Symptons of Baby Teething - Baby Teething Pain Home Remedies
Saturday, June 21st, 2008Although you may have heard otherwise from well meaning friends and relatives, teething does NOT cause significant fever (over 100 degrees rectally). To help soothe your baby’s teething discomfort, here’s some baby teething pain home remedies:
- Gently massage the swollen gums with one of your fingers (be sure to wash your hands thoroughly).
- Take a clean, soft washcloth and soak it in apple juice. Wring it out, tie the cloth in a knot, and place it in the freezer for 30 minutes (it will not freeze hard like water does, rather, it will get very cold and nearly frozen). When frozen, give it to your baby, placing it first in his mouth, then his hands. You will see almost immediate results. Your baby will love the apple juice and most doctors approve it for even very young infants. The combination of the cold and the texture of the washcloth will begin to ease your baby’s pain right away.
- Give your child something cold to gnaw on like a Popsicle or a chilled teething ring (not a frozen one), or a frozen banana.
- Do not use lotions or ointments that are supposed to reduce teething pain in a baby less than four months. They wash out of the baby’s mouth within minutes. They may contain an agent that could numb the throat and cause the baby to choke.
- NEVER, under any circumstances, place alcohol into your baby’s mouth. Many well meaning friends and relatives (there sure are a LOT of those “well meaning friends and relatives”) may suggest a “dab of whiskey”, but this is NEVER ok. Alcohol can act like a poison to a young baby.
- Acetaminophen may be used for a few days if your baby is uncomfortable.
- Baby Advil (ibuprofen) can be used as well and can be more effective than acetaminophen because ibuprofen contains an anti inflammatory component and acetaminophen does not.
