Help! 21 Month Old Is Licking the Strangest Things!

I had a brother that ate dirt ,he would get down on the ground and lick it and then he would use a spoon and then he would use a small shovel, the doctor told us there was something he was lacking in hisdiet or system and he would grow out of it,like he had a craving for something and that was the only thing that satisfied him.

My daughter did the same thing. I am so relieved to know that it isn't as uncommon as I had thought it was. The good thing is that it was short lived. I would look at her and say, "yuk! That is disgusting!" and then I would try to ignore it. I think I may have told her that a bird might have pooped there and I think that helped her know what I meant about it being disgusting. Good luck.
K.

I haven't heard of a licking phase before, but it seems like it might be a new way she has discovered to explore her world. I don't think it is inherently dangerous, although it is pretty yucky.

The way I see it, you can go one of two ways with this. If the behavior is unacceptable to you, then you as the parent have the right to establish a boundary with her that she is not allowed to lick anything other than food, and enforce that. Divert her attention or give her something that is appropriate to lick and explain why, or simply that it is unacceptable behaviior and not allowed.

OR, you can go the other way, and just chalk it up to a phase that she will outgrow and let her explore the world with her tongue for now. I have heard that kids that are exposed to more "dirt" at a young age are less likely to develop allergies.

My son just turned 2 last week. A couple of months ago he started licking random objects. Toys, the front door, the tv and he even tried licking the dog but she wouldn't stay still! My guess was that it was just a way for him to explore. I tried every time to make him stop but he would just move on to something else. It really grossed me out but after a couple of weeks he stopped and I'm thrilled to say he hasn't done that since! This too shall pass.....Good Luck & just know you're not alone!

Welcome to the joys of parenthood!
It's really not a big deal (I say that after having 4 kids, but I wouldn't have said it with the first one). With the first child, we tend to over react to everything, but then the more we have, we just say, "Oh, that's good ruffage!" JK.
But really, all little ones experiment with taste, texture, smell, etc... It is very normal. When you see it happening, simply go over to her and state, "Wow, that sure is dirty, next time, let's not put that in your mouth because its not good for your tummy, ok?" Soon she will catch on to what is good and what is bad for her.
A friend of mine caught her little one chewing on a cigarette butt while they were out somewhere and she just about got sick seeing it in her daughters mouth.
During this time, you will just need to keep an extra eye or two on her to teach her what is good/bad for her.
Take Care,
T.

i am not sure what to tellyou other than get some lab work done. Sometimes people develop pica when there is a mineral deficiency...

my son did the exact same thing right around that age! he would lick his football, his arms, my arms, etc. i called his pediatrician, and they said he is just exploring, nothing to worry about. if she was physically eating dirt all the time, i'd worry about iron, but otherwise, i am sure she is just experimenting. i found that if i didn't react to jayden doing it, he would stop. if he did it to me, i just explained that you don't lick other people, and i'd tell him to put his paci in if he wanted something in his mouth...that usually worked. otherwise, i just let him lick stuff! lol all that is going to happen is he realizes it tastes funny, and won't do it again. i'd obviously never let him lick something dangerous, or other kids, but it was always harmless things, like his own arms, etc. one time he even did it to our dog...never did that again though!! lol have a good weekend! :)

Hi D.,

Sometimes licking things is just a phase but it has been linked to ADHD. I know ADHD can be reversed with a few simple changes in lifestyle. My daughter's ADHD was undiagnosed a few years back and she is still doing well. If you determine this is not a behavioral stage, please contact me and I'll be glad to give you as much information as you want. If you'd like to talk now my Verizon cell is ###-###-####.

Regards,

M.

If this persists, you ned to talk to her pediatrician as this could be a vitamin or mineral deficiency.

