{ TEETHING IN YOUR CHILD }

Teething symptoms do not have to be distressing for infants and parents alike...

WHAT IS TEETHING?

Teething is the time when an infant's first teeth begins to reput through the gums and becomes visible in the mouth. It usually starts at about 6 months of age. In time, most children will have 20 primary teeth by 3 years old.

TEETHING SEQUENCE

SIGN AND SYMPTOMS OF TEETHING

Teething may initiate some local symptoms which are often inflammatory to nature:
*Swelling
- Often the first sign of tooth eruption is gum swelling. Sometimes this swelling appears bluish due to bleeding in the soft tissues around the area where a tooth erupts. This is known as eruption bruise which usually resolves by itself without treatment.
*Drooling
- During teething some children may drool excessively. This can lead to a rash on the child's cheeks, neck and/or chest.
*Crankiness/Moodiness
- Babies may become irritable and sometime suffer sleep disturbance.
*Other symptoms:
Teething is also often accompanied by slight fever and diarrhoea.

HOW TO COMFORT A TEETHING CHILD?

A number of ways may be used to alleviate the symptoms of teething:-
1. Gently rub or massage the gums with a clean finger or cool spoon.
2. Teething rings could be of benefit. However, liquid-filled teething rings should be avoided as it may be punctured by newly erupted teeth.
3. Pacifiers may provide a soothing effect.
4. Comforting or distracting the baby can be helpful too - you may play, sing, walk or drive the baby around to distract them from the pain.
5. Teething gels may provide temporary relief from teething pain. There are few types of teething gel in the market which mostly provide symptomatic relief. Now let's take a look at what is available in the market.
* Overall, they act by reducing inflammation due to the contents of either cetylperidenium, cetylkonium or hyaluronic acide.
* Some teething gels provide relief by numbing the gums. They usually contain numbing agent such as lignocaine and a bit of alcohol.

NOTE: Any form of alcohol should not be placed on baby's gums as it can be dangerous for infants.

* Some products reduce pain, identified from the content of choline salicylate. It helps to relieve baby's discomfort in the short term.
* There is also a product that contains hyaluronic acid which regenerates the erupted gum tissues back to normal, hence providing long term relief to teeting baby. It comes in a special preparation for use in infants and children that does not contain alcohol, colorants, preservatives, or even sugar. Furthermore, its familiar taste of milk and fruity flavour, helps to reduce the possibilities of rejection.

Should the symptoms worsen, consult your paediatrician, dentist or pharmacist for effective teething pain relieving agents.