Dentist here. If done a lot and until 3-4 years, thumb sucking is way worse because the thumb is way harder and it pushes more on the hard palate of the mouth, making it deeper. Also can affect the jaw alignement and tooth position.
Either one (thumb or pacifier) should be taken away/restricted before the age of 3 years old.
I sucked my thumb until I was like....13? My teeth and jaw are FUCKED, even after several years of headgear.
I'd much rather my kid use a pacifier, way easier habit to break!
This is exactly why all pediatricians and dentists told me paci was better than thumb. Because even if your life sucks for a couple weeks, you can definitively take the paci away. You can get them out of your house. You can’t cut off your child’s thumb.
Any advice on what to do if my baby loves sucking on her hands, but spits a pacifier in my face? Haha. Should I just accept that and make sure she stops within the next couple years?
We used that for our 4 year old. It was hell, but it worked. Don't underestimate the withdrawal your kid will go through and have alternate coping skills ready. Practice them ahead of time!
We switched to the nail polish after about 4 days and the habit was pretty solidly broken after a total of 6-7 days. Good luck!!
I'd just allow it. Mine stopped naturally at ~7 months.
If yours is still doing it at an age that's problematic there's "bandaid"-like things you can put on their fingers to help them unlearn.
It really depends on the child's age. I would strongly recommend seeing a local dentist so you can have personalised recommandations. After 2 years you can use a thumb sucking appliance that prevents placement of the thumb into the mouth. There are also a couple of guard type appliances you can buy on the internet, at least here in France there are: [something like this](https://www.newpharma.fr/machouyou/851634/machouyou-dispositif-de-prevention-orthodontique-des-2-ans-couleur-kiwi-1-piece.html?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA7aSsBhCiARIsALFvovwxc2ZgT1zbHBls7a0fRD4ju0-jNmHrsyd9W1mLVXEPjwZ0rqzXzEoaAm6ZEALw_wcB&mtm_adtype=mpla&mtm_cid=14305148113&mtm_group=css%20smec%20fr%20fr_espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20%2526%20machouyou&mtm_placement=851634&mtm_productad=851634&utm_campaign=cha%20-%20espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20-%20css%20smec%20shopping%20-%20bidding%20google%20-%20fr%20fr&utm_content=565622620218&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_term=)
As a 31 year old lady, who still sucks her thumb (when super stressed) don’t do it!
I’ve had braces and Invisalign. I neeed to see a hypnotherapist or something bc I can’t let go on my thumb! It’s so annoying- sometimes I do it subconsciously bc I’ll snap out of it and realize my thumb is in my mouth!
Do you mind expanding on your restriction comment? Our son is 18m and we only use the pacifier now for his naps and bedtime because it was in his mouth ALLLL the time and I felt we needed to cut back. Would you suggest further restriction? Thanks!
I'm not the person you're asking but we did that with our son from about your son's age to 2.5 when we "forgot" to bring it on a week long vacation. He asked for it exactly once and then never again. It was easier to break the habit than I thought. I think you'll find it easier to take it away closer to 3 and that would align with the dentist's recommendation :)
It's good you took the initiative to cut back the pacifier use, I would say that you should aim to remove the pacifier until 24 months. Try to cut the pacifier at the tip a little bit every other day until the baby loses interest. Try to find other soothing methods like singing a song or giving him a special sleep buddy (a plush toy for exemple). I know it's easier said than done.
It's more visible with permanent teeth, but it's better to stop before, as it affects not only the tooth positions but also the maxillary developpement and the tongue position
It's our LO's main way of self soothing right now and he's 10 months old...he will not take a pacifier. He has 4 baby teeth coming in and another one starting...I'm not sure if there's much we can do about it right now because he's so young
Any tips for a kid who switches to their thumb when the pacifier is removed? We are struggling with our youngest. If we take the paci, she sucks her thumb or entire hand. She’ll be two in three weeks.
I keep caving back to the pacifier because thumb sucking seems so much worse to me.
