Teething Survival

EVERYTHING you need to know to help you and your little one combat teething!

• Teething Symptoms – 6 common signs of teething
• Our Top Teething Tips – Soothing tips, distraction tips, Comfort tips
• Natural Teething Remedies – Things You Can Easily Try At Home
• Easy Fruit and Veg Teething remedies – for weaning babies
• Recipe for Your Teething Tot - Coconut & Banana Biscuits
• Learn About Cheeky Chompers Teething Survival Kit!

---

Teething Symptoms - 6 Common Signs

Teething can be a tricky time for your baby (and for you!). Here are the 6 common signs to look for:

1) Inflamed Gums

The gums can become inflamed, red and painful as the teeth start to push through.

2) Flushed Cheeks

As teeth push through the gums, irritation can cause one or both of your baby’s cheeks to become red and flushed.

3) Dribbling and Drooling

Extra dribble and drool from your baby when they are teething can be quite a common symptom. This might case a rash around your baby's mouth or chin.

4) Loss of Appetite

This may be due to the pain of newly emerging teeth rather than a dislike of the food or milk itself. The gums will be tender and sore during this stage and your baby may look for something apart from food to ease this pain.

Don't worry about your baby’s temporary loss of appetite. It is entirely normal and should return soon enough. If you are concerned ask your GP for advice. 

5) Restlessness and irritability

If your baby’s gums are hurting, they’re likely to be irritable and unhappy.

Add to that difficulty going to sleep and some nights of unsettled sleep due to the discomforts and it’s easy to understand why your little one is tired and grumpy.

6) Chewing on Fingers or Toys

One of the signs that your baby is teething is that they start to chew on their fingers, toys or other objects they get hold of, to get some relief.

 

Is ear tugging a sign of teething?

It can be yes.  It can also be a sign of an ear infection, so look out for a fever and check your baby’s temperature.  Ear tugging can also be a symptom of tiredness. 

Is diarrhoea a teething symptom?  

Some people think that teething causes diarrhoea but there's no firm evidence to support this.  It is thought that the acid in the excess saliva and drooling can cause diarrhoea, however we would advise that you get this checked out by a GP if it lasts more than 24 hours.

 

---

Our Top Teething Tips

Not all babies will experience symptoms during teething, some teeth may simply appear. For some teething can be distressing, but there are ways to make it easier for them (and you!).

You are definitely not alone! We have lots of easy and practical teething tips to help support you and your baby through teething.

Every baby is different, and you may have to try a few things until you find something that works for your baby.

SOOTHING TIPS

When a baby’s gums are swollen due to teething, providing something chilled to ease the inflammation makes complete sense.

👶 A clean cloth or flannel

Soak a clean cloth in cooled boiled water. Wring it out and fold it and let your baby bite down on it.

👶 Cooled teething toys

Teething toys can often be chilled in the fridge for an extra soothing effect (just check the instructions or packaging).

👶 Chilled fruit

If your baby is weaning, chilled fruit can help relieve sore gums (under supervision of course)

👶 A cold spoon

Chill a metal teaspoon in the fridge for a few hours then let your little one bite down on it with their swollen gums (supervise them).

👶 Gum massage

Firstly, make sure your hands are completely clean. Then, using the pad of your finger, rub in a circular motion all along the gum line on the inside of your baby's mouth. You can do this both inside and outside along the jawline.

DISTRACTION TIPS

❤️ Food grade silicone teethers

Food grade silicone (FDA Approved) is super for teething little ones as it comes from naturally derived material, passes the ‘Goldilocks’ test (not too hard, not too soft – it’s just right!), can be chilled in the fridge and is easily cleaned in a dishwasher or steriliser.

Lots of teething toys are made from this and even weaning spoons, so you may see your baby enjoying a good gnaw on their spoon when they’re eating.

This chewing can even help those little teeth to break through quicker, which can only be a good thing, right?!

Some teethers also have textured surfaces that can provide extra relief for little gums, and the option to add a teething gel, so baby can chew where it hurts most.

❤️ Other things to chew on

If your baby is over six months old, you can try giving them healthy foods to chew on, such as raw fruit and vegetables or a breadstick. Make sure your baby is always supervised by an adult.

❤️ Playtime

Sometimes the distraction of a toy or playtime with mummy or daddy will be enough to take your baby’s mind off their teething pain.

❤️ Singing

Singing lullabies and nursery rhymes to your little one can really soothe a baby to sleep.

