Almost 3Yr Old Biting His Nails

There is a berenstain bears book that addresses this very issue. Look for it, read it together, and see if that helps at all. Good Luck, Shannon G.

My son picked up nail biting when he was in kindergarten. As soon as the school year ended, he stopped. I then realized that he had been nervous (he is timid) at school and being around a lot of people had started the habit. I talked to him about it and offered incentives. Firstly, I talked about how yucky it is to bite because there are germs under the nails that can make them sick. Kids at 3 are very literal, and if you say something's yucky, usually they'll think that it's something they should not do. Then I told him that if he could go a whole week without biting, I would clip his nails on friday and we would go to the store and he could have a quarter - which purchases a gumball!! I was consistent in keeping his nails clipped - it could just be that they get too long and they bother him. Another thing we did was we gave him a straw to chew on when we saw him biting, which seemed to help. It keeps the fingers out and still keeps their mouth occupied, which helps with the oral addiction. Good luck!

when ever he bite his nails you could take his hands out of his mouth.that is what my dad would do with me. but if the medicine dosn't work then you could put band aids on his fingers.

I bit my nails until I was 23! Bad habit and usually caused by nerves. It was a hard habit to break for myself. My mom used to nag about it and that seemed to make me want to bite all the more. Maybe you can try to create things for him to do with his hands. I have since learned crafty things and sewing which keeps the hands busy. It takes approximately 28 days to change a habit. Give it a try and good luck.

My 3 year old started biting his nails and it seemed as though he was doing it CONSTANTLY....
My husband and I told him "Oh honey....you better stop doing that.....you will get bugs in your belly"
He woke up that night crying "saying get them out...get them out.....get the bugs out of my belly" I felt horrible about causing my son to have a nightmare about bugs in his belly.....HOWEVER...he NEVER bit them again......it's been 6 months...."whatever works right!" good luck

I bit my nails until I was 20. My 5 year old son & 3 year old son now bite theirs & it makes me crazy! The oldest bit his down to the quick last week and I haven't seen him chewing on them lately.

I'm hoping that the copious amounts of dirt that gets under them in the summer will help break them of it. I try to keep them trimmed very short so they don't have much to chew on.

Good luck!

When my son was 4 he did the same thing. He would actually bite them to the point he had no nail and it would get infected. I called a specialist because it too is something i can not stand and i knew it had to hurt. They told me that it was a habbit and a lot of times its due to anxiety as well. Well i thought how could my 4 year old have anxiety. Well, he is now 11 and was just recently diagnosed with anxiety. There is a cream call "Control-It!" it is a wonderful thing. Its all natural and actually helps deliver vitamins and nutrients to the nails and cuticles and stops him from biting them as well.

I bite my nails when I am nervous. My 3 year old picked up this nasty habit also. I put clean nail polish on my nails to show him I won't do it anymore. I also offered to put it on his. It took a few weeks but he saw me not doing this and the clear nail polish and it helped. He has not bit his nails since. He declined the clear polish and said he would do it on his own. Hopefully you can get the rest of your family on board to show him a positive example!

hi i dont know what to say because i have the same problem with my 5 year old, imagine its been months since i cut his fingernails..i dont know where his nails go, its so short and sometimes I will see a tiny wound on the fingertip because he always bites them and eats them(?)...I often tell him to stop because his nails are full of dirt...but upto now i will see him under the blanket before sleeping biting his nails...i dont know whats causing them...my husband is a nail biter, maybe he got it from his dad...maybe we have to keep them occupied with other things.

After raising my children.... I have to honestly say. ... DON"T worry about it. There are a lot of other problems far worse. My brother bit his nails terribly; my mom tried all the 'stuff'..too. Nothing worked. He still bites his nails... and is one of the smartest, most successful men I know! As they grow up, there are going to be plenty of battles to fight... this one isn't it. My motto "Pick and choose your battles". Good Luck.