Every parent will have to deal with it, but there is no set rules or patterns for teething, nor the duration or how painful the teething will be. Some children encounter very littler pain, while others will have horrible experiences. (as will the parents!) It’s sometimes easy to see the swelling and it’s obvious that teething has began, where sometimes nothing is visible until the teeth has actually appeared.
You can check for teeth by rubbing a finger gently along the gums, looking for swollen parts of the childs mouth. The average first tooth comes in during the seventh month, however it can be as early as three months and as late as one year! Often, this follows hedeitary patterns, so if the father or mather teethed late, the child may be the same.
How many teeth? The are twenty primary first teeth, twleve less than the thirty-two permenant teeth that adults have. The average child has a full set of primary teeth by the time they are two or three and start to lose them around the age of six.
What are the syptoms? Syptoms can very completely from baby to baby.
Drooling: The child can begin to drool more often than usual, teething causes this which can in turn cause a chin rash. Gently wipe the babies mouth periodically with the appropriate baby wipes, be sure that the baby wipes you are using contain no harmful products.
Coughing: Extra sliva may cause the child to cough or even gag a little, not unusual and if the baby seems generally fine without other symptoms such as flu, cold or high fever, there is nothing to worry about.
Biting and Gnawing: Sometimes the child will gnaw and gum anything they can get it, this helps relieve the pressure on their gums.
Cheek rubbing or ear pulling: Pain in the gums can travel to the cheeks, particularly when the back molars begin to come in. Ear pulling can also be a sign of ear infection.
Trouble sleeping: The babies sleeping pattern gets worse, and they wake up more often, usually without an appetitite. This can also be caused by psychological and physical development which is increase dramatically in the time period of teething.
What can I do to ease the pain?
Teething rings are water filled chilled rubber toys which can help some children, also consider cold food. (ie: chilled applesauce, yogurt, peaches)
Infant tylenol is an option as well, however check with a doctor first, there is also baby orajel and other teething medicines that you can consider. It is recommended by dentists to begin brushing the teeth as soon as they appear, and not to wait for the teething process to complete, flouride toothpaste is recommended.
Acetaminophen and ibuprofen are not recommended for babies under six months of age.