Let's talk teeth shall we? One thing you hear about a lot when you have young babies are teeth. The go to question whenever you mention upset is "is she teething?" "Is it her teeth?" "oh those silly toothy-pegs!"... You quickly learn to put every sniffle, every cough, every grumpy day down to those annoying white things popping through your poor childs' gum!
And then, with the questions, come all of the advice, and boy is there a lot of advice surrounding teeth! The thing is though, when you're faced with a screaming, miserable baby, you'll take any advice you can get! Which is why, when a BzzAgent campaign was launched recently in association with Calpol, offering tips to ease teething pain, I jumped at the opportunity to sign up!
My BzzKit arrived yesterday and I was eager to look through it. It contained a large dribble bib (actually a little too large, it swamps my monkey, but is useful all the same, drool city right now!), a chalkboard and chalk to record teething milestones in photos and a leaflet offering some tips to ease pain.
Now, at the time of writing, I currently have two teething children (joyous!) not only is the baby cutting through her first set but the six year old is also transitioning to his adult teeth. It's so much fun in our household right now! The baby seems to be hitting it particularly hard, with all four molars cutting through at the same time and her canines looking ready to pop any day. As is always the case with these things she seems to have had a massive dip in her immune system whilst all of this is going on so we're working really hard on nutrition and rest right now to try and support her and give her some goodness to fight it with. I'm not one for popping pills at the first sign of illness or getting the kids "dosed up" as my mum would put it, opting more for natural remedies and, most importantly, diet to give us what we need to help our bodies, teething is no different to this. We've been making sure our diet contains lots of fruit and vegetables, which thankfully we all love, and we drink plenty of water. I'm also an advocate for breastfeeding and strongly believe, when the mum is able to, it really does help support teething and immune systems in general (don't just take my word for it, check out some of the science around how feeding helps form the jaw in infants!).
I will however give the kids painkillers if all other methods fail and they seem distressed as I do believe that sometimes we just need a break from the pain, to rest and recover. With this in mind, I have no problem endorsing Calpol and the products it produces for children (although I do try to stear clear of their sugar-free items as sweetners really do not agree with our family). Their infant suspension liquid, which contains paracetamol, is generally our go to painkiller when it is required and I find it very effective without causing further issues (although the baby is particularly skilled at spewing it everywhere if she's got herself into too much of a state!) Life is thankfully a lot easier with the boy. He's old enough now to tell me when he's in pain and it's much easier to judge whether he just requires rest or a little extra help from medication.
I'm always keen to look into new ways of relieving teething pain though and I'm interested to hear from those of you that have any tips. A particular favourite of my is breastmilk icepops although it requires me being organised enough to express milk which, given my little one is a bit of a milk monster, isn't that often! Whilst it doesn't have the many benefits of breastmilk, an alternative I've found is frozen greek yoghurt mixed with a bit of fresh fruit. A lovely refreshing treat that's very soothing on the gums. I've been using regular icelolly moulds but I've just invested in some NUK moulds specifically designed for babies which look like they'll give a perfect portion for the little one and a nice mini treat for the bigger one.
Other great tips from Calpol include placing a teething ring in the fridge (not the freezer as this can burn their mouth) and distracting with toys. Both great ideas but I'm sure we can come up with better! What are you thoughts? Do leave your comments below!
*In the interests of full-disclosure please be aware that I was given a kit from Calpol (minus their infant suspension product) via BzzAgent for free in exchange for talking about their products. All views are my own. Calpol infant suspension formula contains paracetamol and you should always read the enclosed leaflet before administering to a child.*
And then, with the questions, come all of the advice, and boy is there a lot of advice surrounding teeth! The thing is though, when you're faced with a screaming, miserable baby, you'll take any advice you can get! Which is why, when a BzzAgent campaign was launched recently in association with Calpol, offering tips to ease teething pain, I jumped at the opportunity to sign up!
My BzzKit arrived yesterday and I was eager to look through it. It contained a large dribble bib (actually a little too large, it swamps my monkey, but is useful all the same, drool city right now!), a chalkboard and chalk to record teething milestones in photos and a leaflet offering some tips to ease pain.
Now, at the time of writing, I currently have two teething children (joyous!) not only is the baby cutting through her first set but the six year old is also transitioning to his adult teeth. It's so much fun in our household right now! The baby seems to be hitting it particularly hard, with all four molars cutting through at the same time and her canines looking ready to pop any day. As is always the case with these things she seems to have had a massive dip in her immune system whilst all of this is going on so we're working really hard on nutrition and rest right now to try and support her and give her some goodness to fight it with. I'm not one for popping pills at the first sign of illness or getting the kids "dosed up" as my mum would put it, opting more for natural remedies and, most importantly, diet to give us what we need to help our bodies, teething is no different to this. We've been making sure our diet contains lots of fruit and vegetables, which thankfully we all love, and we drink plenty of water. I'm also an advocate for breastfeeding and strongly believe, when the mum is able to, it really does help support teething and immune systems in general (don't just take my word for it, check out some of the science around how feeding helps form the jaw in infants!).
I will however give the kids painkillers if all other methods fail and they seem distressed as I do believe that sometimes we just need a break from the pain, to rest and recover. With this in mind, I have no problem endorsing Calpol and the products it produces for children (although I do try to stear clear of their sugar-free items as sweetners really do not agree with our family). Their infant suspension liquid, which contains paracetamol, is generally our go to painkiller when it is required and I find it very effective without causing further issues (although the baby is particularly skilled at spewing it everywhere if she's got herself into too much of a state!) Life is thankfully a lot easier with the boy. He's old enough now to tell me when he's in pain and it's much easier to judge whether he just requires rest or a little extra help from medication.
I'm always keen to look into new ways of relieving teething pain though and I'm interested to hear from those of you that have any tips. A particular favourite of my is breastmilk icepops although it requires me being organised enough to express milk which, given my little one is a bit of a milk monster, isn't that often! Whilst it doesn't have the many benefits of breastmilk, an alternative I've found is frozen greek yoghurt mixed with a bit of fresh fruit. A lovely refreshing treat that's very soothing on the gums. I've been using regular icelolly moulds but I've just invested in some NUK moulds specifically designed for babies which look like they'll give a perfect portion for the little one and a nice mini treat for the bigger one.
Other great tips from Calpol include placing a teething ring in the fridge (not the freezer as this can burn their mouth) and distracting with toys. Both great ideas but I'm sure we can come up with better! What are you thoughts? Do leave your comments below!
*In the interests of full-disclosure please be aware that I was given a kit from Calpol (minus their infant suspension product) via BzzAgent for free in exchange for talking about their products. All views are my own. Calpol infant suspension formula contains paracetamol and you should always read the enclosed leaflet before administering to a child.*
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