Customer Reviews

Mavala Stop - Helps Cure Nail Biting and Thumb Sucking, 0.3-Fluid Ounce

5 star:		(677)
4 star:		(70)
3 star:		(39)
2 star:		(46)
1 star:		(56)

 

 

This product definitely has helped my three year old break the thumb sucking habit, but it should be used cautiously. The first time I put it on her thumbs, I painted the entire nail. She complained all day about the "yuckies" whenever her thumb accidently touched her lips (for example when she was eating her snack using her fingers). At bedtime, she stuck her thumb in her mouth and got a full taste which caused her to gag and throw up several times. (This is the simplified version of the story! You really don't want all the details of the hour long ordeal!) Of course, this product is not designed to come off easily (the instructions say to apply every TWO DAYS!) so I had to figure out how to get her through the night. I finally used nail polish remover to try to remove the product from her thumbs. I'm not sure if it worked, or if my daughter was just too traumatized to put her thumb in her mouth after that, but she didn't gag or throw up again. Now, I do still use the product but I only apply a very small amount to the tip of her thumb nail. As a side note, while preventing her from sucking her thumb, it also has effected her eating habits. Any time she eats anything with her fingers and gets a tast of the Mavala Stop product, she decides that she no longer likes that particular food! So, if you plan to use this on a young child, you might want to start out applying a minimal amount to the tip of the thumbnail, and be aware that the effects may be more far-reaching than you intend.

This product is amazing. I've been biting my nails for more than 15 years (I'm almost 22), and I managed to stop completely in three weeks.

Mainly, I had to become aware of what I was physically doing so I could stop doing it. Because of the horrible, bitter, lingering taste of Mavala Stop, I gradually became aware of what I was doing and could consciously think about my actions. It forced me to be conscious of my bad habit. Secondly, the nasty taste removed any enjoyment or stress relief I got from biting my nails since it was so incredibly unpleasant. I became very wary, very quickly. This combination of factors made it possible for me to stop, which I thought I could never do.

The taste is really horrible. It's like acetone (nail polish remover), bitter, rotten wood, and some sort of fish put together. It has a very chemical taste with a sweet undertone that makes for a horrible experience. The taste is also very durable and lingering. If you licked a nail painted with Mavala Stop, it would take a few minutes to get the taste out. The taste was so bad, in my opinion, that getting it off of my teeth, lips, and tongue when I slipped up stopped whatever I was doing or thinking about. It's very, very gross. Two coats of polish will last for more than one full week before rubbing off. It can help to freshen it up during the week to keep the taste at full unpleasantness.

It ruined finger foods for me during the time I used it. My fingers periodically touched my lips while I was eating, and the nasty taste would rub off slightly. This made me lick my lips a lot to remove the taste quicker-- it's easier to get it over with quickly than to try to avoid it on your lips--which made them lose moisture and chap badly. So you should also buy some lip balm at the same time. If you touch a nail with a fingertip, it will rub off there, too, and from there can transfer to coffee cups, pencils, hors d'oeuvres, etc. Wash your hands before you eat anything that might touch them.

There were no English directions packaged with the product. I don't think this is a problem, since the directions are pretty much obvious (Shake. Paint nails. Gag at taste) but it might be a concern for some people. A great deal of other languages were represented in the instruction pamphlet, including German, Portugese, Spanish, French, and a number of Asian languages.

Mavala Stop has a shine comparable to clear nail polish, but not as shiny as premium or ultra-shine clear nail polish. Your nails will probably not look natural, but if that's a concern, you could probably lie and say it's just a nice, buffed manicure. It could easily be worn over nail polish and would probably work like an extra protective topcoat. The shiny quality rubs out over time. At the end of a week it will be duller and more matte, but also less effective.

The bottle holds roughly the same amount as a regular bottle of nail polish, but Mavala Stop seems to be of a slightly thinner consistency. I recommend carrying the bottle with you in a pocket or purse so that if you must do something to your nails, it can at least be a touch-up. Washing your hands seems to dull it out more quickly, and removes some of the taste, but not all, by far. It does not wash out with water and soap, but the power is reduced.

The only reason you would fail with this product is if you can't bring yourself to enforce it. You have to make sure you put it on and touch it up. The temptation of not putting it on or letting it wear off quickly is certainly there. I would advise getting someone else involved who will scold you or remind you about it.

I would recommend this product to anyone. The price is worth it as it works very well. I am very pleased with the result.

After months of encouraging/pestering our son to stop sucking his thumb (he is four), we finally decided to use a product to help. After doing some research, this one stood out as the most effective. Our son agreed that it was hard to stop on his own, and agreed to "extra help." The results are amazing. It has been 3 weeks, and he essentially stopped sucking after the first application. Now I think the urge/habit is really out of his system. We apply the product every 2 days, and plan to taper it off when it's been a little longer. One setback occurred when we had not applied it for 3 days (the bitter taste had dissipated), and he woke up and announced that he had sucked his thumb overnight. He seemed disappointed in himself for having sucked overnight and was initially resistant to reapplying the product. My recommendation is to be very regular in applying it during the crucial early phase when they need the most help. I am so glad we bought this product!!!!

