Teething is the process of eruption of milk teeth in babies. For some, it is a very easy journey, while for some babies it comes with significant discomfort. It generally starts around 4-6 months for most babies, give or take.
Here are some basic symptoms of teething to look out for:
- sore and tender gums.
- increased salivation and drooling
- general irritability and crankiness
- mild fever
However, anything above 100.4 F is a separate illness altogether and your pediatrician should be consulted. Also, other ailments like diarrhea, vomiting, bouts of cough are not generally affiliated with the teething process and should be treated separately.
Here are a few tips to make the whole process easier for both, you and the baby.
Give them teething objects: Give chilled teething rings, non-sweetened rusks, or cool pacifiers to bite on, to help their urge to chew onto objects.
You can give a chilled vegetable like a cucumber or a carrot, or maybe some hard fruit like an apple for them to bite onto. These not only relieve the itch but also help them develop a taste for these fruits and veggies.
(while they are nibbling on the chilled vegetable, make sure you keep an eye on them. A broken piece if swallowed could pose a choking hazard. For the very same reason I advice teething rings which are made up of a single part and are too big to be swallowed)
Put in extra effort to maintain home hygiene: Babies have limited grasping power and tend to drop their teether on the floor, only to pick it up again and put it in their mouth. Keep the baby’s prime area very clean and sterile.
Wipe the drool: With their hands and the teether and everything possible in their mouth, they salivate a lot. Keep a cloth handy and wipe the drool, to keep the skin rashes at bay.
Establish a healthy diet: Adequate amounts of vitamins, minerals, and proteins should be given to the child to increase their body resistance.
Is something missing? Do you know of any such helpful tips? Do let us know in the comment section below. Happy Parenting!!
