Thursday, April 12, 2007

Teething

An infant’s teeth start developing months before birth. By the time the baby is born, all 20 of the primary teeth that will be sprouting over the next 2 ½ years are already present. At the age of four to eight months, those first teeth start pushing for daylight and cause discomfort to the baby. Parents have to bear this, though the following may be of help to ease the restless baby.

Teething rings
Give the baby the teething rings to chew on. Those that can be put in the refrigerator and keep cold, works very well and feels good on the baby’s gums. For a baby of 6 months or older, even a clean, cold washcloth to chew on feels good.

Gauze those gums
Massage the gum pads with a small gauze pad or even a soft baby washcloth wrapped around our forefinger. Regular massaging can contribute to healthier gum tissue. Doing so will remove bacteria buildup and gets the youngster use to having someone poking around inside the mouth. When the first tooth comes in, we can start brushing it right away without a fuss.

Serve a tasty teether
Most teething rings have no flavour. Hence a piece of cold apple, wrapped in a wet, child-size washcloth for the baby to bite down and work those teeth through the gums may make a difference.

Use of topical anesthetics
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 gives quick relief to the baby.

What we should bear in mind is that fever during teething is not a ‘teething fever’. There is something else going on in our baby’s body! So, consult the doctor.

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