Most annoying habit of baby can also be harmful for its health
. A baby who keeps sucking on things like thumbs, fingers or any other objects is prone to infections caused by other elements which might enter the mouth along with them. Often parents offer baby pacifiers to suck instead of the fingers, which is also good as it is harder to take child off thumb sucking than pacifiers. For good newborn baby care it is essential to control this habit of your baby.
Sucking is one of the first things that a child does and is one of the most natural things. While a newborn sucks to survive, the same action may be sign of anxiety when done by older children. Sucking severs various purposes as a baby also may suck to soothe
themselves. We know by experience that a finger or thumb in the mouth of a child provides them with a sense of security. This can occur in difficult times such as after a scolding or when being separated from their parents. Since thumb sucking has been known to wean away anxiety, it may help relax and induce sleep in the baby.
Parents should psychologically treat a child in quitting this habit by either fear or reward. Special care should be used in giving objects to the child to suck such as pacifier etc. Prolonged sucking can lead to permanent damage to teeth and also hinder the proper growth of mouth, although this will happen only after permanent teeth start to appear at age around 6 years. Thumb sucking usually lessens and ultimately as the child becomes more involved with its surroundings and starts exploring other things. Overall, what starts out as a natural thing can cause health and behavior problems for a child. This kind of behavior requires attention of the parents so that proper thought be given to thumb sucking habit of a child.