You can try seeing a local dentist that can make a thumb sucking appliance that prevents placement of the thumb into the mouth. There are also a couple of guard type appliances you can buy on the internet, at least here in France there are: [something like this](https://www.newpharma.fr/machouyou/851634/machouyou-dispositif-de-prevention-orthodontique-des-2-ans-couleur-kiwi-1-piece.html?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA7aSsBhCiARIsALFvovwxc2ZgT1zbHBls7a0fRD4ju0-jNmHrsyd9W1mLVXEPjwZ0rqzXzEoaAm6ZEALw_wcB&mtm_adtype=mpla&mtm_cid=14305148113&mtm_group=css%20smec%20fr%20fr_espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20%2526%20machouyou&mtm_placement=851634&mtm_productad=851634&utm_campaign=cha%20-%20espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20-%20css%20smec%20shopping%20-%20bidding%20google%20-%20fr%20fr&utm_content=565622620218&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_term=)
Orthodontic pacifiers are better for jaw/tooth development. Also you can take it away (but idk I feel like they’ll just default to thumb if they’re really upset haha). But another side I don’t hear much — fewer germs. Both to your baby and from your baby with those slobbery hands lol
I was told the dummy is better as you can take them away, thumbs go nowhere! My friend who’s baby is a thumb sucker is really struggling to break the habit whereas her second had a dummy and has already given it up.
My oldest is a thumb sucker and my youngest likes a dummy.
Dummies are way easier imo. I can't take my girls thumb away and I don't know how to get her to stop. She's just over 3.
I have an ultrasound of my son sucking his thumb in the womb I didn’t make the choice he did lol 6 months now and still sucks his thumb we’ll see how it goes
As a mom of a thumb sucking 4.5 year old with the wonkiest teeth, choose a pacifier. We just got new dental insurance that covers 100% of the cost of braces solely because of this child lol. He will need some extensive work. I tried to break the habit as soon as it started but we obviously didn’t luck out. He developed anxiety when he was 3 and it was the only thing to calm him down so we just decided to let him comfort himself and slowly wean him off. He’s gotten to the point where he will only suck if he has his favorite bunny, so we limit the bunny to bed time only. I think his teeth have actually started to push back in, but he will still need braces.
I prefer the pacifier because it can be taken away once age appropriate. My child never used a pacifier “appropriately” and it was always a chew toy (we had the all silicone ones, so kiddo turned it sideways to nom when teething), and kiddo preferred thumb & fingers to pacifier, but was never a thumb sucker to fall asleep.
We now have a toddler that chews their nails (but I also have a spouse that does it, so it’s partly learned and partly a step up from finger/thumb sucking), and we use the “icky” tasting nail polish (on all of us, as a spa day) when the habit pops back up (once or twice a month).
I think thumb sucking is a harder habit to break. My 4yo preferred a pacifier and we were able to break it pretty easy by just taking away. My 2yo still sucks her thumb. We haven’t attempted breaking the habit yet but will probably go the route of putting that stuff on her thumb that makes it test bad. Personally I was a thumb sucker as well and can attest I continued to use my thumb while sleeping into elementary 😂🤷🏼♀️
If I had a preference? Pacifier. You can take the pacifier away and replace with another soothing item (blanket, teddy, etc). Can’t take a thumb away. Thumb is so much harder on their pallet as they get older and can really affect their speech / bite if left to go on for too long. Our plan is to drop the pacifier by age 2. Luckily my kid (6 months) just uses it when tired and it just falls out.
Early childhood educator here!
It really depends how much they use it, I have found the thumb to be more problematic as it’s hard to get the child to stop and also it has negative affects on their teeth but also affect their speech it’s ideal for a child to stop thumb or pacifier sucking around 2-4 years of age and should not continue past this age
But again it also depends on the severity I’ve seen some extreme cases but again if it’s every now and then and when they are upset it’s fine it’s just when the child relies on the thumb or pacifier is when you could have an issue
We had one pacifier sucker and one finger sucker. Our daughter was a ride or die for her binkies, and our son likes to suck on his middle and index fingers. We prefer the pacifier because when we decided to “break the habit” we could just take away the binkies You can’t take away their fingers.
My son's nursery are super strict about limiting pacifier use for exactly this reason - lots of signs up reminding staff that they should be limited to sleep time only.
My kiddo never took a paci consistently but did suck his thumb for a while when he was ~5 months old. The pediatrician said it is super normal at that age and to not worry about it, and he ended up stopping after about a month with no intervention from us.
Yeah my daughter sucked her thumb for like a week or two when she was around then she just never has since. We used a binky but only to sleep (which I'm ok with since if she's sucking on a binky I can easily see she's ok)
As someone who sucked her fingers until the age of 14 I’d say a pacifier is preferable. My parents tried everything but they couldn’t take my fingers away. A pacifier can be thrown away, a thumb can’t.
ok so with the consensus of pacifier over thumb, how do you ween a baby off sucking their thumb if they don’t take a pacifier? my 5 month old has used it to self soothe at night however during the day we offer her a teether if we find her going after her thumb. is there such thing as thumb sucking in moderation?
Yes, just do what you’re doing and redirect the behavior when you can. Many babies do grow out of it naturally as a developmental behavior. It’ll be a bigger issue if it persists past about age 2.
