Are you concerned about your baby or toddler sucking his thumb? Learn the facts and common misconceptions, and get advice on how to help your child shed this childhood habit.

Many parents find themselves relieved when their infants find their fingers or thumb and are able to soothe themselves. Yet for some, relief turns to concern as the child grows, and mom and dad begin to worry if the thumb sucking habit is normal, if it will damage their child's bite, and if their child will ever stop the habit.

Fact: Thumb sucking is a 'normal' behavior

Infants have strong, pre-determined sucking and rooting reflexes. Finding an object to suck on is an extension of this normal behavior. About 90 percent of infants in Western cultures engage in what's termed "non-nutritive sucking" (or sucking for purposes other than feeding), on thumbs, fingers, pacifiers, blankets, or other objects. About half of these children will stop on their own by six or seven months of age, but as many as one-third will continue beyond the preschool years. Though no official data exist on thumb sucking among adults, there are web sites devoted to help adults kick this habit!

Myth: There are no problems with thumb sucking in infants and toddlers

Though common enough, there are some early potential downsides to this habit. Fingers can become sore and even infected. Bacteria can be introduced into the mouth by dirty fingers. There is also the concern that infants and toddlers, happy with their mouths busy sucking, will be less inclined to babble or imitate the sounds around them. When they do attempt to talk around a thumb or pacifier, they are less likely to be understood.