4 Natural Teething Remedies for Babies |
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4 Natural Teething Remedies for Babies

admin March 19, 2012

Jacob’s teething.

Or so I think, given that he’s 7 1/2 months old and has yet to pop one through.  Bekah got her first at 5  1/2 months, and Daniel, at 6 months.  So this whole “no teeth past 7 months” thing is new to me.  He loves to gum on big chunks of frozen fruit (really the only food he’s yet enthusiastic for…and he doesn’t actually eat much of it anyway), of course, he likes to bite me.  But that’s the age, too — he also likes to pinch me and pull my hair and give me kisses and screeches if anyone else is holding him and I walk by and don’t immediately pick him up.

But I digress.

Teething’s not so fun, for moms or babies.  Babies are irritable and they chew and drool and scream, and sometimes they don’t sleep.  This makes for a very tired and stressed-out mommy.  How can we help them…without resorting to Tylenol?

OTC Drugs for Teethers?

I’ll be honest.  I was very hesitant and waited until my oldest was six months old, but I did give her Tylenol.  In fact, not knowing any better, I gave it to her a lot from around 8 months until 13 months (she got something like 12 or 16 teeth, a couple of colds, and some other stuff that made for a very difficult time).  We found out when she was 19 months that her glutathione (an amino acid that is critical to immune function) was seriously depleted.  She was speech delayed.  In fact, she lost some words after a year.  Tylenol depletes glutathione.  Was it related?  Well…it’s likely it was at least partly caused by Tylenol.

Anyway, OTC drugs of any kind are not benign, even if they are marketed to babies.  Tylenol and even ibuprofen are so ubiquitous that we don’t even think about it anymore — I mean, you have to have those things on hand, right?  Just in case?  If not for teething, then for fevers (but don’t do that!  Fevers are beneficial to the body and shouldn’t be artificially lowered).

All of these pain-relieving drugs come with a side effect of depleting glutathione and lowering immune function.  They also come with the possibility of liver damage in case of overdose.  It is so, so easy to overdose a baby.  If you give more than one medication, or you forget when you last gave it, or the other parent gets up with the baby and doesn’t know you gave it recently, or you read the instructions on the bottle wrong, or you don’t know your baby’s accurate weight….  You get the idea.  So easy to overdose a baby.  Since Tylenol is the leading cause of liver failure, this is no small issue.

Skip the OTC drugs.  There are other ways.

Teething Tablets

Last week, Jacob was waking every 15 minutes, crying, and there was no obvious reason for it.  He wasn’t wet, he wasn’t hungry, he wasn’t hot.  The only thing I could think was that his teeth were bothering him — that he was feeling achy.  The big kids had hidden the teething tablets (you would think I’d learn to keep them put away, but no) so we didn’t have any.  I took a quick trip to Walmart, and then Target (Walmart was out) at 10 PM at night.  Then I made the mistake of telling everyone on Facebook they would guarantee us a better night’s rest.

Never say such a thing.

Of course, he proved me wrong, continuing to wake and require multiple feedings, rockings, and diaper changes, plus peeing through his clothing and on me and the bed.  The only sound sleep he got was after I stripped him and laid him in his bed in just a diaper.

Anyway, teething tablets, on other occasions, have been a lifesaver.  They are a homeopathic product by Hyland’s, and they contain a variety of remedies which reduce swelling and achiness and help the baby sleep.  They usually don’t have any side effects.  They also come in a quick-dissolve little tablet, which is really nice for the little ones.  I have used them for all my babies successfully.

Some say that Hyland’s is not the best choice because in true homeopathy, the one proper remedy is chosen — the remedies are not mixed.  If the remedy doesn’t work, it’s because it is not the right one for that particular person.  I believe this.  I only choose the Hyland’s when the babies are little because of the quick-dissolve aspect.  Others say you really ought to be giving the little pills dissolved and succussed (shaken) in water anyway so that doesn’t matter.  I am not an expert on homeopathy.  This is about the extent of what I know.

Other homeopathic (single remedy) solutions are:

  • Chamomilla
  • Belladonna
  • Aconite
  • Calcarea Phosphorus
  • …and more (see the link)

I used chamomilla successfully with Bekah; Daniel didn’t respond to it, so I chose belladonna, which worked for him.  These remedies can be used in place of OTC drugs.

I ultimately stopped using teething tablets for Jacob and did not use them for my later babies, because they caused Jacob to be very wakeful and unable to sleep.  Instead, I used some of the remedies below, which have worked for all three of my younger babies.

4 Natural Teething Remedies for Babies pinterest

 

Amber Teething Necklaces

Another really awesome and completely natural way to help teething pain is with an amber necklace.  They aren’t for chewing on, they are simply for wearing.

This sounds ridiculous, but it’s not.  Real Baltic amber contains something called succinic acid.  It is a natural pain reliever.  When the necklace is worn against the skin, the amber is heated and the acid absorbs into the skin, reducing pain and inflammation.  Adults also use them to relieve tension in the jaw, teeth grinding, and other oral pain, very successfully.

Both of my boys have used these amber necklaces.  When they weren’t wearing them, we heard about it!

Make sure to buy necklaces that are the appropriate length (it will say ‘made for adults’ or ‘made for babies’ usually).  Babies’ necklaces are very short.  They should have knots tied between every bead.  The clasp should be a screw-together clasp.  There shouldn’t be any way that baby can break the necklace and get all the beads off (hence the knots between each).  They can be safely worn 24/7, which most babies do.  The official instructions say babies should be supervised while wearing them, but of course, babies are irritable at night, so…most of them wear the necklaces all the time.