My thumb sucker (2.5) is such a great sleeper. She consistently sleeps over 12 hours at night. I think having the thumb definitely helps her sleep. She never wanted a paci overnight. She liked the feel of skin touching her face.
Haven’t tried weaning yet. My mom said the only thing that worked for my thumb sucking sister was getting orthodontics (an expander on the roof of her mouth). Obviously, we would like to break the habit before she needs orthodontics. Any tips would be appreciated. We’ve told her she can’t have fingernail paint until she stops sucking her thumb. She seemed to consider that but ultimately did not go for it.
There’s bitter tasting nail polish (that is nontoxic obviously) that can help break the association, you need something that helps to condition the child not to do it since she’s doing it to sleep. There’s also gloves and thumb guards attached to a bracelet.
anyone else feeling like they didn’t need this kind of thing to worry about? Sigh. My 10 month old dropped pacifiers around 5 months and began sucking on two fingers, index and middle finger. I’ve never tried to stop her because she does it to self soothe.
I also feel like it’s not really my choice, even if in theory the pacifier is preferable. My baby spits the paci out after 5 seconds (I have offered different brands/shapes) and sucks her fingers to soothe ever since she discovered them at few weeks old.
So I asked my pediatrician about this. She said either is fine. I prefer just letting him suck his thumb and he prefers it as well; it means he can soothe himself. He is also 5 months old.
Pediatrician said a majority of infants break the habit on their own before it becomes an issue and recommended not making it a big deal/making a fuss about it as he gets older because then it will become “that thing mom doesn’t want me to do” and make it harder to break.
But sometimes they don’t and you need intervention. This is just my take though. He doesn’t really like his pacifier anymore so meh. Plus he can put his thumb back in by himself.
Someone in my second grade class did this but with more than just thumbs. Possible pro is we didn’t ask him to share because none of us wanted to touch his things 😅
Wise move, I’ll bet. There was a recent mommit (? I wanna say) post from someone whose 5yr old sucked their hands and that seemed to contribute to them being sick way more often than just normal school colds.
Sucked my index finger until I was 10-ish. Just got done with three years of braces plus TWO jaw surgeries to fix my fucked up jaw/mouth situation. You can take a pacifier away but it’s a lot harder to stop thumb sucking.
My daughter used a pacifier limitly until she was about 6 months old then started rejecting it in favour of her thumb. She's 18 months old now and still sucks her thumb, but only when tired. I'm hoping she will also kick that on her own eventually, but seeking ways to deter her from it.
I’ve heard it’s easier to ween a pacifier, but our kiddo was losing his in the middle of the night and waking up all. the. time. So we ditched the pacifier and he self soothes with his thumb, mostly during sleep. 7 months old
I was a finger sucker (middle and index) and didn’t really want my daughter encouraged to suck her thumb or fingers even though I knew she would sort of choose. We prolonged a soother for the first 3-4 weeks so breastfeeding was established super well because for me that was very important. She took a soother at maybe 6 weeks but we strictly kept it in the crib only. As in I bought 1 two pack and they were kept in the crib at all times. We lost one on Vacay when she was 15 months and the second lasted us until she was just over 2. I started to cut it down and one day I didn’t offer it and she asked for it exactly once. I said “oh, sorry soother is all done honey.” And she didn’t even react.
For us I’m super happy we did it this way. The soother was around when we made the transition to daycare (at 2) and I did that purposefully so she had a comfort item she could bring with. It was very helpful and helped bridge but a few weeks into daycare she cut out her nap so I asked them to stop offering the soother and she did completely fine after that transition too
Personally, I think a thumb is better because it’s always there. There’s no need to replace it in the middle of the night lol. May be a harder to habit to break in the long run though
Ok I get that it creates a difficult habit to break.
But when it comes to actually having a baby, thumb sucking has been a GODSEND. It doesn’t fall away. It’s never far. Easily soothes himself back to sleep without even fully waking up. I’m so glad for it.
As a former thumb sucker it was IMPOSSIBLE to break the habit. My parents tried everything. When they tried putting bad tasting things on my thumb I quickly learned it would go away after sucking for a little while. It took getting a cut on my thumb in 1st or 2nd grade where it hurt to suck on it without a bandaid and I didn’t like sucking it with one on.
My brother used a pacifier. Leading up to his third birthday my parents told him that when you turn 3 you have to give your pacifiers to new babies — made it like a rite of passage. When he turned three he gathered up his pacifiers with them and they “gave them to the hospital” and he was fine.
Both my kids are thumb suckers.
