Teething

admin — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 19:16:52 +0000

It is normal for your baby’s first tooth to appear at any age up to 12 months, and some babies are even born with some teeth already showing through! However in the majority of cases teething starts at around 4-6 months with the eruption of the lower central incisors (see diagram). A new tooth usually appears about once a month and most children have a full set of 20 primary (milk) teeth by 2 ½ years.

What is teething pain?

Teething pain results from pressure exerted on the gums from the tooth below. Just before each tooth pushes through, the gum above it reddens, swells and is tender to touch. The eruption of each tooth is uncomfortable for many babies, causing pain and a few minor symptoms for 2 to 3 days. Almost all parents report the presence of teething symptoms and most use some form of medication to manage them.

How will I know if my baby has teething pain?

Your baby’s gums will be red and tender and their cheeks may be hot and flushed. You may also notice a slight rise in temperature (see Fever), disturbed sleep and feeding, and that your baby is more irritable than usual. Excessive dribbling and increased chewing and sucking are also common.

What else might it be?

You should never assume that symptoms other than those mentioned above are due to teething. Teething does not cause diarrhoea, breathing problems, earache, fever or convulsions. If your baby has these or any other unusual symptoms, they need to see a doctor.

What to expect:

At most, teething is associated with minor symptoms. If symptoms do occur, they usually last for 2 to 3 days per tooth and disappear after the tooth appears.

How to Treat:

Encouraging an infant to chew can help the teeth cut through. Teething rings such as a bonjela teething ring can be cooled in the fridge and given to the baby to chew on to soothe the pain. Just make sure it’s clean and definitely not frozen.

bonjela teething gel has been specially formulated so it is suitable for babies from 2 months.

Gently massaging the gums with a clean finger or gum massager may help relieve the pain, and combining this with a pain relieving teething gel can reduce the discomfort even further. Try a sugar free teething gel such as bonjela teething gel, which is specially formulated to provide fast acting, soothing relief from teething pain and can be used in babies from 2 months onwards (Always read the label).

For more advice and tips on teething, and how to care for first teeth click here.

The level of suffering due to teething pain often seems to increase as the baby gets older. If your baby’s teething pain seems to be more severe and your baby is very distressed you may wish to try using an oral pain killer, such as Nurofen for Children (Always read the label, suitable from 3 months onwards (babies over 5kg)).