– One of the most common
natural baby teething remedies is also one of the most dangerous. And on the topic of that, there's also no scientific evidence to show that it even works. You may have already guessed
what I'm talking about, but in case you haven't, I'm talking about the
Amber Teething Necklace. These provide a significant
strangulation risk to babies.
And sadly, despite this actually resulting in deaths even recently, they continue to be used. When you consider these two facts, there's really no reason
at all to use them, especially considering that there are several other teething remedies that are safe and effective that you can use instead. So let's talk about what those are. One of the most effective ways to relieve your baby's teething pain is to actually massage their gum. Now, you might think,
"This sounds ridiculous." But actually putting
pressure on the sore gum can help to decrease the pain your little one is experiencing when they are teething.
And this is why you will actually notice that your baby ramps up the amount of mouthing and biting they do when they are teething. So, if you're willing to try to gently rub your baby's
gum with a clean finger for a minute or two at a time, and this will help to alleviate
some of their teething pain. Another way to relieve teething pain is to actually place something
cold on the inflamed gum, as this will actually help to decrease that inflammation that's occurring and to numb the area. And a really simple way to give your baby
something cold to gnaw on is by knoting the end of a face washer and then wetting that knot
with water or breast milk, and then placing the face washer
into the fridge or freezer. But if you place it in the freezer, only do it for a very
short period of time. Then, when that face
washer is cold, not frozen because we don't want to give your baby any frostbite on the gum, simply give it to your baby to mouth.
Gnawing on that cold face washer will help to numb your little one's gum, and reduce any swelling they may have, as well as alleviate some of their pain because they'll be applying
direct pressure to their gum, which we know helps to decrease pain. Now, if your little one
is up to eating solids instead of giving them
that cold face washer, you can actually place
a cold piece of food inside a silicone self-feeder to help alleviate their gum pain. The cold surface of the
silicone self-feeder will actually help to
decrease that inflammation along the gums, as well as actually provide
them with pain relief, as they munch down on that self-feeder. Before we cover what the next soothing
strategy is for teething, if you haven't already, make sure you download the
free Developmental Checklist in the description box below so you'll know what to be expecting in your baby's first year of life, and when to be concerned. Teethers are also great
for soothing aching gums, and the best teethers, are obviously going to be
the ones that your little one can hold independently. Now, this can be a little tricky at first, as babies typically start teething, anywhere from four to seven months of age, and at this age, babies use their whole
hand to grip onto toys.
So the easiest teether
for your baby to hold between four to seven months of age is going to be circular teethers or teethers which have
a cylindrical handle. Also, given that your baby is going to be gnawing
on that with some force, it's best to buy teethers which are solid, and avoid buying teethers
which have liquid inside because these may break or leak. Also, it's worth considering
purchasing teethers which can be cooled first in the fridge, as this will help to
provide that added benefit of helping to decrease that swelling, and numb the affected area. You may also find that if
your baby uses a pacifier, offering them a pacifier
when they are teething, can help them tolerate that teething pain.
And that's because studies have found, that pacifiers provide a calming effect, which can be used for pain prevention. In fact, the American Academy
of Pediatrics recommend, "Pacifiers are used in infants
up to six months of age for pain relief when minor procedures in emergency surgeries
are done on babies." Therefore, if your little one is teething see if giving them the pacifier helps to alleviate their teething pain. Now, as I said, at the
beginning of this video, there are some really
common teething remedies, like that Amber Teething Necklace, which are on the market, but they are not safe
and should be avoided. So make sure you watch this video next, to find out exactly
what these products are so you can avoid using them with your baby when they are teething. Thanks for watching. And I will see you next week, where I'll share more
parenting tips and tricks..