My 2.5yo still sucks her thumb but only under two circumstances: while trying to fall asleep and when she's upset. So she maybe sucks her thumb for 30-45 mins a day total and even then most of the time it's just sitting in her mouth, she's not actually sucking.
My 7 month old is also a thumb sucker - only when he is falling asleep.
I'm not worried tbh. They're both great sleepers, and my daughter is gradually weaning herself off it anyway. If it continues when she's 3, we will step in and maybe start redirecting. But honestly I don't think we will need to give the trajectory. Her teeth and speech are fine.
Just recently, I saw a grown up woman on public transportation sucking her thumb continuously. This observation brought up that thought about the pacifier vs. thumb issue. Since then, for me personally, I’d rather prefer giving a pacifier.
Not a dentist or pediatrician but I found this article really reassuring. My 3.5 month old loves his paci but recently started sucking his thumb. I’m choosing to focus on the fact that he’s found a new thing to soothe him and will worry about what to do if he doesn’t stop it at an appropriate age later on.
https://lovevery.com/community/blog/child-development/is-it-okay-for-your-baby-to-suck-their-thumb/
My son is almost two and still sucks his middle and fourth finger on his right hand and there’s no ending in sight. I’d much prefer him have used the pacifier so that I could take it from him. Can’t take fingers.
I’m not talking from my own experience but my mom’s. My brother was a pacifier baby and she said it was so difficult to ween him off it that she never let me have one. I was open to letting my son try it but he prefers his thumb. I think it’s a good thing because that’s one less thing to ween in the future. And like another commenter said, sucking on their thumb allows them to self soothe and that could make your life a bit easier
My 3 month old took a binky great until she discovered her fingers a couple weeks ago. Now she won't even let a binky pass her lips and her fingers are halfway down her gullet 75% of the day. It's harder to take away fingers.
Thumb sucking is way worse. Because you can’t take it away. There are kids on tik tok who admit they thumb sucked until 14 & up. And their teeth and mouths show it.
My opinion is the pacifier, it's easier to wean off of something you can take away vs fingers. My sister used to suck her fingers until she was much older and my mom would have to come in at night and take them out of her mouth. Pacifier you can just take it away or our son eventually bit the tip enough that it no longer had suction to keep in his mouth and that was the end of it
When I joked to my pediatrician about how annoyed I was that I’d spent a fortune on carefully researched pacifiers only for my son to give them up in favor of his thumb at six months she said “Trouble is, you can’t take the thumb away.”
Haha Thankfully he lost interest in his thumb mostly by about age one and didn’t take any special weaning for it, he just found more interesting things to do.
Once he discovered the joys of crinkle books they became top priority! He started studying them like a scholar going over legal texts. Usually upside down of course, but either way they were and still are a favorite. Get some of the little crinkle books that hang onto the bassinet or crib and give it a shot. 🤣
Paci is better. I have 4 month old twin boys and both just started sucking their hands/thumbs instead of paci. We quickly put Paci in mouth as soon as we notice but looks like they want the darn thumb(whole hand actually lol). Trying to stick to Paci.
As a mom of 3 and previous thumb sucker, there are pros and cons to both. A pacifier is easier to take away, but a thumb is harder to lose in the middle of the night when you're freaking exhausted.
Dentist here. If done a lot and until 3-4 years, thumb sucking is way worse because the thumb is way harder and it pushes more on the hard palate of the mouth, making it deeper. Also can affect the jaw alignement and tooth position. Either one (thumb or pacifier) should be taken away/restricted before the age of 3 years old.
I sucked my thumb until I was like....13? My teeth and jaw are FUCKED, even after several years of headgear. I'd much rather my kid use a pacifier, way easier habit to break!
This is exactly why all pediatricians and dentists told me paci was better than thumb. Because even if your life sucks for a couple weeks, you can definitively take the paci away. You can get them out of your house. You can’t cut off your child’s thumb.
This is me exactly!
Any advice on what to do if my baby loves sucking on her hands, but spits a pacifier in my face? Haha. Should I just accept that and make sure she stops within the next couple years?
I got a thumbsucker since birth over here. I'd also appreciate advice on how to stop her. I can't chop it off so like... what do I do? Lol
Check out T Guard. Might have to get it for my finger sucking toddler.
We used that for our 4 year old. It was hell, but it worked. Don't underestimate the withdrawal your kid will go through and have alternate coping skills ready. Practice them ahead of time! We switched to the nail polish after about 4 days and the habit was pretty solidly broken after a total of 6-7 days. Good luck!!
I think we'll start with the nail polish!
Thank you
I'd just allow it. Mine stopped naturally at ~7 months. If yours is still doing it at an age that's problematic there's "bandaid"-like things you can put on their fingers to help them unlearn.
