Nail biting

[strmis]

My 4 yo likes to pick up annoying habits from other kids. She has now picked up nail biting. Is it just me or is it really gross??? How can I deter her? Is the nail biting nail polish "safe"? If not what can I use?

[mumkimum]

I tried not to let dd1's nail biting get to me (trying to just understand it as an anxious habit) - I did get her some of her own nail trimmers and hand lotion at the time when it seemed to be getting really intense, and would suggest she trim her nails or use the lotion instead if I saw her biting her nails.  She actually totally stopped for a time.  Still bites her nails sometimes now, but she's also able to take care of them well too and it has cut down on the biting overall.  

I tried to point out how sometimes, biting can leave your nails prone to bleeding or other spots that can hurt or get hurt easily, and it would be good to use the trimmers and lotion to help avoid that. (She was 4 when I got her the nail trimmers, and actually ended up managing them fine without hurting herself, in case you're worried about that - if you don't think your kiddo is ready for trimmers, a good nail file might be helpful instead).

[meemee]

i think its one of the commonest habits. i have seen many adults - male and female still bite their nails.

i still bite my nails. 

for my friend she'd rather have her dd bite nails than pull her eyebrows out. unfortunately her dd pulls her eyebrows out and has no eyebrows. 

i recall my mom trying to deter me. to no avail. 

even today sometimes i have no clue i am biting my nails. 

[mnj77]

How timely:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/10/01/161766321/nail-biting-mental-disorder-or-just-a-bad-habit

[One_Girl]

I would try distracting her by giving her a task to do when she is biting her nails and see if that works. My dd does this in stages and that sometimes works. Reminding her than I can't let her paint her naive if she has been chewing them also works well because she loves her nails painted
I haven't used the nasty tasting polish but my motion did with me when I was little and she said it works best to get your child's buy in and use it only if they consent because they want to stop. I never resorted to using it though because my dd is able to catch herself and stop for the most part.

[Mylie]

My L started biting her nails when she was about a year and half old when her teeth were coming in..I can't get her to stop either..I had thought about using that nail stuff but she has so many allergies(including gluten) I am almost afraid to use it...Anyone have the ingredients to it?? It prob would work for her as she hates strange tastes ect...

[strmis]

Originally Posted by Mylie 

My L started biting her nails when she was about a year and half old when her teeth were coming in..I can't get her to stop either..I had thought about using that nail stuff but she has so many allergies(including gluten) I am almost afraid to use it...Anyone have the ingredients to it?? It prob would work for her as she hates strange tastes ect...

http://www.amazon.com/Mavala-Stop-Biting-Sucking-0-3-Fluid/dp/B0000YUXI0
The ingredients are listed.

Thanks for the responses. I think what truly bothers me is the underlying issue which is that she picked up this habit (along with all her other bad habits and attitudes) from the neighbors kid. Maybe it just drives me crazy to think my sweet little girl is being influenced by someone she knows gets her in trouble. And she's only four! Yikes! Can't wait til she's a teenage. Eek!

[kayleesmom]

maybe she will outgrow it.