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Parenting

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Original poster

Thumb sucking versus dummies. Is one really better than the other??

25 replies

cafebistro · 03/07/2008 22:04

My 4 month old is a thumb sucker (has always refused bottles and dummy). My friend recently told me that her 3 month old also sucked her thumb but she 'put a stop to it' by giving her a dummy, her reasoning being that she would be able to take a dummy off her when she was older and wouldnt be able to do that with a thumb. Is it just me or does this sound a bit strange? Does it really matter if a baby sucks it thumb anyway?

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TrinityRhino · 03/07/2008 22:04

leave her with her thumb
its easily washable and can't get lost

she needs a comfort all her own

nancy75 · 03/07/2008 22:06

it is easier to take the dummy away, my cousin (in her 20's) still sucks her thumb and her teeth are buggered.

Lubyloo · 03/07/2008 22:06

My DD is a committed thumb sucker and it is really starting to affect her teeth now. I wish she had a dummy that I could take off her!

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mckenzie · 03/07/2008 22:07

My DD still sucks her thumb at 3 and a half. If iot was just a bed time or when she was tired it wouldn't bother me at all but she does it ALL THE TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

With hindsight, I wish I had offered her a dummy because that I could take away but I can't take away her thumb.

7 year old DS still sucks his fingers but only at bedtime and the dentist has told me not to worry about it. That's the main reason i am concerned about DD's continued sucking - my sister sucked her thumb and had a horrible time being teased at school because of her two front teeth.

umma · 03/07/2008 22:07

no let her suck her thumb, I did til I was about 12!!!

TrinityRhino · 03/07/2008 22:09

all you nasty people
kids can braces later on

lots of kids dont ever affect their teeth
I sucked my thumb till I was 14 and my teethe were never affected at alll

its not a definite that it will
leave her be please

fishie · 03/07/2008 22:10

yyy trinityrhino et al me too. i have lovely teeth and a rather nice thumb too.

runnyhabbit · 03/07/2008 22:10

Tricky one

Never tried a dummy with ds1. He found his thumb, and sucked til he was about 10mths old.
Tried a dummy with ds2, didn't want to know, and he found his thumb too. But he's now 14mths old, and still does, although usually when he's tired. Do worry about it affecting his teeth though. Although different HV have different views on whether it does actually affect teeth

Lubyloo · 03/07/2008 22:12

Trinity - years of braces won't be fun. I had to put up with them all through my teenage years and was miserable. With orthodontic treatment costing so much now I don't know if we could even afford it!

thisisyesterday · 03/07/2008 22:12

was going to reply just that. you can tgake a dummy away.
for teeth reasons alone I think that's a good point

Jas · 03/07/2008 22:13

DD2 (almost 8) is a hardened thumb sucker. I tried a dummy when she was tiny and she hated it, but didn't start sucking her thumb til I stopped bf at 8 months. I know it is affecting her teeth (the dentist could tell she was a thumb sucker across the waiting room despite the fact that both front teeth are missing) but I don't think there is anything i can do that isn't cruel. She isn't ready to give up.

frankiesbestfriend · 03/07/2008 22:22

Thought I was very worthy not giving in to dummies when dd was a baby.
She found her thumb at about 3 months, was all very cute when she was tiny but she is now 7 and still a committed sucker.

Her teeth are beginning to grow outwards and the dentist says it is due to the thumb sucking.
Apparently it depends on their sucking technique as to whether it will adversely effect the teeth.
Dd will almost certainly need a brace.

She is still drinking her night time milk from an Anyway Up Cup too

Having said all that, if I have another I probably wouldn't give a dummy, it can make bf harder, encourage sloppy speech and be a germ magnet,imo.

Original poster

cafebistro · 03/07/2008 22:23

There's not much i can do now anyway. I tried her with a dummy at the beginning and she was nearly sick. I cant stop her from sucking her thumb at this age anyway. A plus point is that if she wakes in the night she can comfort herself.

OP posts:

Bronze · 03/07/2008 22:25

Oh dummy is the better option. There speaks an ex thumbsucker who had trouble stopping well into her teens. My ds2 had a dummy and stopped aged 3 with no fuss. I know which I would choose. DD sucks her thumb and won't take a dummy grr

fishie · 03/07/2008 22:28

this is so victorian. so what if a child sucks its thumb for comfort, all this 'putting a stop to it' is not nice.

Original poster

cafebistro · 03/07/2008 22:31

I have never really thought about stopping it but the comment my friend made just made me think you know.

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sophiebbb · 03/07/2008 22:34

I am actively giving a dummy to my second born (9 wks). DS1 (18 months) still has his in his cot and sleeps from 7pm til 8am with it. I will take it away when he is a bit older - much better than his sucking his thumb or fingers IMO for all the reasons mentioned above.

There is now also the evidence that it means active sleep which reduces the chance of SIDs.

Original poster

cafebistro · 03/07/2008 22:37

My DS has dummy, so have nothing against them at all. He also just has it for bed but DD wasnt having any of it!!

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willali · 04/07/2008 13:47

first born thumb sucker - thought it was great - always available etc. Took till he was 7 to stop teeth now terrible, years of orthodontics to look forward to.

second born given a dummy because of the above - thought it was terrible, always having to get up in the night to plug her back in when it fell out. eventually got rid of it by the time she was 4 ("forgot" to take it on holiday!!) teeth still terrible, years of othodontics to look forward to.

Moral - neither is beter than the other

sleepycat · 04/07/2008 13:51

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

JiminyCricket · 04/07/2008 13:54

my dd refused dummy when little and didn't suck thumb...then she took up thumb sucking when she was three and is very committed now! What will be will be, she only does it whn she's very tired now and would be embarrassed to do it in front of others. My dentist said not to worry until about age 5-6.

AuntyJ · 04/07/2008 14:08

dd found her thumb at 14wks and sucks it only when tried or unwell she is now 3. I didnt realise how lucky I was as she slept through from 14wks and never had issues with sleep as she self soothes.
ds is nearly 6mths and I have given him a dummy which is a pain as if it falls out during him sleeping guess who has to get up and put it back in again. Im planning to get rid of it soon its a pain having to remember it everwhere you go.
Let the baby suck their thumb!

threestars · 04/07/2008 14:53

I sucked my thumb until I made a concerted effort to stop at 8 yrs when I had to wear a brace. My front 2 teeth stuck out like Bugs Bunny. And it really hurt when the brace was tightened.
Luckily in those days orthodontic work was free on the nhs, but not now.
Thumbs & dummies alike are germ magnets. Dirt under the nails etc. (just been gemming up on worms since DS has had them. gross.)
But some DC can't be told what to have. DS refused thumb and dummy and was a pain to get to sleep.
DD plays will happily use both and seems to be much more of a 'suckier' baby.

Original poster

cafebistro · 04/07/2008 20:40

Thanks for everyones opinions! Ive decided not to worry about it...you're right jiminycricket what will be will be!

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sophiebbb · 04/07/2008 20:47

My DS used to lose his dummy in the night. Ended up attaching it to his sleeping bag with one of those ribbon things - making absolute sure that the ribbon was short enough that it could no way wrap around his neck. It means that he can find the dummy himself in the night and stops you having to find it for them....

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