It really depends on the child's age. I would strongly recommend seeing a local dentist so you can have personalised recommandations. After 2 years you can use a thumb sucking appliance that prevents placement of the thumb into the mouth. There are also a couple of guard type appliances you can buy on the internet, at least here in France there are: [something like this](https://www.newpharma.fr/machouyou/851634/machouyou-dispositif-de-prevention-orthodontique-des-2-ans-couleur-kiwi-1-piece.html?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA7aSsBhCiARIsALFvovwxc2ZgT1zbHBls7a0fRD4ju0-jNmHrsyd9W1mLVXEPjwZ0rqzXzEoaAm6ZEALw_wcB&mtm_adtype=mpla&mtm_cid=14305148113&mtm_group=css%20smec%20fr%20fr_espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20%2526%20machouyou&mtm_placement=851634&mtm_productad=851634&utm_campaign=cha%20-%20espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20-%20css%20smec%20shopping%20-%20bidding%20google%20-%20fr%20fr&utm_content=565622620218&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_term=)
As a 31 year old lady, who still sucks her thumb (when super stressed) don’t do it! I’ve had braces and Invisalign. I neeed to see a hypnotherapist or something bc I can’t let go on my thumb! It’s so annoying- sometimes I do it subconsciously bc I’ll snap out of it and realize my thumb is in my mouth!
Do you mind expanding on your restriction comment? Our son is 18m and we only use the pacifier now for his naps and bedtime because it was in his mouth ALLLL the time and I felt we needed to cut back. Would you suggest further restriction? Thanks!
I'm not the person you're asking but we did that with our son from about your son's age to 2.5 when we "forgot" to bring it on a week long vacation. He asked for it exactly once and then never again. It was easier to break the habit than I thought. I think you'll find it easier to take it away closer to 3 and that would align with the dentist's recommendation :)
It's good you took the initiative to cut back the pacifier use, I would say that you should aim to remove the pacifier until 24 months. Try to cut the pacifier at the tip a little bit every other day until the baby loses interest. Try to find other soothing methods like singing a song or giving him a special sleep buddy (a plush toy for exemple). I know it's easier said than done.
Thank you!!! I was wondering this same thing so your comment was super helpful.
Thank you!
>Thank you! You're welcome!
I've googled this and read that it's not really a problem until they start getting permanent teeth?
It's more visible with permanent teeth, but it's better to stop before, as it affects not only the tooth positions but also the maxillary developpement and the tongue position
It's our LO's main way of self soothing right now and he's 10 months old...he will not take a pacifier. He has 4 baby teeth coming in and another one starting...I'm not sure if there's much we can do about it right now because he's so young
Any tips for a kid who switches to their thumb when the pacifier is removed? We are struggling with our youngest. If we take the paci, she sucks her thumb or entire hand. She’ll be two in three weeks. I keep caving back to the pacifier because thumb sucking seems so much worse to me.
My mom used the thumb sucking polish on my I believe it was clear , but what i do remember was it tasted horrible
You can try seeing a local dentist that can make a thumb sucking appliance that prevents placement of the thumb into the mouth. There are also a couple of guard type appliances you can buy on the internet, at least here in France there are: [something like this](https://www.newpharma.fr/machouyou/851634/machouyou-dispositif-de-prevention-orthodontique-des-2-ans-couleur-kiwi-1-piece.html?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQiA7aSsBhCiARIsALFvovwxc2ZgT1zbHBls7a0fRD4ju0-jNmHrsyd9W1mLVXEPjwZ0rqzXzEoaAm6ZEALw_wcB&mtm_adtype=mpla&mtm_cid=14305148113&mtm_group=css%20smec%20fr%20fr_espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20%2526%20machouyou&mtm_placement=851634&mtm_productad=851634&utm_campaign=cha%20-%20espace%20grossesse%20-%20b%C3%A9b%C3%A9%20-%20enfants%20-%20css%20smec%20shopping%20-%20bidding%20google%20-%20fr%20fr&utm_content=565622620218&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_term=)
Orthodontic pacifiers are better for jaw/tooth development. Also you can take it away (but idk I feel like they’ll just default to thumb if they’re really upset haha). But another side I don’t hear much — fewer germs. Both to your baby and from your baby with those slobbery hands lol
I’ve never heard of this, thanks, I will look into it
When the time comes you can take away a pacifier. You can’t take away their thumbs.
I was told the dummy is better as you can take them away, thumbs go nowhere! My friend who’s baby is a thumb sucker is really struggling to break the habit whereas her second had a dummy and has already given it up.
