20 teething fixes

20 top tips to ease baby’s discomfort

T here’s nothing cuter than your baby’s gummy grin with a few pearly whites peeking out. The journey to that point is, well, less cute. Make it easier with some new ideas.

get hands on Most of the time, a little bit of TLC is all that’s needed, so try lightly rubbing your clean finger along your baby’s gums. When she is fairly relaxed, massaging them for two minutes will provide some soothing counterpressure.

3 THE CHILLY CLOTH CURE

FREEZE A WET FACECLOTH AND LET YOUR BABY CHEW ON IT – THE COLD EASES PAIN. THE RELATIVELY ROUGH TEXTURE ALSO FEELS GOOD ON BABY’S GUMS. IF YOU’RE WARY OF WETNESS FROM THE CLOTH, PUT BABY IN A WATERPROOF BIB. EXPERIMENT WITH DIFFERENT DEGREES OF COLDNESS – IF FROZEN IS TOO EXTREME FOR YOUR BABY, SIMPLY WET THE FACECLOTH WITH COLD WATER INSTEAD.

2 TRY VANILLA Pure vanilla extract isn’t just for bake-off moments – rubbing a drop into baby’s gums can work in two ways. Firstly, the massage action helps to soothe throbbing gums. Secondly, the vanilla scent is calming. Be sure to check the ingredients first though, as some brands contain alcohol.

4

GLOVES ON If your baby is very young when her first tooth starts coming through, she may struggle to hold on to a teething ring or toy, and resort to chomping on her fist. Look out for a teething glove at baby stores – these are mittens that fit onto baby’s hands and have cute teething attachments on them.

DON’T GIVE UP When you’re dealing with a teething baby, perseverance is the key. Any one of many solutions can help to soothe your baby, so practise a little patience and try them all until you find one that works.

6 GET SOME TEETHING BLING IF YOUR BABY MAKES A HABIT OF GRABBING HOLD OF YOUR NECKLACE, SWAP IT FOR SPECIAL TEETHING JEWELLERY INSTEAD. THESE ARE AVAILABLE AT MOST BABY STORES AND ARE SO PRETTY NO ONE WILL EVEN NOTICE THAT THEY’RE ACTUALLY THERE FOR BABY’S ENJOYMENT.