- If you're concerned that your baby's mouthing
absolutely everything including toys, their fingers,
or their thumb,
or you're just curious as to why
baby may be doing this behavior, then this video is for you.
In this video I'm gonna cover
all the reasons your baby may be mouthing their hands,
toys or fingers
and when to be concerned.
But before we do
make sure you click on that free PDF document
in the description box below
which covers the developmental milestones
you could be expecting for your little one
in their first year of life.
This will give you an invaluable peace of mind
as you'll know what to be expecting
and when to be concerned.
Also, if you want to make parenting significantly easier
make sure you start now by subscribing to my channel
where you'll learn the tips and tricks
I've learned over the last 10 years
practicing as a pediatric occupational therapist
and being a mom to two children.
So one of the reasons
the baby may suck their hands, fingers or toys,
in the first few months when they're newborn
they tend to suck their fingers or hand
to indicate to you that they are hungry.
If you know they're not hungry
the other reason they will be doing this
is because it is actually a calming activity
for your baby to do, it is really soothing.
In fact, thumb sucking is a really calming activity
that babies do in the womb at 20 weeks gestation.
You'll notice that babies
continue to suck their fingers and thumb
because it will soothe them to sleep.
And it helps calm them
when they're feeling a little bit stressed or overwhelmed.
This is because when a baby is sucking their thumb
or their fingers
the brain releases the hormones, dopamine, serotonin
and endorphins, which are relaxing, happy hormones.
Some babies may continue to suck their thumbs
and their fingers into their toddler years
because they use this technique
to help themselves fall asleep
and also as a self-soothing technique
when they're feeling stressed or overwhelmed.
As a parent you might be concerned
that your baby's sucking their finger or thumbs
will impact on oral development,
however, the American Dental Association
has stated that thumb sucking and finger sucking
does not usually cause a problem
in the first few years of life,
in fact, it isn't till your babies around four years of age
that they encourage you gently discourage thumb sucking.
And what's great is that most children typically stop
thumb sucking or finger sucking
between the ages of two and four.
So I wouldn't be concerned
if your baby is starting to suck their thumbs
or the fingers to help sooth them during the day
or fall asleep.
The third reason your baby may be mouthing
absolutely everything
is because it is a way of exploring and playing.
So at around two to three months of age
your baby first realizes that they have arms and hands
and that they can't control them
and they are absolutely blown away.
So you'll see your baby really closely looking at your hands
and starving to mouth them
particularly at three months of age
when they can put their hands in the middle of their body
and they bring them up to their mouth.
This is how your baby learns about texture, taste
and temperature of all items is by mouthing them.
So initially they'll mouth their hands
and then around four to five months
more towards the five month mark
when they can hold toys for a longer period of time,
those toys and their hands will go straight in their mouth
because they're working out what the toy feels like
and what the toy tastes like
and what the toys temperature is.
As your baby gets older,
you'll notice that they start to stop mouthing their hands
and they'll just mouth the toy,
and as they get older still at around 12 months
they tend to stop mouthing toys completely
because they have developed the fine motor skills
to manipulate and play with toys,
how they're meant to be played with.
So they'll actually start to turn them in their hands
and they'll be able to use their sensors on their fingers
to work at the touch of an object and the temperature.
The final reason your baby may be mouthing their hands
or toys is because they are teething.
So teething first typically occurs
anywhere between four to 10 months of age.
So the first two teeth that they typically get
are the center teeth on their bottom of their mouth
and teething itself really hurts.
So placing something against it,
which they can rub against the gum
helps to relieve some of that pain.
If your baby is teething, then you can do a few things.
You can offer them a teething ring or a teething toy
which they will munch on to try and relieve that pain
or a cool damp cloth, such as a face washer
which they will put in their mouth and kind of suck on
or pain relief in regards to medicine.
If teething rings and the cool face washers,
just not doing it, then you can talk to your doctor
in regards to what pain relief options there are for a baby.
So as you can see, there are multiple reasons
why your baby will be putting toys
or their fingers in their mouth
and there is nothing wrong with it.
It is completely normal.
What you wanna do
is make sure that you keep their hands relatively clean
'cause you know they're gonna go in their mouth
and also that you wash their toys or objects
that they're going to put in their mouth regularly.
Make sure you click on that free PDF document
in the description box below
and hopefully I'll see you next week
where I'll share more parenting tips and tricks.
(upbeat music)