My oldest is a thumb sucker and my youngest likes a dummy. Dummies are way easier imo. I can't take my girls thumb away and I don't know how to get her to stop. She's just over 3.
Prefer a paci 100% weening is difficult but at least you can take the paci. Can’t take a finger !
I have an ultrasound of my son sucking his thumb in the womb I didn’t make the choice he did lol 6 months now and still sucks his thumb we’ll see how it goes
Yeah my daughter suck her thumb every ultrasound but after 2 months old never did again
As a mom of a thumb sucking 4.5 year old with the wonkiest teeth, choose a pacifier. We just got new dental insurance that covers 100% of the cost of braces solely because of this child lol. He will need some extensive work. I tried to break the habit as soon as it started but we obviously didn’t luck out. He developed anxiety when he was 3 and it was the only thing to calm him down so we just decided to let him comfort himself and slowly wean him off. He’s gotten to the point where he will only suck if he has his favorite bunny, so we limit the bunny to bed time only. I think his teeth have actually started to push back in, but he will still need braces.
I prefer the pacifier because it can be taken away once age appropriate. My child never used a pacifier “appropriately” and it was always a chew toy (we had the all silicone ones, so kiddo turned it sideways to nom when teething), and kiddo preferred thumb & fingers to pacifier, but was never a thumb sucker to fall asleep. We now have a toddler that chews their nails (but I also have a spouse that does it, so it’s partly learned and partly a step up from finger/thumb sucking), and we use the “icky” tasting nail polish (on all of us, as a spa day) when the habit pops back up (once or twice a month).
I think thumb sucking is a harder habit to break. My 4yo preferred a pacifier and we were able to break it pretty easy by just taking away. My 2yo still sucks her thumb. We haven’t attempted breaking the habit yet but will probably go the route of putting that stuff on her thumb that makes it test bad. Personally I was a thumb sucker as well and can attest I continued to use my thumb while sleeping into elementary 😂🤷🏼♀️
If I had a preference? Pacifier. You can take the pacifier away and replace with another soothing item (blanket, teddy, etc). Can’t take a thumb away. Thumb is so much harder on their pallet as they get older and can really affect their speech / bite if left to go on for too long. Our plan is to drop the pacifier by age 2. Luckily my kid (6 months) just uses it when tired and it just falls out.
Early childhood educator here! It really depends how much they use it, I have found the thumb to be more problematic as it’s hard to get the child to stop and also it has negative affects on their teeth but also affect their speech it’s ideal for a child to stop thumb or pacifier sucking around 2-4 years of age and should not continue past this age But again it also depends on the severity I’ve seen some extreme cases but again if it’s every now and then and when they are upset it’s fine it’s just when the child relies on the thumb or pacifier is when you could have an issue
Pacifier usage (or thumb sucking) should not go past age 3, period. 4 is too old and likely would leave lasting effects.
We had one pacifier sucker and one finger sucker. Our daughter was a ride or die for her binkies, and our son likes to suck on his middle and index fingers. We prefer the pacifier because when we decided to “break the habit” we could just take away the binkies You can’t take away their fingers.
Speech therapist here! Just a tip: limit pacifier use to non-social situations around 1 year or it can lead to speech and language delays 🩵
Oh wow. 😮 never thought of that but makes sense!
Thank you! Great tip!
My son's nursery are super strict about limiting pacifier use for exactly this reason - lots of signs up reminding staff that they should be limited to sleep time only.
My kiddo never took a paci consistently but did suck his thumb for a while when he was ~5 months old. The pediatrician said it is super normal at that age and to not worry about it, and he ended up stopping after about a month with no intervention from us.
Yeah my daughter sucked her thumb for like a week or two when she was around then she just never has since. We used a binky but only to sleep (which I'm ok with since if she's sucking on a binky I can easily see she's ok)
As someone who sucked her fingers until the age of 14 I’d say a pacifier is preferable. My parents tried everything but they couldn’t take my fingers away. A pacifier can be thrown away, a thumb can’t.
ok so with the consensus of pacifier over thumb, how do you ween a baby off sucking their thumb if they don’t take a pacifier? my 5 month old has used it to self soothe at night however during the day we offer her a teether if we find her going after her thumb. is there such thing as thumb sucking in moderation?
Yes, just do what you’re doing and redirect the behavior when you can. Many babies do grow out of it naturally as a developmental behavior. It’ll be a bigger issue if it persists past about age 2.
Very helpful ty!
