Teething
Teething
4 Ways to Soothe the Pain
Though many folks don't know it, an infant's teeth actually start developing months before birth. In fact, tooth buds begin appearing in the fetus by the fifth or sixth week of pregnancy. By the time the baby is born, all 20 of the primary teeth that will be sprouting over the next 2 1/2 years are already present and accounted for in the jawbone.
Usually those first teeth start pushing for daylight about four to eight months after birth. Baby's gums will become swollen and tender and your little bundle of joy will become irritable and restless. Teething has begun!
If you are like many parents, you are probably a bit concerned about how you and your baby will react to the steady onslaught of teeth against tissue.
"You could be in for nothing or for a little fussiness that goes along with the discomfort," says John A. Bogert, D.D.S., executive director of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry in Chicago, Illinois. "Most infants are a little fussy and cranky with the first two to four teeth."
Gee, that doesn't sound too bad. But just in case your baby's teething gets a little more intense than that, here are a few helpful hints to see both of you through it.
Cool those choppers. "Chewing on teething rings, particularly those you can put in the refrigerator and keep cold, works very well and feels good on the baby's gums," says Linda Jonides, a pediatric nurse practitioner in Ann Arbor, Michigan. "For a baby who's 6 months or older, even a clean, cold washcloth to chew on feels good," she adds.
Gauze those gums today. "You should probably start cleaning your baby's mouth before the teeth appear," says Dr. Bogert. A small gauze pad or even a soft baby washcloth can be wrapped around your forefinger, lightly moistened, and used to massage the gum pads, he says.
Doing so removes bacteria buildup and gets the youngster used to having someone poking around inside the mouth. "That way, when that first tooth does come in, you can start brushing it right away without a lot of trauma," Dr. Bogert notes. "And daily massaging makes for much healthier gum tissue."
How soon should you start? "We actually recommend you start doing this the day you get the child home from the hospital," Dr. Bogert says. "But you're probably not too late if you begin today. A couple of times a day is good—especially at bedtime."
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Serve a tasty teether. "Take a piece of cold apple and wrap it in a wet, child-size washcloth," suggests Helen Neville, a pediatric advice nurse at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Oakland, California.
"Most of the standard teething rings have no flavor," she notes, "so an apple will give the baby a little more incentive to bite down and work those teeth through the gums."
Use OTCs for pain and swelling. "I recommend trying the types of things most parents already keep handy for pediatric pain," says Dr. Bogert. "Usually, that would be Children's Tylenol. There are a number of topical anesthetics that are good for relieving teething pain and are available over-the-counter at any drugstore. Just wipe some on the gum pads and it'll bring quick relief."
PANEL OF ADVISERS
John A. Bogert, D.D.S., is executive director of the American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry in Chicago, Illinois.
Linda Jonides is a pediatric nurse practitioner in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Helen Neville is a pediatric advice nurse at Kaiser Permanente Hospital in Oakland, California, where she is part of a 24-hour hotline for parents. She is the author of No-Fault Parenting.