Biting Toddlers

Biting is observed in almost one-fourth of children, at some age or the other. Most new parents think that a child is biting out of no apparent reason, and that it must be stopped at whatever cost. Well, guess what, there are actually many valid reasons behind this action in toddlers, although stopping it is a necessity to maintain social decorum. Here are the causes of biting in toddlers, followed by the ways to make your child get rid of this antic.

Causes of Biting in Toddlers
Here are the reasons why toddlers end up biting other people, including their own moms.

Communication
Babies and toddlers go through numerous emotions and experience intense feelings just like adults do. But unlike adults who can speak and express their feelings, toddlers have no means of doing the same. So they bite to communicate feelings.

Self-Defense
When the toddlers bite or hit somebody, they see that their victim moves away from them. So they learn that in order to be safe, they have to either bite or hit. Whenever the child feels a little bit insecure or anxious, he resorts to biting and hitting.

Attention Seeking
Toddlers realize that the moment they bite, they become the center of attention. So if the parents or siblings are sometimes ignoring them, we see this toddler behavior. Biting is also a way for toddlers to have some sort of power over their elder siblings.

Experimentation
Toddlers are experimenting with their bodies and they are very curious to know how each body part works. Thus, funnily enough, they end up biting others in order to know what teeth can do. Biting is very common when they are going through baby teething.

Anger
Toddlers bite when they want to show anger. If they want a toy back or if they are wearing new baby clothes which are uncomfortable, they feel irritated and start biting others because that is the only way they can show their anger.

How to Stop a Toddler from Biting
There are two things that you should avoid at any cost. Firstly, never shout or yell at the baby once he has bitten somebody. Secondly, do not bite him back to show him 'how much it hurts'. This is because the baby will not understand why you are shouting or why you bit him. On top of that, it can frighten him and scar him for life.

The first thing that you should try to find out are the triggers or the causes of such behavior. Usually there is a pattern in behavior, such as if an elder sibling is irritating him or if you take him to a certain place in which he is not comfortable, such as a supermarket, the toddler ends up biting. Once you have identified the triggers, avoid such situations or going to such places with your baby. If however it is something unavoidable, learn to be quick and before the child has a chance to bite somebody, stop him.

Understand the baby's body language. When you feel that he is getting irritated or angry and is going to bite, divert his attention to something else.

Another thing that can be done to put a stop to biting is to teach them other ways of expressing themselves. You can teach them baby sign language i.e how to hug or to touch a cheek with gentle hands, instead of biting when they want to show love and affection.

Do not give attention to the baby when he has bitten somebody as it will reinforce this behavior in him. Instead, if the baby has bitten somebody, go to the victim and touch him and hug him. This will make the toddler realize that the victim is getting the attention and not him. Another thing that you can do is to look the baby in the eye and say one or two angry sentences to him, to discipline him.

Do not bite yourself. When babies see that the elders are playfully biting their toes or their fingers, they interpret that it is all right to bite. They emulate the same behavior themselves and thus, bite anyone they can get their teeth into.

Following these approaches consistently over time, along with proper baby care, is bound to yield results. For disciplining toddlers, there are various books available in the market which offer advise on appropriate ways to communicate feelings and anger. Going through these books and applying the various role plays and approaches mentioned in these books regarding toddler behavior, can prove very effective in getting rid of this behavior.