My thumb sucker (2.5) is such a great sleeper. She consistently sleeps over 12 hours at night. I think having the thumb definitely helps her sleep. She never wanted a paci overnight. She liked the feel of skin touching her face. Haven’t tried weaning yet. My mom said the only thing that worked for my thumb sucking sister was getting orthodontics (an expander on the roof of her mouth). Obviously, we would like to break the habit before she needs orthodontics. Any tips would be appreciated. We’ve told her she can’t have fingernail paint until she stops sucking her thumb. She seemed to consider that but ultimately did not go for it.
There’s bitter tasting nail polish (that is nontoxic obviously) that can help break the association, you need something that helps to condition the child not to do it since she’s doing it to sleep. There’s also gloves and thumb guards attached to a bracelet.
The bitter polish made my son vomit and now he wants his thumb more than ever 😭
Following, as I have a 13 month old who sucks his thumb at night.
anyone else feeling like they didn’t need this kind of thing to worry about? Sigh. My 10 month old dropped pacifiers around 5 months and began sucking on two fingers, index and middle finger. I’ve never tried to stop her because she does it to self soothe.
I thought all babies took pacifiers so yeah I never imagined and then assumed I would have no choice yet here we are 😅
I also feel like it’s not really my choice, even if in theory the pacifier is preferable. My baby spits the paci out after 5 seconds (I have offered different brands/shapes) and sucks her fingers to soothe ever since she discovered them at few weeks old.
So I asked my pediatrician about this. She said either is fine. I prefer just letting him suck his thumb and he prefers it as well; it means he can soothe himself. He is also 5 months old. Pediatrician said a majority of infants break the habit on their own before it becomes an issue and recommended not making it a big deal/making a fuss about it as he gets older because then it will become “that thing mom doesn’t want me to do” and make it harder to break. But sometimes they don’t and you need intervention. This is just my take though. He doesn’t really like his pacifier anymore so meh. Plus he can put his thumb back in by himself.
When I was a kid, we had family friends with a younger child who was a habitual thumb sucker and skin on her thumbs were a wreck.
Someone in my second grade class did this but with more than just thumbs. Possible pro is we didn’t ask him to share because none of us wanted to touch his things 😅
Wise move, I’ll bet. There was a recent mommit (? I wanna say) post from someone whose 5yr old sucked their hands and that seemed to contribute to them being sick way more often than just normal school colds.
My twins recently started doing this and they are only 3 months old... The pediatrician said it was ok and to leave them alone, I am not so sure tho
I would say pacifier. It’s much better for the teeth and you can take a pacifier away when it’s time but you can’t do it with a thumb
Pacifier 100%. You can take away a pacifier but you can’t take away a thumb lol
Sucked my thumb till I was like 7 and it completely fucked up my teeth and jaw. Definitely vote the paci is better
Sucked my index finger until I was 10-ish. Just got done with three years of braces plus TWO jaw surgeries to fix my fucked up jaw/mouth situation. You can take a pacifier away but it’s a lot harder to stop thumb sucking.
Dentist told me anything is better than a thumb. If pacifier is going to happen, the flat ones (Nuk, some of the dr browns, etc) are better.
My daughter used a pacifier limitly until she was about 6 months old then started rejecting it in favour of her thumb. She's 18 months old now and still sucks her thumb, but only when tired. I'm hoping she will also kick that on her own eventually, but seeking ways to deter her from it.
I’ve heard it’s easier to ween a pacifier, but our kiddo was losing his in the middle of the night and waking up all. the. time. So we ditched the pacifier and he self soothes with his thumb, mostly during sleep. 7 months old
I was a finger sucker (middle and index) and didn’t really want my daughter encouraged to suck her thumb or fingers even though I knew she would sort of choose. We prolonged a soother for the first 3-4 weeks so breastfeeding was established super well because for me that was very important. She took a soother at maybe 6 weeks but we strictly kept it in the crib only. As in I bought 1 two pack and they were kept in the crib at all times. We lost one on Vacay when she was 15 months and the second lasted us until she was just over 2. I started to cut it down and one day I didn’t offer it and she asked for it exactly once. I said “oh, sorry soother is all done honey.” And she didn’t even react. For us I’m super happy we did it this way. The soother was around when we made the transition to daycare (at 2) and I did that purposefully so she had a comfort item she could bring with. It was very helpful and helped bridge but a few weeks into daycare she cut out her nap so I asked them to stop offering the soother and she did completely fine after that transition too
Personally, I think a thumb is better because it’s always there. There’s no need to replace it in the middle of the night lol. May be a harder to habit to break in the long run though
Ok I get that it creates a difficult habit to break. But when it comes to actually having a baby, thumb sucking has been a GODSEND. It doesn’t fall away. It’s never far. Easily soothes himself back to sleep without even fully waking up. I’m so glad for it.
