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Expert Q&A

	By iParenting Staff iParenting Staff Experts

My 5-month-old son is cutting teeth. He already has his bottom two. What can I do to help him with his pain? I have many teething rings and Baby Orajel.

Fortunately, teething doesn't last forever (although sometimes it seems like it). Unfortunately, treatment of teething pain is an inexact science. Using local anesthetics like Orajel may help. Allowing the infant to chew on something firm (but not rock-hard) like a teething ring may offer some relief. Some teething rings have water inside which can be frozen. One thing that helped our children was a washcloth soaked in water, then frozen. They chewed on that and seemed to find some relief. Over-the-counter pain relievers may also help some. I do not advise strong pain relievers (such as codeine) or alcohol (rubbing whisky on the gums), although many "home remedies" recommend this. I once had a mother call me to ask if we could pull all her child's baby teeth before they came out so she could avoid teething pain. (We said no.) In any case, trial and error seem to be the way to go here; be inventive, but be safe!

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