Teething in Babies: Symptoms and Tips

Your baby cries a lot and is restless? A possible cause could be teething. Here you can find out when the baby starts teething, the respective symptoms and how you can make teething easier.

Teething: Start and order

At the earliest, the first tooth can be expected from the sixth month, although the time is only a rough guide and can vary from baby to baby. If your baby does not have a tooth by the age of one year, an examination at the paediatrician may be useful.

The order of the individual teeth is always the same: the lower incisors appear at the beginning, followed by the upper ones, with the inner incisors coming before the outer ones. Then the front molars follow (in the second year of life), followed by the canines and finally the back molars. At about three years of age, the 20 milk teeth are complete.

Signs and symptoms

• Teething is different for every baby, while one baby hardly notices it, the other one has severe pain.
• Basically, however, the breakthrough of the teeth in most babies results in increased saliva production. In addition, the baby is more susceptible to infections because the immune system is overloaded.

Other signs of teething may be:

• Unrest
• Baby is whiny
• Indisposition
• Frequent waking
• Baby rubs his gums or ear
• Baby takes more things in his mouth
• Reduced sucking and reduced appetite
• Slight increase in body temperature
• Soft bowel movement
• Red and swollen teeth
• Red cheeks
• Baby accidentally bites when breastfeeding
• Reddish rash around the mouth
• Sore spots on buttocks and facial skin

Attention: Teething is not always the cause of everything, such as fever or diarrhoea! Take your baby to the doctor if the diarrhoea lasts longer than one day and a fever occurs. Even if the baby refuses food completely, a visit to the doctor is necessary.

Teething tips

• Closeness, cuddling and playing: Lots of attention and cuddling can provide distraction for your baby and help her rest better.
• Gum massage: You can massage your baby’s gums with finger cots or with washed hands. Especially if the gums itch, this is beneficial and reduces pressure.
• Teething ring: A teething ring can minimize the discomfort when teething. Some teething rings can be cooled in the fridge (not in the freezer!), which helps the baby additionally.
• Violet root: Violet root is available in the pharmacy and relieves pain as the juice has an anaesthetic effect. However, there are also many critical voices about the root, as it can accumulate dirt and bacteria.
• Bread edges and carrots (from the teething age) or a cold baby spoon to bite on act similar to a massage. Caution: Stay close to the food to prevent swallowing!
• Pain-relieving ointments or tooth gels (non-prescription) can relieve the baby’s pain and can be massaged into the jaw line. However, applying the gel may be difficult for some babies. Also make sure that the products do not contain sugar. In addition, there is a risk that the tooth gel will be swallowed by the baby and cause swallowing difficulties as a local anaesthetic in the neck. Therefore, only a small amount of gel should be used.
• Due to the increased saliva production, your baby needs a lot of water to drink to compensate for the loss of moisture.
• Some unsweetened ointment or chamomile tea has a calming effect. The tea can be applied or drunk with a cotton swab.
• Try to keep your baby’s face dry and apply an ointment if necessary if the increased salivation has irritated the facial skin too much.
• Analgesic suppositories: For severe pain, a doctor may prescribe analgesics in the form of suppositories.
• Homeopathic remedies: Homeopathic remedies (globules) can be used to treat dental problems. However, it must be mentioned that homeopathic remedies are not effective for all babies. There is also no scientific evidence of their effect.

Care of the teeth

Dental care for milk teeth is extremely important, as caries can form quickly and milk teeth are important for the development of the jaw. Moreover, if dental hygiene is inadequate, bacteria can enter the organism and cause diseases.

With the first teeth the purchase of a children’s toothbrush is imminent, which must be adapted to the needs of the small teeth. Finger toothbrushes or finger cots are also a good option for the first dental care. With the second tooth, however, you should switch to a children’s toothbrush, which at this point should be equipped with short, soft plastic bristles and a small head.

There are different views between the professional societies of paediatrics and dentistry on the most effective fluoride treatment, which also affect the first use of fluoride-containing toothpaste and the frequency of brushing the teeth, as kindergesundheit-info.de from the Federal Centre for Health Education summarises: Dentists recommend brushing the teeth once a day with a soft toothbrush and a fluoride-containing toothpaste for children from the first tooth onwards. In this case, no additional fluoride tablet, which most paediatricians administer from the tenth day of life, should be given to the baby.

Pediatricians, on the other hand, recommend cleaning the teeth after meals with water only. Only from around four years of age, when the child can spit out the toothpaste, should they recommend using a toothpaste containing fluoride. In this case, fluoride is instead added in the form of tablets during the first years of life. Fluoride supports a strong enamel, but no overdosage should take place.

If all milk teeth are present, the toothbrush should have longer bristles. Also make sure that the handle is thicker so that your toddler can soon practice brushing by himself.

Caution: A toothpaste containing menthol can reduce the possible effect of homeopathic remedies.

Parents need to be aware of this

• A pacifier can lead to tooth and jaw misalignments and should therefore be discontinued as soon as possible. Especially when small children pacify for a very long time, this can have serious consequences for the teeth and jaw. If you use a pacifier, make sure that the pacifier is shaped to fit your child’s jaw and do not use it permanently.
• The thumb is just as harmful if it is repeatedly sucked on permanently. The result can be a “sucking bite” or even a kind of hole between the upper and lower incisors.
• Also beware of continuous sucking on bottles: This must be avoided at all costs, as it is also tooth-damaging.
• For healthy teeth, dental care is just as important as proper nutrition: household sugar, sweets, lactose, dextrose and fructose promote tooth decay. Therefore, pay attention to the ingredients of the food.