Children develop many habits, such as nose picking, thumb sucking or nail biting. These habits can drive parents crazy. You probably tell your child to stop over and over, but eventually, he usually goes back to the habit. According to Kids Health, a habit is a normal phase in the developmental process and is not cause for alarm.
What Is a Habit?
A pattern of behavior that is repeated, even when the child is not aware of it, is a habit. According to Kids Health, 30 percent to 60 percent of children and teens chew on their fingernails. Boys and girls are equally prone to nail biting in the early years, but boys are much more likely to be nail biters as they get older.
Cause
Nail biting, along with other habits, are a learned behavior and may develop as entertainment or a coping mechanism to soothe an anxious child. If your child is nail biting after a stressful experience it may be an attempt to relieve tension. Kids Health states that studies suggest nail biting may have a strong genetic or familial component. If a child sees his parents biting their nails, the child is more likely to be a nail biter. Other children may bite their nails to attract attention because they know it will provoke a reaction from parents.
Coping
Your child will most likely stop biting her nails by the time she reaches school age. If you are concerned with the nail biting there are many steps you can take. You should calmly point out the reason you do not like the behavior, involve your child in developing a way to stop the habit, suggest alternative behaviors, such as wiggling the fingers instead of biting the nails, and reward or praise self-control consistently.
Complications
Most habits do not result in any serious complications. Nail biting most likely will only result in your child having really short finger nails. A complication may arise if your child gets an ingrown or infected nail. If this happens you should contact your doctor to see what medication your child may need to clear up the infection. Other complications from nail biting include a higher risk of contracting a virus from putting fingers in the mouth. If your child attends daycare or is around other children who are infected with a virus it will be easy for your child to pick up this virus from touching infected surfaces.
Considerations
A habit as harmless as nail biting in your child may no longer be a habit if it negatively affects your child in social relationships or if the habit interferes with daily functions. If this is the case for your child, you should talk with your doctor.
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