Thumb and pacifier teeth: what are the consequences on?

If there is one thing that is changing, it is the growing realization that everything starts at an advanced age, especially from a physiological point of view.

Our children's teeth are very different from those of our grandparents. Many things have changed in the last fifty years, including the shape of our faces, jaws, mouths, gut microbiota and airways.

Why is having wisdom teeth or tonsils removed so common today, when our grandparents didn't need to do it?

Think about it for a moment.

In general, our faces do not develop to their fullest capacity (to include our 32 teeth).

Contributing factors include baby food, cup use, rubber nipples, etc. As a result, our faces are more restricted and less symmetrical, with chins that are clearly receding.

The question we are entitled to ask ourselves is:

Should we blame everything on pacifiers, and by the same token thumb sucking?

Do pacifiers deform babies' teeth?

Many parents may not be aware of the changes in facial development.

This is mainly because research is just beginning in this area. The medical field is only beginning to be more open about these topics.

For parents, education on the subject of dental development is critical. Because of the many opinions about what is good for a child, it is sometimes difficult for parents to separate what is good for their child.

Baby food is a good example to illustrate this.

The fear of choking/obstructing our children's airways has taken over, and we are feeding many more foods (that are soft and) processed, which prevents children from chewing early and more often – a necessary habit for developing the jaw.

The four essential elements for good oral development include:

• Stopping sucking habits
• Establishing good eating and swallowing habits
• Encourage proper chewing
• Make sure your child breathes through his or her nose

In this article we will discuss the essential habits and techniques for the proper dental development of children, which will include pacifiers and thumb sucking. We will not discuss braces in this article, having dealt with it previously.

Effect of the pacifier on teething

Nipples can be beneficial in some cases for newborns who have an urgent need to suckle. Nipples also help babies who struggle to hold the latch during breastfeeding to develop oral muscles.

In addition, pacifiers have also been associated with a reduced risk of SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome)[1].

But, the concern is the length of time the pacifier is used and the impact it has on poor teething. It's no secret that this can cause tooth deformation.

When your child uses it after the first six months of life, it is counterproductive to proper dental development, and can become a so-called comfort object. Before this crucial age, its use is good to help strengthen the oral muscles and assist the innate reflexes.

The difference between sucking and suckling

Sucking is a reflex that involves the tongue moving in a back and forth motion.

While your baby is suckling, the tongue is cupped and allows for more milk to be “transported” during breastfeeding.

Between two and six months, babies transition to a sucking motion. Sucking is a movement that is actively controlled by the baby and involves a downward movement of the tongue.

Breastfeeding is the best option to ensure a natural progression and transition from sucking to sucking, and some studies suggest that it is preventive of pacifier use[2].

While the pacifier encourages your child to strengthen his or her sucking muscles (and supports the development of the mouth and jaw), prolonged use can negatively impact the transition from sucking to sucking, i.e. delay it.

Not only does the use of a pacifier act on this natural transition, it can also become a soothing emotional need, in addition to weakening a reflex.

When should your child stop using the pacifier?

As a general rule, I would say that the right time to stop the pacifier is around five months when your child has started cooing and babbling.

This is precisely when your child takes over (or takes control of) their tongue and mouth and sucking is replaced by the act of sucking.

This is also when baby starts teething, so it's easier to replace the pacifier with teething rings or other self-soothing items.

Stopping the use of the “poodle” early enough, sometimes around your child's sixth month, prevents your child from using it as a comfort object and completely eliminates the sometimes difficult emotional response that occurs if you decide to wean or stop use completely.

In addition, once toddler use passes the two-year mark, there is a higher chance of inappropriate dental development[3], specifically hollowness, due to pacifier use.

The use of tootsies is associated with malocclusion in the following ways:

• Anterior overbite – when the front teeth do not line up
• Posterior crossbite – when the upper and lower teeth are misaligned and the molars do not fit into a side-by-side relationship.
• The inter-molar width is narrow.

These dental concerns could be avoided[4] by stopping pacifier use earlier. Making use of myofunctional therapy[5] facilitated cessation.

This therapy is also known to improve a child's swallowing habits and tongue position, which can help avoid health problems later in life.

A tool for emotional comfort

If your child is already past the age of using a pacifier as a reflex pacifier and is now using it as a comforting tool, taking it away may be difficult. Once children reach 24 months of age or older, it becomes downright traumatic[6].

Well-meaning adults often offer pacifiers to their children to calm them down when the root of the problem lies in the idea that it is an uncomfortable emotion.

They may be worried, insecure, agitated, but instead of addressing the root of the problem, we have learned to cure the symptom – crying. This teaches our children to turn inward when they are worried instead of dealing with their emotions.

If you look closely, we do similar things as adults. We retreat into our habits to calm ourselves.

Tapping our feet, smoking, chewing on a pen, melting into social networks are all activities that bring us back to this comfort.

The best thing we can do is not to let our children hide behind these habits. Instead of offering the poodle, you can offer your support.

There are many resources available to break the self-soothing habit, but there is one thing for sure – although it is a difficult habit to break, you should stop this habit, because after 24 months it will harm your child's dental development and can cause concerns later in life, such as deformed teeth.

The most important aspect of dental development is for parents to be aware of the habits that form in the mouth at a young age.

Is it possible to correct “poodle” teeth?

The answer is no in most cases, intervention and correction are often necessary. That's why prevention is the best thing to do in this case.

