Can Your Child Teethe Without Plastic?

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Tuesday, June 07, 2011

Healthy Child:

Teething is tough. Not only for baby, but also for anyone taking care of the ornery little thing. Instead of stocking up on plastic teethers that may leach risky chemicals into your wee-one’s mouth, Healthy Child recommends opting for safer solutions.

We asked our community on Facebook what effective, natural remedies they used and they had some stellar advice! Here are just a few:

Natalie I used frozen bagels and teething tablets
Erica Clove oil, diluted 50:50 w/ another edible oil
Jenna frozen fruit and chamomile tea bags (for the toofless) to nom on.
Sarah Hazelwood necklaces. I don't like the amber necklaces because there is no dosage on them - baby just keeps getting the analgesic and I haven't seen a safe recommendation on them either.
Sonita I always froze washcloths
April If you are nursing drink chamomile tea & it helps baby.
Penny Baltic amber, of course!
Dianne Amber is a hardened tree resin, consisting of compounds of terpenes, alcohols, and esters. It is also a polished gemstone. It can also be something manufactured, that is glued together. Just make sure u get the real deal!
Penny Clove oil is a charm, too :)
Manal Although babies don't smell good afterwards but I used green onions for both my kids, cold ones work better, the onion has a numbing effect on the gums..but again they do stink afterwards but found it really soothing.
Ozzie soak your cotton nursing pads in breastmilk then stick it in the freezer. give to baby to knaw on when frozen. :-)
Molly I went to a naturopathic chiropractor and he said she wasn't getting enough manganese, and when they lack that nutrient their bodies take it from other places. Hence the runny noses, pain, and cranky baby. He gave her chewable tablets that she ate like candy. All her teeth came in fast and there was no sign of agitation or even a runny nose or swollen gums after that. They popped up like weeds :)
Latasha Breastfeeding
Ashleigh I gave my kids regular sized carrots from the fridge to chew /teeth on during the day. They also double as drum sticks!!! Lol.
Sandy Our best was an ice cube inside a "fresh food feeder" -- they are the little mesh things with a handle that you can put fresh fruit and steamed veggies in. My kids loved it!

Do you have any tips to share?

Read all the responses on Facebook and be sure to “like” our page!

The opinions expressed here are solely those of the authors and not necessarily those of Healthy Child Healthy World.

Posted by Stephanie on 06/22/2011 at 08:08 PM

I really like the organic wooden teether necklaces. What a great idea!

Posted by Cindy @ One Part Sunshine on 06/11/2011 at 05:00 PM

I really like the beech wood teething rings from HABA.

Posted by erica on 06/10/2011 at 11:42 AM

couldn’t have been more perfect timing. i just picked up my 11M daughter with a low grade fever and two eruption hematomas on her top incisors. she’s miserable, so I’ll try a few of these to sooth the pain. thanks for sharing.

Posted by Jessica Pachler on 06/08/2011 at 07:00 PM

We used a lot of the above, but the thing that was the best for us was our Kleynimals - stainless steel teething ‘keys’, which are great not only for teething, but also playing with before and after the teething. When the teething was really bad, we’d put them in the fridge to cool them down. But they were great becuase they were infinitely transportable and dishwasher safe too.

Posted by Amanda Hearn on 06/08/2011 at 07:39 AM

I use a Baltic Amber necklace from Inspired By Finn and love it. I’ve had it for over a year now and when my daughter is teething (what seems like constantly for the last 10 or so months) it makes a real difference. If I forget to put it back on after a bath, I can see a difference in her mood and I’ll remember (or my husband will remind me) that I’ve forgotten to put her necklace back on.

In addition to teething, I bought one for my mother who has chronic pain due to TMJ surgeries. While her pain is quite severe, it has helped tremendously with her semi-related neck pain. She wore it mostly because I got it for her, not expecting any results. She has been so pleased and now says she won’t take it off!

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