Teething Tincture or Tea

This option, I developed later, when Jacob was a year old and nothing was working for him anymore.  It’s a combination of cloves and catnip, prepared as a tea (which works well for toddlers who can drink from sippy cups) or a tincture (which is travel-friendly, prepared ahead of time, and works well for younger babies).  This is the single remedy I have used for my younger two babies because it works every time and there are no side effects.

 

Want to try a tincture but not ready to make it yourself? You can buy it from us over at Earthley!

Other Pain Relief Options

Recently I posted a recipe for a homemade teething cream.  If you’re worried about the clove oil, try steeping 1 tbsp. whole cloves in the oil and straining it instead.

Other ideas include:

  • Wooden teethers to chew on
  • Frozen apple slices (there’s an acid in the apples, and pears, that helps to soothe, plus the cold)
  • Wet, frozen washcloths to chew on
  • Mesh “teethers” with a bit of ice or frozen fruit in them

Using a combination of these, most babies are relieved of most of their teething pain.  For Jacob, I put an amber necklace on him all the time, offer teething tablets if he’s especially fussy or irritable, and let him chew on frozen fruit slices here and there (he’s starting to really like that).

What are your favorite teething remedies?

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18 Comments

  1. Interesting to learn about Baltic Amber – never heard of that before! Any readers looking for organic wood teething toys, Little Alouette has the BEST – made by hand in Ohio. They are my go-to for baby shower gifts. http://www.littlealouette.com/

    Reply

  2. Is there a way to increase glutathione for babies and children?

    Reply

  3. best advice for worried parents and teething necklaces – double them up like an anklet and put a sock on top. it keeps the necklace against the skin, and eliminates the choking concern. my dd has had the same one on for 17 months now, and the first few months were under a sock. most babies don’t even notice it’s on around their necks, though, either.
    i know some people have concerns about the necklace needing to be near the area being treated, but hey, babies are little. everything’s close to their mouth, proportionally. : )

    Reply

  4. I LOVE hylands teething tabs. They are a life saver. I have heard a lot of great things about amber teething necklaces, my daughter is wearing one right now, but it doesn’t really seem to help. It is cute though. Frozen blue berries are our go to for teething pain. She LOVES them and they really seem to help the pain. I also make “ice cream” with frozen banannas and blueberries. (Get frozen fruit, put in food processor=ice cream).

    Reply

  5. Hi everyone 🙂

    I read this amazing recipe and I want to do it for my baby, who I believe can be in distress due to teething. My question is: I have Clove bud essential oil. Can this be used? Is it the same as clove essential oil?

    I am eagerly waiting for your answers. Thank you so much!

    Reply

  6. What are chamomilla and belladona, and how do you use them for babies? My 4 month old has jsut started teething really badly and I am ready to try anything and everything to help calm her and help her to sleep better! Thanks!

    Reply

  7. I also found that waterproof teething mittens really comforted my lo. I got them at http://www.etsy.com/shop/easybreazybaby

    Reply

  8. […] car/stroller activity too and I have recently read across the internet that apples have enzymes or acids in them that are supposedly supposed to help with teething pain which is another major plus since T […]

    Reply

  9. The doctor states that the mentioned belief is the greatest myth and lists the reasons, why deciduous teeth care is just important as permanent teeth care. So, first of all, decayed and untreated deciduous teeth do hurt. Not necessarily all the time – maybe only, when in contact with food, therefore, parents may feel that baby became irritable and does not eat without any reason.

    Reply

  10. […] Kate from Modern Alternative Mama shares how she uses Baltic Amber Necklaces for her teething babies… […]

    Reply

  11. New studies are showing correlations between acetaminophen (Tylenol) and not just asthma, but ADHD and autism (I’m guessing metabolic causes – i.e. glutathione deficiency). How’s you’re daughter doing now?

    Reply

  12. Hello! My LO is only 3 months & very fussy, drooling everywhere…chewing on my fingers, etc. I have whole cloves & coconut oil, how much coconut oil do I use to steep the tbsp of cloves in? Do I need to heat the oil? How long should it steep??
    Thank you!

    Reply

  13. We had an Elderberry necklace made by a person that’s family that had made them for generations. It’s made from the stems. Swear by it.

    Reply

  14. Wanted to make a elderberry necklace for a teething baby , but i forget how manny pieces to cut to put on necklace. Need to know when to cut the stem from elderberry bush.

    Reply

  15. How many pieces of elderberry stem do I need to cut, I keep thinking 13 pieces. Cut stem after the berries are gone? Wanting to make a teething necklace, I used them on my kids & they worked, just can;t remember how I made it.

    Reply

  16. Please please please always follow the safety information when using these products for teething babies. There’s loads of safety information here. Don’t take any safety risks https://www.loveamberx.co.uk/pages/safety-information

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Kate.  I love medical freedom, sharing natural remedies, developing real food recipes, and gentle parenting. My goal is to teach you how to live your life free from Big Pharma, Big Food, and Big Government by learning about herbs, cooking, and sustainable practices.

I’m the author of Natural Remedies for Kids and the owner and lead herbalist at EarthleyI hope you’ll join me on the journey to a free and healthy life!

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