Should I try to stop my baby from sucking their thumb?

Written by Karen Miles | Apr 11, 2024

Photo credit: Thinkstock

No, you don't have to stop your child from sucking their thumb while they're a baby. Babies generally suck their thumb to soothe themselves.

The ability to regulate or control one's behavior and emotions is an important developmental challenge. When your baby sucks their thumb, they're finding ways to make themself feel better without your help.

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In general, thumb-sucking is more irritating to parents than it is harmful to kids. Your baby will stop when they're ready and has developed other ways of soothing themself.

But if your child is still sucking their thumb by age 3 or 4, you may want to check with their dentist about ways to help your child stop so their teeth and jaw aren't affected.

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Sources

BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world. When creating and updating content, we rely on credible sources: respected health organizations, professional groups of doctors and other experts, and published studies in peer-reviewed journals. We believe you should always know the source of the information you're seeing. Learn more about our editorial and medical review policies.

AAP. 2020. Pacifiers and Thumb Sucking. American Academy of Pediatrics. http://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/crying-colic/Pages/Pacifiers-and-Thumb-Sucking.aspxOpens a new window [Accessed April 2024]

AAPD. Undated. Little Teeth Truths: Is Thumb Sucking Hurting My Child's Teeth? American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry. https://www.mychildrensteeth.org/little-teeth-truths-is-thumb-sucking-hurting-my-childs-teeth2/Opens a new window [Accessed April 2024]

ADA. Undated. Thumbsucking. American Dental Association. http://www.mouthhealthy.org/az-topics/t/thumbsucking.aspxOpens a new window [Accessed April 2024]

Karen Miles

Karen Miles is a writer and an expert on pregnancy and parenting who has contributed to BabyCenter for more than 20 years. She's passionate about bringing up-to-date, useful information to parents so they can make good decisions for their families. Her favorite gig of all is being "Mama Karen" to four grown children and "Nana" to nine grandkids.

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