As your children grow, they pick up so much along the way: the use of language, walking, and socialisation. Positive things. But they also learn bad habits and one of the most common ones is nail-biting.

Why Could Your Child Be Doing It?

Children nibble on their nails for various reasons. For some, it’s a subconscious habit, a thing they saw someone else do. Nail-biting can also hold a deeper meaning, as it may mean that your little one is stressed or nervous about something, and instead of talking about it, they resort to the habit. Either way, if left unchecked, the habit of nail-biting can go on and follow your little one into adulthood.

Disadvantages of nail-biting include:

1. Stunted nail growth. Constantly biting the nails will cause your young one’s nails to not grow to the size they should.
2. Biting their nails frequently can wear down your little one’s teeth.
3. The dirt on the nails can also cause illness.

Correcting Nail-biting

1. One sure way to correct the habit is to sit your child down and ask them to stop doing it over time.
2. You could offer your little one praise and rewards for abstaining from nail-biting.
3. You can always keep your child’s nails trimmed, which will prevent them from being tempted to gnaw on the growth.
4. If the habit is stress-related, you could ask your little one about what’s on their minds and what is it that’s causing them to always bite their nails. This one is sure to work on older kids.