Is Nail biting a common habit?

Habits like nail biting are very common and often go unnoticed. However, often the repetitive nail biting can lead to severe injury to the fingers, leading to a variety of infections and deformities. Nail biting is commonly first seen in preschool age up to adolescence and is seen in as many as 50-60 percent of individuals. With time, most children grow up out of this habit. However, at least 3-8 percent of the adult population continue to bite their nails. The majority of these people who bite their nails have some degree of anxiety, obsessive compulsive personality or impulse control problem.