Many children, as well as adults, have nervous habits that can cause physical harm. Deliberate cheek or tongue biting falls into this category. There may be a physical cause for this or it simply may be a nervous habit. In some cases, children bite the inside of their mouths accidentally. In these cases, a change in eating habits may help. Some children, like adults, are prone to picking up nervous habits that may appear for a short time and then disappear, while another habit may take its place.
Causes
Deliberate cheek biting requires different techniques than accidental bites. If your child appears to make chewing motions with his mouth even when he's not eating or if he has small bleeding areas inside his mouth, he may bite deliberately. If he yells when he bites his cheek and it happens infrequently, it's probably accidental. If it's deliberate, scolding, punishing and making fun of the habit won't cure it and might make it worse.
Physical Causes
In some cases, a misalignment of the teeth can cause a cheek-biting habit. Poorly aligned teeth don't close perfectly. Your brain will look for something to put in the space and may turn to cheek biting as a way to "fill-in" the missing area, dentist Thomas Connelly explains. Over time, the cheek biting becomes a habit. Have your child's bite and overall dental condition checked if he bites his cheek deliberately; the dentist may find a physical and fixable cause before cheek biting becomes a permanent habit.
Nervous Habits
Children often develop nervous habits that disappear over time; as many a 25 percent of children ages 3 to 6 suck their thumbs while 23 percent bite their fingernails, according to a University of Maryland at Baltimore study published in the July 1998 "Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry." Most decrease with age and worsen under tension. The best thing to do with newly observed nervous habits is to ignore them, since most will disappear on their own. If they persist, make sure that nothing is upsetting your child and wait. Sometimes substituting another habit, chewing gum or applying lip gloss or balm may break the habit or help your child become aware that he's doing it. If a habit doesn't disappear on its own or is causing physical harm, a visit to a child psychiatrist can help you deal with the symptoms, suggests Deborah Pearson, associate professor of psychiatry at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston.
Accidental Biting
Children who eat too fast or eat or drink and talk at the same time may accidentally bite their cheeks or tongues frequently. In these cases, reminding your child to slow down and stop talking while chewing or swallowing may help prevent accidental bites.
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