❤️ Bathtime

Bathtime can be the distraction that relaxes your baby and takes their minds off the discomfort for a little bit.  

COMFORT TIPS

❤️ Cuddles

Many babies just want to be held and soothed by comforting cuddle power. Carrying them around the house in a baby carrier or rocking the little one in a chair can also help comfort and relax both of you.

❤️ Foot Massage

Studies have discovered connections between the toes and teeth, and that goes just right for children.

Babies respond very well to foot massage when it comes to teething and its pain, or simply feeling better on a sleepless night.

Massage your baby's foot gently while keeping more focus to the toes. Massaging the points found on either side of the baby's toes as well as above the nail bed on the big toe is going to work wonders.

Solar plexus point stays in the centre, right underneath the ball of the foot. Massaging the point induces a sense of calmness and relaxation.

❤️ Body massage

Body massage releases feel-good endorphins for baby. A cold-pressed oil or vegetable oil is recommended as these are completely natural.

If you've never done baby massage before, the NCT offer a great starter guide, video and advice to help get you going.

You can give your baby a massage at any time of the day, although many parents like to incorporate this with a bath and/or bed-time routine to help relax baby for sleeping.

PREVENT DRIBBLE RASH

✔️ Coconut Oil

Mouths, chins and chests can get sore through teething, a natural barrier like coconut oil can help keep this at bay.

Lots of us are using coconut oil more and more as a cooking oil, or as a beauty product. As well as being 100% natural, it can also provide a ‘barrier’ to all the excess dribble that your baby produces during teething. Rubbing a little on your little one’s chin periodically can help prevent them from getting an uncomfortable teething rash.

✔️ Dribble Bib

A super absorbent soft teething bib or dribble bib can help keep babies chest dry and keep teething rash at bay.

TEETHING POWDERS & GELS

You can put teething powders and gels on the sore parts of your baby’s gums to soothe inflamed gums and in some cases numb the pain. It's best to speak to a pharmacist who can advise you on the best products for you, the best way to apply the product and the amount to use.

We would love to hear what works for you and your baby or if there is a great tip we have missed! Get in touch with us at info@cheekychompers and let us know!

 

---

Natural Teething Remedies You Can Easily Try At Home

Cheeky Chompers Founders Julie & Amy share some completely natural, if a little unusual remedies that you can easily try at home.

When it comes to teething, us parents are usually prepared to try anything that might help!

🌱 Chamomile tea

Make some (anti-inflammatory) chamomile tea and pour it into a bowl. Then pop a clean cloth into the tea and leave in the fridge until chilled. Wring the cloth out to remove excess liquid and let your baby bite down on the cool, damp cloth.

🌱 Ginger Root

Obviously your little one won’t be at the stage of eating ginger, but you can peel a small amount of fresh ginger root (like Chamomile tea, it also has anti-inflammatory properties) and rub it on your baby’s gums. They may find the taste unusual, but it may be the distraction they need to take their mind of teething pain!

🌱 Pineapple

A great one if your tot is able to sit unaided (but supervised) in his or her highchair. Pineapple is also known for its anti-inflammatory benefits (who knew?!) and we imagine the core is quite a satisfying gnaw when your gums hurt!

🌱 Home-made teething biscuits

Give your teething tot something good to gnaw on! Shop-bought biscuits and rusks can often have more sugar than you would like, but this recipe has the natural sweetness of banana, with the perfect texture to help relieve baby’s itchy gums.

🌱 Coconut oil

Lots of us are using coconut oil more and more as a cooking oil, or as a beauty product. As well as being 100% natural, it can also provide a ‘barrier’ to all the excess dribble that your baby produces during teething.

Rubbing a little on your little one’s chin periodically can help prevent them from getting an uncomfortable teething rash.

Teething can be a very tough time for baby and mum, so we hope you find a fail-safe remedy for your little one. Remember kisses and cuddles will help you both, as will taking time out when you can. Best of luck with teething!

---

Easy Fruit and Veg Teething remedies

If you love to try natural remedies to help your little one through their teething journey, and they have already started on solids (recommended at 6+ months), you will love our suggestions for our favourite fruit and veg for teething!

Not only will your tot get the benefit of easing their teething discomfort, but they will be getting vitamins and nutrients too. AND it will help develop their hand-eye coordination and learning about tastes and textures!

