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Your Child's Habits

Many kids have habits that can be downright annoying. The five most common ones that children develop and parents complain about are nail biting, thumb sucking, hair twirling, nose picking, and breath holding. Relax--in most cases, a habit is just a phase in the normal developmental process and is not cause for alarm.

Many kids have habits that can be downright annoying. The five most common ones that children develop and parents complain about are:
* nail biting
* thumb sucking
* hair twirling
* nose picking
* breath holding

Although your child's habits may bother or even worry you, relax. In most cases, a habit is just a phase in the normal developmental process and is not cause for alarm.

What's a Habit?
A habit is a pattern of behavior that's repeated, and the person usually isn't even aware of the habit. Although children may be blissfully unaware of their behavior, their parents aren't so lucky.

And if your little one usually has one hand stuffed in the mouth and the other entwined in the hair, your child's habits may bug you twice as much, but it's not surprising: Habits tend to occur in clusters.

A Quick Look at Kids' Habits
Here's the lowdown on the most common habits among children and teens:

Nail Biting
If wet fingers on your child and little slivers of fingernails on the floor are familiar to you, you're not alone. One of the most common childhood habits is nail biting or picking.

Some studies estimate that 30% to 60% of children between the ages of 5 and 10 chew on one or more nails, as do about 20% of adolescents (the habit is less common in preschool children). And, occasionally, a child may also bite his or her toenails.
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