what can I do to prevent my 4 month old from sucking her fingers?

Alisha - posted on 07/22/2010

Ha, not much! Why do you not want her/him to? Babies do that naturally to pacify themselves and they will grow out of it. I wouldn't be too worried about it at this point unless it is becoming a health issue.

Rebecca - posted on 07/21/2010

I agree that it is too soon to worry about this. This is just one of those things babies do and is perfectly healthy right now. However, if you are talking about an older child (I don't know, ladies, what do you think? 3 or 4 or older?) and it is still a problem, then I would suggest a product you can google and purchase online called No Bite (there are several brands). It is a bad tasting fingernail polish that keeps kids and adults from biting their nails, but also works great for suckers. I had a family member who sucked on her fingers up to the time she was 4 or so, and it was causing dental problems, and this did the trick. However, I want to reiterate that this is normal right now! Please don't go put the polish on a 4 month old! It's just a suggestion for the future.

Holly - posted on 07/21/2010

I have an almost 9 month old..........she sucks her fingers still......that is what she does to go to sleep.......she wouldn't take a pacifier...........I sucked my thumb when I was a baby and I quit on my own.......so I don't think we should worry about it........I decided not to interfere........she goes to sleep on her own where my son never would.......he never took a pacifier and never sucked his fingers........he always had a hard time going to sleep on his own.......I take this one as a blessing........:)

Stephanie Jo - posted on 07/16/2010

Just wondering why? She is doing what she is suppose to.Try not to worry about things and enjoy your precious gift from God.

Polly - posted on 07/09/2010

I am also curious why you want her to stop? Its a normal thing for babies to suck their fingers. Sucking is a strong natural reflex in babies, and they use it to comfort themselves. They also learn about their surroundings by putting things in their mouth (including fingers and toes). You could encourage her to use a pacifier instead of her fingers, but truthfully it would not be healthy for you to try to prevent her from sucking on something when she needs it.

If you are worried that she will continue doing it when she is older, just know that about 80% of children outgrow sucking their thumb on their own. 4 months old is too young to be worried about this. She is too little at this point.

Also, the mittens are generally used for newborns to prevent them from scratching their face, not for preventing an older baby from sucking on their fingers. It would do more harm than good to put mittens on a 4 month old. She needs her hands available to explore.

Tiffany - posted on 07/08/2010

Yes, I was wondering the same thing? Babies are learning when they are doing this and pretty soon it will will probably be her toes too!! Let her explore! It won't last forever! :)

Christine - posted on 07/08/2010

Just curious - why do you want her to stop?

Heather - posted on 07/08/2010

They have little mitten things that you can get to put on her hands... Socks work too...