As with anything that involves chewing and eating, we strongly recommend your little one is placed in an upright seated position when trying any of these teething relieving remedies and that they are supervised at all times too. Also remember, once weaning has started, if you haven't already, this is the time to incorporate a good tooth care routine for your baby, so please bear this in mind with all of our teething suggestions.

🍍 Bananas

Most babies love the taste of banana when they start weaning, and because it doesn’t keep very well, this is a great zero waste tip too! Peel a banana, slice it in half and then half again length-ways into batons.

Put it into a freezer bag or tub and pop it in the freezer for a few minutes, then pass to your little one with a clean cloth around the bottom so it’s not too cold for their little hands!

(Warning - please make sure it's rested first, don't give your baby anything directly from the freezer).

🍍 Carrots

Get a full-sized carrot (i.e. not miniature baby carrots), wash it thoroughly and peel it, and put it in the fridge. Then pass to your baby and let them ‘gum’ on it as they like.

🍍 Pineapple

Pineapple is acidic so we suggest this one for older babies 10+ months who have no digestive issues such as reflux.

Pineapple is known for its natural anti-inflammatory properties which is why it could work well for teething tots.

A safe way of giving your little one pineapple is to let them gnaw on a chilled pineapple core where the nutrients are most abundant.

🍍 Cucumber

Cucumber rings are the original teething rings as they are the perfect size for little hands!

Pop into the freezer for a few minutes to give it a cold blast which will to help soothe their painful gums. If your little one bites little bits off the cucumber, do make sure you are supervising closely.

🍍 Strawberries

So tasty and satisfying for little ones during the discomfort of teething!

Chill them in the fridge and use with a mesh feeder for independent chewing, or puree some strawberries and add a low sugar/natural yoghurt and put them in the freezer in an ice lolly mould to make yummy teething lollies.

(Warning - please make sure it's rested first, don't give your baby anything directly from the freezer).

You can get make even more exotic with your flavours, depending on what stage of weaning your little one is at and what fruits and vegetables you have available.

---

Cheeky Recipe for Your Teething Tot To Gnaw On! Coconut & Banana Biscuits

Recipe inspired by www.superhealthykids.com


Give your teething tot something good to gnaw on! Shop-bought biscuits and rusks can often have more sugar than you would like, but this recipe has the natural sweetness of banana, with the perfect texture to help relieve baby’s itchy gums.

🍪 The recipe is so simple (trust us, neither of us are Delia Smith in the kitchen!).

🍪 You can substitute coconut oil for vegetable oil and even add your own flavours like cinnamon, ginger, or a drop of vanilla essence.

🍪 As with most finger foods, we would recommend that your child is already sitting upright before giving them these teething biscuits (usually between 8-12 months+).

🍪 Always supervise young children when eating.

Let’s get baking!

Ingredients and method

1. Set your oven at 180C and get a large baking sheet lined with parchment.
2. Blitz 100g of rolled oats in a food processor or blender into a fine powder.
3. Add in 1 mashed ripe banana and 30ml (equivalent to about 2 tablespoons) of coconut oil.
4. Give it another whizz.
5. Scoop out smallish balls of mixture (you can add a small amount of plain flour if the mixture is too sticky).
6. Shape them into about 12 batons with rounded edges.
7. Bake in oven for 10 mins, then flip over and bake for another 5-10 mins.
8. Leave to cool.

Don't forget to tag us @cheekychompers to show off your baking!

 

---

Learn About Cheeky Chompers Teething Survival Kit - Find out it’s clever features!

We’ve designed our Teething Survival Kit to help combat teething troubles for you and your baby.

This compact stylish kit of teething essentials is ideal to help entertain, distract and soothe babies at home or on-the-go!

Just pop it in your changing bag or use the strap to attach it to your pushchair, so help is always at hand.

It’s just bursting with clever features!

What's Included In The Teething Survival Kit?

The water-resistant fun bag includes 3 of our baby and teething must-haves:

• Neckerchew Teething bib – super absorbent and reversible to catch all those dribbles and safely soothe sore gums.
• Chewy the Hippo Teether – textured baby teether, easy to hold by baby and will massage and soothe their sore gums.
• Flexi-Brush Toothbrush – Baby’s Starter Toothbrush to gently massage and clean teething gums and new teeth.

All The Tips, Tools & Products In A Handy Bag!

What's more the Teething Survival Kit also includes 5 Baby Keepsake Cards - to mark those important teething milestones and with extra teething tips and remedies on the back!