Teething is not an easy time for the baby, but also for its parents – sleepless nights, crying baby and sometimes helplessness of caregivers. Check what to do to bring relief to the baby.
When the child salivates excessively, is restless, has a fever and doesn’t want to eat – it may mean that its teeth are growing. For some children it goes very easily, for others – quite the opposite. Therefore, many parents anxiously await the first tooth in their child.
There is no clear-cut time for teething – it can begin as early as two months of age. Usually, however, the first tooth does not appear until around 6 months of age. When the teething process begins is very individual and there is no need to panic if it starts relatively early.
In most children teething is gradual, although there are also cases when this process happens quickly and rapidly, and the teeth erupt at the same time. This unfortunately leads to an accumulation of pain.
The generally accepted rule is that when the child begins to teethe, subsequent teeth appear every four months. The first baby teeth are the so-called primary teeth, or milk teeth, which will fall out over time and be replaced by permanent teeth.
When should I start to worry if my toddler still doesn’t have his first tooth? Dentists say that it is alarming if a child’s first tooth does not appear until he is twelve months old. What can it mean? About abnormal mineral-calcium metabolism in the child and vitamin D3 deficiency.
It is really difficult to miss the moment when the toddler starts teething, however, it is worth taking into account that the typical symptoms of tooth eruption do not necessarily appear in every infant. Despite the individual nature of children’s development, there are several typical symptoms to recognize the teething process. These include:
What other painful teething symptoms might there be? Unusually, but nevertheless, bleeding gums can also be a symptom of teething. Babies may chew on whatever they can get their hands on. Keep in mind, however, that babies as young as three months put their hands and toys in their mouths, so not all drooling and putting their hands in their mouths is related to teething
Symptoms of teething in babies and toddlers can vary, as the process can happen quite differently in a three-month-old or seven-month-old baby, and differently in a two- or three-year-old
Older children react differently to teething, and it depends on the type of tooth that happens to be erupting. “Growing” a three, a five or a canine can cause different symptoms. The eruption of later teeth in children is not surprising, because their body has already developed defense mechanisms. As a result, older children are not as hyperactive as newborns, but they complain of sore and itchy gums. The pain is sometimes relieved by administering an analgesic and anti-inflammatory medication.
Teething is a continuous process, occurring from 6 to 24 months of a child’s life. When a toddler already has twenty teeth that have appeared in two years, teething alone causes only mild pain and irritation. However, the specific amount of time it takes for a tooth to cut through the gum has not been determined. Usually, teething symptoms last a few days, so when a toddler feels discomfort for a longer period of time, you can assume that it is not teething and you need to consult a doctor.
Main photo: Anna Shvets, source: pexels.com
