Teething - What really helps?

Many parents look forward with uncertainty and sometimes even fear to the moment when the baby gets its first teeth. How babies behave and whether there is any pain at all varies from baby to baby, but also from tooth to tooth.

Some babies suffer a lot when teeth come in, while in others you can just see a new tooth in the mouth without anything being different. In addition, some also get sick in the process because the immune system is weakened. There may be fever, diarrhea or other infections.

And of course it presses in the mouth and can also really hurt when a tooth comes in. In this article I would like to write down a few tips that have helped with my children and also tips that I have learned from acquaintances.

Summary

Tooth development

First of all, however, I would like to give some general information about the development of teeth in babies. Of course, teething, like everything else, is very individual and can also differ significantly from the guideline values given here.

In most babies, the first teeth appear between the 6th and 8th month, whereby the lower central incisors often erupt first, followed by the upper central incisors.

Until finally the 2nd milk cheek teeth come, and with it the last milk teeth, it usually takes until the 3rd year of life and the milk dentition is then complete with 20 teeth.

You can find more information in the article "The development of teeth " atwww.kindergesundheit-info.de.

With many children it behaves besides in such a way that they lose the teeth early again if they got the first teeth early. The change of teeth happens with most children, in contrast to the first teething, however, completely problem-free and painless.

Incidentally, the frequently described strong salivation during teething is not necessarily an indication of a coming tooth. Babies automatically produce more saliva the older they get, because this serves as preparation for the utilization of complementary food. Chewing" is also not necessarily an indication of a coming tooth, but is often just reflexes or further experience in grasping, because grasping with the hands is not yet as specific as with the mouth.

Teething rings

The range of teething rings is now very wide. The aim of teething rings is always to make the pressure from the coming tooth in the mouth more comfortable with the help of the teething ring. Some of these teething rings also contain a gel, which can additionally cool, if the ring was previously placed in the refrigerator. The cooling often has a soothing effect for the babies in addition to the pressure.

Many babies additionally like different surface textures on the teething rings because this allows for different tactile stimuli in the mouth. With our daughter we had a teething ring in the shape of a fish made of rubber, which you can buy on www.shop-apotheke.com. There are many more teething rings there, some with coolable gel, some without, with different structures and shapes.

Alternatively, your baby can of course chew on hard bread crust or similar, this has a similar effect, but the cooling is omitted. For on the road, I personally find a teething ring, however, extremely practical.

Since some mothers also have the problem that the teething child bites while breastfeeding, I would recommend to always have a teething ring within reach. As soon as the baby wants to bite, it should be undocked and the teething ring offered instead. However, many moms don't notice any change at all in breastfeeding during teething.

Violet root is also said to have a positive effect here, but I have not been able to determine this with my children. The violet root becomes softer and more elastic when it comes into contact with saliva, which is supposed to make it easier to push the teeth through. You can buy the root in some pharmacies, organic stores or at shop-apotheke.com. Just like a teething ring, it should always be dried thoroughly and dipped briefly in boiling water at regular intervals to reduce the germ load.

Homeopathic remedies

Opinions are divided on the subject of homeopathy. I think that homeopathy is always worth a try before resorting to classical medicines, in this case painkillers. Since I myself am not well versed in the field of homeopathy, I report here only from the experiences with my children. Consultation with a homeopath can also make sense.

When I ask about teething remedies, I almost always get Osanit teething pellets mentioned. So we also tried them with our daughter and I felt that the pain or pressure from teething was more bearable. Osanit is a combination of different active ingredients. There is also a matching teething gel called Osa. I have no personal experience with this. Both and other homeopathic remedies are also available at your local pharmacy or at www.shop-apotheke.com.

A friend of mine also swears by the fever and teething suppositories from Weleda (you can find them here). However, I could not see any positive effect with them.

Pain medication

If your baby's teething pain seems unusually severe and unbearable without medication, I would recommend discussing it with your pediatrician. It is possible that there are other causes. In any case, with the doctor you have a competent contact person for your concern.

You can also discuss illnesses such as fever or diarrhea, which can sometimes occur in combination with teething because the immune system as a whole is more stressed due to teething, and possible treatment.

In addition to the pure painkillers, there is also the possibility of treatment with a local anesthetic, i.e. an anesthetic gel, which can often already help well. In case of doubt, you can get advice at a pharmacy.

Other possibilities

There are many other ways to support the little ones during teething and every society and every family has its own remedies. Similar to homeopathy, no specific effectiveness has been proven. Nevertheless, I would like to mention further possibilities here.

On the one hand, some parents swear that it helps if the babies wear amber necklaces during teething. These are available especially for babies with an easy-to-open closure, so that strangulation is prevented. However, the baby should not be unsupervised with it, of course. I generally advise against such chains, because even with this special closure they still pose a danger and have no effect at all.

Another possibility comes from aromatherapy. Here there is a specially formulated tooth oil, which is massaged into the cheeks of the baby. The scents are supposed to have a pain-relieving and calming effect. With my daughter, I felt it was actually helpful. You can also order this teething oil from the Shop Pharmacy.

Even without oil, a gentle massage of the cheek or chewing area can be soothing. However, some babies don't like any touch at all during teething, so every parent should approach their infant gently and in contact.

Dental care

I have already written a lot about teething, but I would like to conclude by mentioning that baby dental care is also important from the first little tooth. Which toothbrush and toothpaste is preferred for this depends on your wishes and those of your child.

There are various finger attachments, small toothbrushes or even small electric toothbrushes. Very soft bristles are always important. Toothpaste is available with and without fluoride. Your dentist can best advise you on what is suitable. You can find a large selection of products in the Toothpaste & Toothbrushes category at www.shop-apotheke.com.

The cover image comes from unsplash.com.

The photo in the article with the bottle of oil comes from unsplash.com.

The photo in the article with the baby in prone position comes from unsplash.com.

The photo in the article with the baby in black and white comes from unsplash .com.

The photo in the article with the fans and globuli bottles comes from unsplash.com.

The photo in the article of the wide open mouth comes from unsplash .com.