Tuesday 2 November 2010

baby Teething


How long has it been since you've had a decent eight hours sleep at night? So what's with your baby anyway? What makes him cry at night just as you're dropping off to sleep? He's had a nice, warm bath and a good feed and he should be sound asleep. Yet he is irritable, fussy, and cranky? It couldn't be...? Oh... but it could! And most of the times, it is... teething – that transition from a toothless wonder to a chomping, chewing... whatever. As you already know, babies have no fixed time to do anything. And you have no say in the matter. Teething is one of those ‘anythings.'

Though most babies usually cut their first tooth before four to seven months, some babies may begin teething as early as three months and may continue up to three years. For some babies the process may hurt and for some, the course of sprouting those little incisors may be absolutely worry-free and pain-free. And since you are the one who's losing sleep, we'll explain to you a little about teething blues.

A budding tooth may cause painful, swollen gums. Chomping and chewing on just about anything brings relief to the gums. And if you're breastfeeding the baby, be careful, you're liable to get hurt. But keep in mind that red, swollen gums get back to normal once the tooth appears.

Here's where your sleep gets disturbed. The tooth moves through the bone and gums in stages and is more active at night resulting in irritability and fussiness. And if you've seen your infant pulling his ear and thought he had gone crazy, relax. Like ear infections, pain in the jaw during teething reaches the ear canal and he's simply trying to get rid of it. He's not crazy.

You are used to his intermittent drooling – no problem there. But don't panic when he starts to drool heavily. That's the first sign of teething. But there's a small point here to be noted. Not all drooling infants start teething.

There's another point to be noted and this one's important. Sometimes drooling may be so heavy, babies can choke in it. Rashes may appear on the child's chin, neck, or chest because of constantly wet clothes. Use a bib to keep the skin dry.

Don't be overly alarmed if your baby cries to be breastfed again. Due to swollen and inflamed gums spoon-feeding may hurt him. Conversely, your child may prefer solid foods because biting on food creates counter pressure that brings him relief. Now that you know why your child keeps you awake at night, grab a bit of sleep during the day

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