Is this really child abuse?

No, I don't think it's child abuse at all, I think it's a pretty reasonable solution. Only reason it would be child abuse is if the stuff is harmful to the child.

A mother has concern for her child.This is not an abuse.Every mother tries to get rid off some bad habits from her child. For this sometime she has to be very much strict. But if u put some staff in his finger, even than he will bite his nail and thus the stsff will cause some harm to him.Biting nail is seen in many childrens and after some time they left it naturally as your other two sons.But if not naturally, he might be some health problem and biting nail may be a clinical problem. Before taking the decision to put on some disgusting staff on his finger, I like to advice you to consult your family doctor. That can ease the problem.

I think you could try anything that may work to get your child to stop....I think that chewing nails is a nervous habit at least it is for me....I don't do it all the time obviously lol but when I'm in a moment that I am nervous or worried about something I catch myself chewing my nails I used to be a thumb sucker too and My Mom put that horrible stuff on me before bed to get me to stop...

He's more likely to quit biting his nails if you stop making such a big deal out of it. It's a nervous habit, and all you're doing is making him more self-conscious about it, which doesn't help him stop. Some people bite their nails all their lives, and they manage to survive somehow. Leave him alone. Either he'll stop on his own or he won't. And if he doesn't, it will be because he can't.

as long as you are not harming him, it isnt even close to child abuse.....its not like you're putting poisen on him!

That's nonsense,you're not doing anything wrong :)

My daughter has a berenstein bear book about nail biting. Its a really cute book if you can find it at your local library check it out. It might give you an idea of what you can do to get him to stop biting his nails. My sons 2 and for as long as I can remember hes been biting his nails. I never have to cut them. I wish he would stop but I can see that its a nervous thing with him. I dont think its child abuse to put something on his fingers that taste bad as long as its non-toxic.

Hi, Humbug25. No. I don't think that it would be child abuse. Just as long as the nail product is not harmful or fatal to your child.

That stuff only works if the kid wants to stop biting his nails. I used it when I was about 10 years old. It worked, but I wanted to stop. Just wait until your kid is motivated to stop. If he wants to stop, the nasty tasting stuff will remind him to take his hands out of his mouth. If he doesn't want to stop, nothing will help.

that is not abuse,whoever told you that is being stupid,biting nails can be really bad,my brother used to do this to the point where his skin around the nails got infected,it was all red,swollen with green goo,putting horrible tasting stuff on their nails is better than infected fingers,you do what you think is right,but i know which option i'd choose

I would have never even thought of that as being a form of child abuse. Nail biting is a nasty bad habit to have and because of that, I think that there might be some extremes that you have to go to in order to make that habit stop. Using some of those products that taste bad will definitely not be a pleasant experience for your son and that means that it won't be long at all before his bad habit comes to an end.

When my son was about four years old, he had a thumb sucking habit that we explained to him was not healthy. He did it almost without thinking. We decided to buy this stuff I think called "Stopsit" or something like that. You need to get the kind that does not easily wash off. We explained to him what it was for and that he would not like the taste, and he agreed to try. When we put it on, he forgot and when his thumb ended up in his mouth, he got a horrible look on his face, took his thumb out, and when he would forget, the same thing would happen again. We used this stuff for about a week, and slowly his thumb sucking habit stopped. No, I don't think this is child abuse, as long as the product is safe and made for children, which this was. The other thing is that this type of plan works much better when children are willing to cooperate. In other words, he was willing (not just something his mom and dad were forcing on him), to be a part of breaking his habit.

When my son was about four, we put on some thumb stuff (you have to get the kind that won't wash off) I believe it was called "StopsIt", or something like that. Anyway, we painted it on his thumb, after explaining that it would not taste good, and that we were working on helping him stop his thumb sucking. He was ready to try (which helps). I think if they're opposed to it, it may not work so well. Anyway, he took one taste of it and got this awful face, and every time he forget and sucked his thumb, the same thing would happen, and he would take his thumb out of his mouth. We repainted it on his thumb for about a week, and after that, he didn't suck his thumb. No, I don't think it's child abuse, especially if it is formulated for children. But, I also think it helps to work "with" you child and do this type of thing when they are willing to go along with it.

I don't believe its child abuse at all. My son use to do this and so I research on the no bite and it has formeldihyde (sp) in it. Not something I want my son putting in his mouth. As long as he chews gum he doesn't bite his nail.

I dont think that would be child abuse. However I have heard that those things don't work. I also bite my nails and have done so for 27 years. I think it's a psychological thing so maybe therapy for an older person. Don't know about a 5 year old. Maybe soak his fingers in vinegar or hot sauce.

hi humbug no its not abusive to a child as it is not anything poisonous and its better to stop the nailbiting before his nails get infected. I have used it a few times and most of my friends. they never got sic k or ill or felt abused at all. If you did not try to stop that nail biting and your boy got blood poisoning that would be child abuse really.

I dont see any problem with that at all, and its defiently not childs abuse. I remember when my cat had surgery and I have to spray something on her so she wont lick the wound. I know it will be hard for her, but its better for her to get infection or other sickness. Maybe I should not have putted a animal example, but I treat them as my family member and I dont have childs myself. I think it will be good if you try it out.

I don't see how that putting the bitter stuff on your child's nails could be seen as child abuse. Letting him tear at his nails and possibly cause an infection sounds worse to me. However, the real question is why does he bite his nails. Nail biting is a nervous habit. What started him biting his nails? Could he have he started biting before his older brother stopped?

It sounds as though your son is really nervous about something. I used to bite my nails because I was being bullied by a neighborhood kid. Somewhere along the way, I decided two things - I wanted pretty nails and I was darned tired of being bullied. So I grew my nails out and got revenge by scratching the living mischief out of the bully when they were long enough. If it's just a habit, it's really better if he decides for himself to stop it; otherwise, he may start doing something worse.

Hmm, I don't think so but you never know these days. My mom is a teacher and her aide has a daughter that lost her kids for having postpartum depression..I don't know the full details but the state took them from her. My daughter bites her nails-she's done it for years. I have given up trying to stop it because it's her way of calming her nerves. But I warn her about the dirty things that are under her nails..I tell her she'll get mouth rot