I am 21 years old.. I have been biting my nails for as long as I can remember. I have tried many many times to stop. Mostly, it was trying to do it "cold turkey," but that never worked. I would also paint my nails pretty colors, get acrylics, etc.. all would revert back to me biting at my nails. Not to mention, painting little stubs is NOT that attractive to begin with. So, I gave in and bought this product!

It is now only two weeks after I started applying this to my nails. The taste is HORRIBLE. Oh my lord.. I hate to say it, but I am SO happy it is! You will cringe at the thought of placing your fingers remotely close to your mouth. The taste will remain very potent on your nails for about three days. It is a nice clear coat of nail polish, so it doesn't look bad on your nails.

I now no longer get the urge to bite my nails. I went out and bought brand new nail polish to celebrate! I can't wait for another two weeks to where my nails will be nice and LONG! I also have plenty more in the bottle jusssst in case I feel I may be getting an urge.

I recommend this product completely!! Anyone who is fed up with biting their nails to an oblivion will be pleasantly suprised! Trust me, I thought I was a lost cause!

My 9 year old son bit all 10 of his finger nails to the point of bleeding for the last 7 years. I've tried other products and methods to no avail. He was very motivated to stop biting fingers because he was starting to notice the social stigma and of course, his fingers hurt! So, after a dicussion of how putting this MAVALA product on his fingers was just a reminder, not punishment, he agreed to give it a try. The first day, he had to brush his teeth 5 times because he bit his fingers forgetfully. The next day, and now almost 3 months later, he hadn't bitten his fingers once. We reward him for each time we clip all 10 of his finger nails to reinforce the good habit of not biting fingers. Just to be on the safe side, he is still applying the product on his nails every week, and we encourage that so he won't slip back to his bad habits. After all, he bit his fingers for most of his life!

My son has been sucking his thumb since he was in the womb (could see him doing it on the ultrasound!). Though it made him a great sleeper as a baby, now at 5 1/2 it was time to stop. Now he's losing his first tooth, the dentist told him he should stop too. Fortunately, my son is very taste sensitive, so he really did not want to suck w/ the Mavala on. Unfortunately, the first night he woke up screaming at 2am because he sucked and we had to deal w/ the rinsing and wiping his tongue off w/ a towel! He kicked his habit within 2 days, has not sucked in 4 weeks now! (BTW, we started putting a sock over his hand so he would not accidently suck at night time)

I have been biting my nails for as long as I can remember, and it seems like I have tried everything out there to help me quit-this product is the only thing that worked for me. I put it on my nails every 3 days or so. The taste is horrible, and lingers in your mouth for a while-it really discourages you from putting your fingers in your mouth. I recommend it to anyone who needs to stop biting their nails.

This stuff was amazing! My daughter who is 2 1/2 would not stop sucking her ring and middle finger. We bought this product and put it on her like nail polish before bed. She loves nail polish, so there was no foolery about it. We had worked her up to it telling her that if she didn't stop sucking her fingers they were going to start to taste bad. Sure enough she came out the next morning telling me that her fingers tasted bad because she had tried to suck them.... within the week she had stopped even trying. She even was asking for me to paint her nails before bed! She is now 3 years old and still hasn't gone back to sucking her fingers!!! This product is amazing! We had tried tape and bandaids on her fingers before... nothing helped. Thanks for such an awesome product!

Our almost-seven-year-old daughter was still thumbsucking almost every evening and at bedtime. (She knows better than to do so at school). We gave her fair warning that this product was coming, and when it arrived (about 6 weeks ago) we let her apply it onto her own thumb. Apparently she was "ready" to give up the thumb, becuase we haven't had a problem since then. She re-applies it as needed at bedtime, and surprisingly she hasn't complained much at all. She does report that sometimes she accidentally gets a taste of this stuff while eating a sandwich or some other finger food, but it's not often, and it doesn't seem to have affected her appetite. I'm optimistic that we can stop using it soon.

My son turned 5 recently and I've been telling him for months that he can't have a birthday party unless he quits sucking his thumb. He was trying really hard to remember, but it's just like second nature, so was really hard. Well 3 weeks before his birthday, I got this product. I started on a weekend, as I had read reviews here .. and I'm glad I did. The night that I put it on he woke up 3 times asking for juice, to wash out the 'yucky' taste. I hadn't realized that he sucked his thumb so much in his sleep too. Then I waited until the next weekend to apply it again and continued putting it on everyday .. because by now he would remember to not put it in his mouth. He would take his thumb up but remember just in time.

A great product .. for a kid trying and willing to quit.