If you want my opinion, pacifiers should be seen as a possible barrier to your child's proper dental development. Of course, they can be useful in some, but should be used as a temporary solution, if you were to use them at all.

How does thumb sucking affect teeth?

Thumb sucking is an endearing habit. A habit that can start in the womb – some parents have ultrasound images of their baby sucking their thumb.

Thumb sucking is such a childhood habit that it may seem unnatural to stop.

While it's adorable, can thumb sucking affect tooth development?

Breaking the habit of sucking teeth is important, as it can cause problems in the development of the mouth. Also, the older your child gets, the harder it will be to break the habit.

Most children will be used to sucking their thumb at some point, either through the thumb, one of the other fingers, or through the use of a pacifier. And at some point, those same children will move on.

But to what extent can we say that this habit causes problems before the child moves on?

And at what point should this habit be stopped?

The old school mentality was rather relaxed on the subject of thumb sucking. Most parents and dentists waited until the child had moved on, sometimes not treating the problem until much later in life.

Dentists often even let orthodontists take care of it, if the problem was not treated after a while.

But, as with most habits, the longer it goes on, the harder it will be for you to correct it. So we are faced with the question – at what age should we stop sucking our thumb?

When can this habit cause problems?

At what age do children find their thumb?

All babies discover their thumb at different times. Many use their thumb in the womb, while others never find their thumb.

But, it's usually within the first three months of life that your child will “discover” his thumb…or not at all.

At what age should they stop sucking their thumb?

The short answer is: after six months, and as soon as possible.

As with poodles, thumb sucking can help very young children develop their jaw muscles. After that, however, it quickly becomes a concern.

Some believe that thumb sucking is beneficial to a child's psychology, but thumb sucking is not a comfort until after the first year.

It represents a habit that causes the child to withdraw instead of engaging. It's a habit that makes the child seem calmer, but in reality he or she is not really in the moment; it's as if he or she is absent.

Also, many don't think it's necessary to worry about thumb sucking before the permanent teeth come in, but that's not actually true. The growth of baby teeth sets the stage for the adult teeth. Also, the older your child gets, the harder the habit will become to break.

Deformed teeth and thumb sucking

When your child sucks his thumb, the force of the sucking can cause the teeth to tip forward. This can cause different types of malocclusions, which include:

• Anterior bite – when the front teeth do not line up, but the molars do line up.
• Posterior crossbite – see above.

Are there any benefits to thumb sucking?

It's not the end of the world either.

When your child is born, this can help develop the muscles of the jaw and mouth[7]. But the benefits of thumb sucking can disappear quickly after six months of age.

Another benefit comes from the idea that thumb suckers are less prone to allergic hypersensitivities, and may have fewer allergies[8].

But this is certainly due to the “hygiene hypothesis”[9], which suggests that the decrease in infections caused by overly “disinfected” lifestyles is the cause of the increase in allergies and autoimmune diseases.

However, this theory is not enough to conclude that thumb sucking is the best way to prevent allergies, especially if you weigh the pros and cons.

Consequences of thumb sucking

Although this habit is innocent, the consequences should be taken very seriously because of the implications on the impact of the rest of the children's lives.

Science has discovered the long-term consequences of thumb sucking, which include:

• Narrowing of the jaw, or palate
• Reduction of the airways
• Impaired breathing
• Poor swallowing practices
• Wrong position of the teeth
• Hindered speech
• Speech problems

One of the biggest consequences of thumb sucking is that it affects the position of the tongue.

A child's tongue is one of the main factors in the growth of the dental arch. Poor tooth growth can lead to narrower airways, which causes sleep-disordered breathing later in life:

Signs of poor nighttime breathing are:

• Snoring
• Sleeping on your stomach
• Daytime fatigue
• Restless legs syndrome
• Enuresis

Poor nighttime breathing disrupts the lymphatic system, which is supposed to function during the deepest phases of sleep.

When your breathing affects your sleep, your brain cannot eliminate important neurotoxins.

This accumulation of neurotoxins has been associated with many diseases, including Alzheimer's disease, which is on the rise and now ranks as the third leading cause of death worldwide.

I suck my thumb, how do I stop?

There are many articles and techniques available on the subject of thumb sucking, but I'd like to focus on the top 7 ways to stop this habit for your child:

• Start early – the sooner you help her quit, the easier it will be.
• Hold your child's hand when he/she feels the urge to suck his/her thumb (or replace it with a blanket, for example, a comforter – this helps when thumb sucking represents emotional comfort and he/she feels uncomfortable)
• Praise your child for not sucking his thumb – explain that it's for babies, and that he's a big boy now (or a big girl).
• Gently encourage your child to think about why he/she sucks his/her thumb. Or, ask them about it and discuss it.
• After six months of age, introduce your child to a harder diet. This allows them to focus on chewing, which reduces their need to use their thumb.
• Use home exercise to help your child develop good oral function[10].

Stop thumb sucking at a young age

I know that thumb sucking is a cute activity, but in the long run it will harm your child's dental development.

Also, with 80 percent of the population suffering from sleep-disordered breathing due to narrowed airways, it may be a good idea to stop this habit early.

Stopping thumb sucking early is one of four elements of your child's dental development – the other three are:

• Establishing a good swallow
• Encourage good chewing
• Make sure your child is breathing through his or her nostrils

Many parents are not aware that they have a huge influence on their children's oral development. After reading this article, you can share with your friends and family so that they take these simple tips to heart to make a difference.