Mouth Guard for Kids
Surprise, AZ
[[PIC:Child-wearing-striped-shirt-sucking-thumb.jpg|300||right|TPimgRight TPimg-responsive|Cute baby with thumb in mouth]]]Many parents encourage their babies to suck their thumb because it’s self soothing for babies and helps them sleep better. The best feature of a thumb is it can’t be lost like a pacifier can, a thumb is always right where your baby wants it. Unfortunately, there comes a point when thumb sucking has to stop, or your child can face some pretty serious orthodontic issues. Fortunately, at Surprise Smiles we can customize a nightguard appliance to help curb your child’s thumb sucking habit, saving you expensive orthodontic bills, and years of office visits in the future.
How does thumb sucking hurt my child’s teeth?
We understand the benefits that come from babies sucking their thumbs for self-soothing. Thumb sucking can help your little ones feel comfortable in different circumstances including falling asleep, feeling comforted and induce a calming sensation. Unfortunately, once your baby’s teeth start erupting thumb sucking can cause damage to their teeth’s development and placement.
Though we often think of teeth as being set firm, they are not stationary. Teeth can be moved, just as we move them with the use of braces. Young children can force teeth to move and shift by putting their thumbs or fingers in their mouth, particularly if they are sucking on fingers for long periods of time daily. Thumb sucking can change the alignment of teeth causing a dramatic shift, and creating a huge problem.
Thumb Sucking Guard Options
We can provide a guard to help your child stop sucking their thumb. We offer a few different options with varying attributes. Thumb sucking guards include:
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Aversion Therapy Splint: This guard is a plastic cylinder that is designed to fit over your child’s thumb.
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Thumb Sucking Nightguard: We can customize a nightguard or mouthguard to help your child break their habit of thumb sucking. Designed to fit over your child’s top teeth, this will provide a barrier between the thumb and teeth. The way the mouth guards work is by preventing their thumb from sitting comfortably on the roof of their mouth – they end up not being able to achieve suction because of this.
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Non-Removable Options: Besides the above removable options, we have non-removable options that can be placed. This includes a metal frame that can help. |
Is a Thumb Sucking Guard right for my child?
If your child is continuing to suck their thumb after their teeth have come in, it can impact the teeth’s alignment and your child’s smile. Thumb sucking can cause:
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Movement of Teeth: Teeth can be shifted and moved out of alignment. The most typical long term thumb sucking result is an open bite.
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Changes to the Shape of the Roof of the Mouth: Your child’s facial shape is growing and changing rapidly. The thumb being pushed up against the roof of the mouth persistently can cause changes to the shape of the roof of their mouth.
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Disruption of the Jaw Joint: Your child can cause disruption and alignment issues to their jaw joint.
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Introduce Decay causing Bacteria: Fingers can have all sorts of bacteria and germs on them, putting it in their mouth can be a source of infection. |
Don’t Scold Your Child for Thumbsucking
Parents can start with good intentions, but become frustrated. Scolding your child for thumb sucking is not a good alternative to other plans. We are happy to discuss ideas including reward charts, praise when they choose another method to self soothe, and continued diligence. A night guard appliance can make it easy for your child to beat thumb sucking quickly and totally, and we are happy to help.
Call us today at (602) 842-4864 to learn more. |
