How to Soothe a Teething Baby Naturally

It is exciting to watch your baby grow and to witness so many firsts with your child, such as when they roll for the first time, sit up on their own, and try their first taste of real food. Your baby's first tooth is another joyful development, but can also be a cause of many sleepless nights for you and your baby as well. Although you could just give your teething baby some pain relievers bought over the counter, it is best to use natural methods whenever possible. Here are a few ways to soothe your teething child the natural way.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Washcloth
• Mesh pops (you can purchase them at Target, Babies R Us, or WalMart)
• Teething ring or chew toy
• Teething biscuit

1. The best way is to buy one (or several) of those mesh pops. Peel and cut some bananas into sections about 2 inches long (or whatever size will fit into your mesh pop), and freeze them in a Ziploc or plastic bag. Whenever your baby becomes irritable, just take one piece out of the freezer, put in the mesh pop, and let them chew on it. Very tasty and soothing on the gums.

2. Give your child teething biscuits. Earth's Best makes excellent organic biscuits that last a long time. Just make sure that your child does not bite off a chunk that may be a choking hazard. It is best for children 9 months or older.

3. Buy some chew toys or teething rings and freeze or chill them in the refrigerator, then give them to your teething baby. Make sure to clean them first.

4. Wet a clean washcloth and place in a plastic bag, then freeze. This makes an excellent homemade chew toy.

5. Offer a sterilized pacifier. This may help a little, especially when you are on the road. Some parents may prefer not to use pacifiers due to potential dental problems.

Tips & Warnings

• Watch your child closely if you give them teething biscuits, especially if they do not normally eat solid foods. If they bite off a piece it can cause choking.
• Many parents assume that a child is teething just because the child is irritable and has a fever. Usually if they are crying it is something simple such as they are hungry, need a new diaper, are sleepy, bored, cold, hot, or there is too much noise. Make sure that you satisfy all of their needs first before disregarding their irritability as teething. A sign that they are teething: they try to chew on everything or bite you while breastfeeding.
• Try not to give your child medication such as Motrin or Infant Tylenol unnecessarily. Your baby might just be hungry or bored and get drugged for no reason. Some parents assume that this helps just because the child stops crying, when in reality they stopped crying because they have been drugged and are drowsy. Limit medication to more serious situations.

Resources

• Teething Key Ring for Baby
• Fun Chew Toy
• Earth's Best Organic Teething Biscuits