Nailing those New Year’s Resolutions: How to Help Your Young Nail Biter
As we get closer to 2012, you might be thinking about New Year’s resolutions both for you and your kids. If your child is a nail biter, we’ll try to help make 2012 the year she stops for good.
Of all the typical childhood nervous habits (such as thumb sucking and hair twisting), nail biting is the most common. As many as 40 percent of all children older than 6 years bite their nails. It is also the habit that is most likely to continue into adulthood, as 20 percent of college students bite their nails.
Tips to stop your child from biting his nails
While the habit is, for the most part, harmless, nail biting can increase the risk for infections around the nail beds and in the mouth. In addition, long-term nail biting can interfere with normal nail growth and cause deformed nails. There are many things you can do to try and help your child to stop:
- Talk to your child about her nail biting. Ask her why she does it, if it bothers her and if she wants to stop. Tell her that you want to help her have healthy hands and that you are there to help support her.
- Children will often bite their nails without realizing they are doing it, such as while reading, watching TV or talking on the phone. If you identify the times when your child is most likely to bite his nails, give him something else to occupy his hands such as a stress ball, a bendable toy or a smooth stone. A puzzle ring or a rolling ring can also be effective for keeping fingers occupied.
- Don't physically try to stop the nail biting by slapping or pulling the hand away. No matter how frustrating it might be to watch your child bite his nails (and no matter how annoying the sound is), never punish or shame your child, and do not use threats or anger.
- Have your child choose a realistic reward and work towards earning it. Most children have something in mind they think they can’t live without. You can make a daily chart and use stickers to mark off days he keeps his hands out of his mouth.
- Children may bite their nails more often when they are having problems at school or with friends; talk with your child and her teacher about any new stress in her life. If your child is biting her nails so severely that she tears up her nail beds and her cuticles bleed frequently, it might be a sign that she is suffering more anxiety than usual for a child her age. Speak to your pediatrician if you think the behavior has gone beyond the usual nervous habit.
- Agree on a signal you can give him when you see him biting his nails so that he is not embarrassed in public. For example, a gentle touch on the arm or softly saying his name.
- Keep your child's nails trimmed and filed. Taking care of the nails can help reduce the habit. Take your daughter for a professional manicure, complete with polish. She is less likely to nibble if it means ruining her beautiful nails.
- Put gloves on your child's hands or cover the fingers with Band-Aids® when in the house.
- Paint a bitter-tasting polish on his nails; the awful taste will remind him to stop biting. Mavala Stop is a popular brand. These treatments work best when combined with positive reinforcement.
- Reward your child when you see that she is not biting her nails. Offer a lot of praise or special treats (such as a miniature chocolate candy). Children respond well to positive reinforcement.
Make it your new year’s resolution to help your young nail biter kick the habit!
Reviewed by: Patrick S. Pasquariello Jr., MD
Date: Dec. 2011
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