Hi: It sounds to me like she is looking for attention from you. Espeically if she is looking at you while she is doing that and then continues. I would walk away and not say a word, now I know that is going to be very hard to do (because you know that it is not healty for her to do, but on the other side of the coin, I am sure she will not die from it). Children are unique little people, I think no one is quite sure why they do what they do totally. But at 21 months she is I sure exploring alot of different things. I remember almost always when I asked my daughter not to do something, they with there little ears do not hear the "NOT" word and only hear the "DO" word. The more we as parents in some ways point out something for them not to do, and they know it will get them attention so they will do it. Does that make sense?.....Also, maybe if you are really concerned about it. Keep her in doors for a few days and then let her go out to play and if she does something like eat dirt or lick things outside, immediately bring her in the house and don't say a word, maybe if you do that a few times she may get the message that she can't do that and stay outside and play. Good Good Luck......a mom of a grown daughter now..... :)

One of the side affects of low iron is pica, the need to eat non-food things. It could be this or it could just be experimentation. My 21 month old likes to lick people to get their reaction. It is a simple blood test to check for low iron but if you want to wait until her 2yr appt then try giving her more broccoli, spinach or red meat. Serve it with orange juice. The vitamin C will help the iron absorb, avoid milk with the iron food, it will block it.

Not sure why, but my daughter did the same thing. Gross, but it didn't kill her (or even make her sick). Thanksfully, she outgrew it pretty quickly.

Good luck.
S.

My son loves to lick stuff... windows, the walls, the tv, my arms. I'm not worried about it because it's just a phase. I don't think there is anything wrong with your daughter, I think if anything she just wants to explore things in a different way. I don't think your child has ADHD, if this is your only issue with her be lucky and let it go. Every time I tell my son to stop he starts laughing and continues to do it. He thinks it's funny, I think it's gross, but either way it's NOT going to hurt him. Hope this helped.

From birth, kids experience life by their mouths more than by their hands. There first bottle of formula, their first taste of 'real' food, they suck on their hands, feed, blankets, etc. To them, it's natural to explore new things with their tongue. It's not just your daughter ~ Keep telling her that is yucky to put in her mouth and show her other ways of exploring using her other senses.

Have your doctor check her for Anemia. Cravings for dirt is one of the symptoms.

Hi, Just a thought; Ask her doctor because I have heard that when kids eat strange things it could be a lack of certains things in their diet. Best Wishes and Good Luck.
C.

I can't say my kids ever went around licking things, although one of my went through a phase where he would bite ME... no one else.. just me... like love bites. That said, the old wives tale about pregnancy cravings came to me that when our bodies lack something, we crave weird stuff to somehow satisfy that need ... (you remember hearing about pregnant women eating laundry soap and stuff right? and dirt? ) Well, maybe it's something like that? Make sure that she is eating a varied and nutritious diet with lots of new foods for her to sample... Be sure to try out things you ordinarily might not think of as "kid" foods... like asparagus, broccoli, olives (both green and black)... she might just like the "weirdness" of the taste... Both my kids have LOVED olives since about their first birthday! Maybe if you see her "going for" the car or the door you could try to divert her with "ooh ooh.. you want to try something that tastes really neat??... come here and try this..." and take her into the kitchen and offer up something brand new to her!
Beyond that, I guess I'd check with your family doctor for "is it normal" and why she might be doing it... and how dangerous it might be... (keep the front door free from insecticide sprays while she is in this phase)..
Good luck. I hope she outgrows this quickly!

She's just experimenting, everything's new to her and she's curious. Then you react and it's a game. That's all.

I also have a 21 month old daughter who does the exact things you are describing and then some. She will eat dirt like it is going out of style along with other things I won't even mention because it would probably really friek everyone out. But, about 2 months ago I finally took her to her pediatrician because of her eating such large amounts of dirt-I thought that maybe she had some kind of deficiency. So, her pediatrician sent my daughter for blood work and everything came back perfect. I think it is just a phase and as long as I keep her distracted when we are outside, she dosen't eat as much dirt. I would suggest the blood work, but if everything comes back fine, I really think it is just a phase; a really wierd phase :-)