younger than 6 years should use enough toothpaste with fluoride to cover the toothbrush.
5. Parents should brush their child's teeth twice a day until the child can handle the toothbrush alone.
6. Young children should always use fluoride mouthrinses after brushing.

Answers

1. False. Check with your child's physician or dentist about your children's specific fluoride needs. If your drinking water does not have enough fluoride to help prevent cavities, parents of a child older than 6 months should discuss the need for a fluoride supplement with a physician or our office.
2. True. Start cleaning as soon as the first tooth appears by wiping the tooth every day with a clean, damp cloth. Once more teeth erupt, switch to a small, soft-bristled toothbrush.
3. False. Parents should start using toothpaste with fluoride to brush their children’s teeth at age 2. Only use toothpaste with fluoride earlier than age 2 if the child's doctor or our office recommends it.
4. False. Young children should use only a pea-sized amount of fluoride toothpaste. Fluoride is important for fighting cavities, but if children younger than 6 years swallow too much fluoride, their permanent teeth may develop white spots. Using no more than a pea-sized amount of toothpaste with fluoride can help prevent this from happening.
5. True. Because children usually do not have the skill to brush their teeth well until around age 4 or 5, parents should brush their young children's teeth thoroughly twice a day. You should continue doing this until the child can demonstrate a proper brushing technique.
6. False. Fluoride mouthrinses have a higher concentration of fluoride than toothpaste containing fluoride. Children younger than 6 years of age should not use fluoride mouthrinses unless your child's doctor or our office recommends it. Young children tend to swallow rather than spit it out, and swallowing too much fluoride before age 6 may cause the permanent teeth to have white spots.

Learn More

If you feel you missed too many of the above questions, read the Dear Doctor article, “Oral Hygiene Behavior.”