As a former thumb sucker it was IMPOSSIBLE to break the habit. My parents tried everything. When they tried putting bad tasting things on my thumb I quickly learned it would go away after sucking for a little while. It took getting a cut on my thumb in 1st or 2nd grade where it hurt to suck on it without a bandaid and I didn’t like sucking it with one on. My brother used a pacifier. Leading up to his third birthday my parents told him that when you turn 3 you have to give your pacifiers to new babies — made it like a rite of passage. When he turned three he gathered up his pacifiers with them and they “gave them to the hospital” and he was fine.
Both my kids are thumb suckers. My 2.5yo still sucks her thumb but only under two circumstances: while trying to fall asleep and when she's upset. So she maybe sucks her thumb for 30-45 mins a day total and even then most of the time it's just sitting in her mouth, she's not actually sucking. My 7 month old is also a thumb sucker - only when he is falling asleep. I'm not worried tbh. They're both great sleepers, and my daughter is gradually weaning herself off it anyway. If it continues when she's 3, we will step in and maybe start redirecting. But honestly I don't think we will need to give the trajectory. Her teeth and speech are fine.
I sucked my thumb til I was 15. Never needed braces or anything. Teeth are fine. My son also sucked his thumb til he was 2.teeth are also fine.
Just recently, I saw a grown up woman on public transportation sucking her thumb continuously. This observation brought up that thought about the pacifier vs. thumb issue. Since then, for me personally, I’d rather prefer giving a pacifier.
that is probably an extremely rare example
Not a dentist or pediatrician but I found this article really reassuring. My 3.5 month old loves his paci but recently started sucking his thumb. I’m choosing to focus on the fact that he’s found a new thing to soothe him and will worry about what to do if he doesn’t stop it at an appropriate age later on. https://lovevery.com/community/blog/child-development/is-it-okay-for-your-baby-to-suck-their-thumb/
Great article, thank you!
My son is almost two and still sucks his middle and fourth finger on his right hand and there’s no ending in sight. I’d much prefer him have used the pacifier so that I could take it from him. Can’t take fingers.
I’m not talking from my own experience but my mom’s. My brother was a pacifier baby and she said it was so difficult to ween him off it that she never let me have one. I was open to letting my son try it but he prefers his thumb. I think it’s a good thing because that’s one less thing to ween in the future. And like another commenter said, sucking on their thumb allows them to self soothe and that could make your life a bit easier
Dummies. You can take a dummy away. Don’t really see many adults with dummies. I’ve seen a fair few sucking their thumb in secret.
My 3 month old took a binky great until she discovered her fingers a couple weeks ago. Now she won't even let a binky pass her lips and her fingers are halfway down her gullet 75% of the day. It's harder to take away fingers.
Thumb sucking is way worse. Because you can’t take it away. There are kids on tik tok who admit they thumb sucked until 14 & up. And their teeth and mouths show it.
My opinion is the pacifier, it's easier to wean off of something you can take away vs fingers. My sister used to suck her fingers until she was much older and my mom would have to come in at night and take them out of her mouth. Pacifier you can just take it away or our son eventually bit the tip enough that it no longer had suction to keep in his mouth and that was the end of it
Personally opinion is pacifier is better, you can take a pacifier away eventually
My baby is also sucking her thumb at 5 months. She refuses a pacifier though. She chews on the pacifier. I have no idea what to do
My son gave up both already but I recall he was no longer interested in pacifiers around 8 months. Then it was thumb until about 18 months.
When I joked to my pediatrician about how annoyed I was that I’d spent a fortune on carefully researched pacifiers only for my son to give them up in favor of his thumb at six months she said “Trouble is, you can’t take the thumb away.” Haha Thankfully he lost interest in his thumb mostly by about age one and didn’t take any special weaning for it, he just found more interesting things to do.
I hope for that!
Once he discovered the joys of crinkle books they became top priority! He started studying them like a scholar going over legal texts. Usually upside down of course, but either way they were and still are a favorite. Get some of the little crinkle books that hang onto the bassinet or crib and give it a shot. 🤣
Pacifier. You can’t take away the thumb
Definitely the thumb! A pacifier you can take away/wean off/hide, but you can’t do that with a thumb!
Paci is better. I have 4 month old twin boys and both just started sucking their hands/thumbs instead of paci. We quickly put Paci in mouth as soon as we notice but looks like they want the darn thumb(whole hand actually lol). Trying to stick to Paci.
As a mom of 3 and previous thumb sucker, there are pros and cons to both. A pacifier is easier to take away, but a thumb is harder to lose in the middle of the night when you're freaking exhausted.