How to Know When Your Baby is Teething
Babies can be pretty fussy when they’re teething. The bad news is that they seem to be perpetually teething in the first two years or so. This makes it difficult to tell whether your child has a new tooth coming in or whether something else is wrong. Here are few things to look for to help you figure out if a tooth is getting ready to show itself.
Teething and colds have a lot of the same symptoms, so keep a close eye on the situation. As the teeth are pushing their way up, they can cause pressure on the ear canals and sinuses. This creates the appearance of having a cold. These symptoms can be as mild as a runny nose or as extreme as a full blown ear infection.
Some people aren’t aware that baby teething can lead to ear infections. Sometimes a baby will develop this painful condition because the emerging teeth are placing pressure on the ear canal. Then fluid backs up and gets infected. You’ll need to deal with an ear infection immediately in order to avoid damage to the baby’s hearing.
As well, your baby might experience fever when the teeth are coming in. But keep in mind that normal teething doesn’t cause a high fever. If your baby develops a high fever at any time, don’t ignore it. There could be a chance that either an ear infection or sinus infection has developed. You’ll need to take your baby to its pediatrician to be examined and see if a prescription is in order.
When your little one is teething, there will be several other symptoms you can look for. For example, red cheeks usually accompany this process. You might notice that one cheek is red and the other is normal; chances are the new tooth will emerge on the side that’s red.
Excessive drooling is one more symptom of teething. Of course, babies always drool, but during teething it will increase dramatically. The drooling might be so excessive that you have to change your baby’s outfits all the time due to dampness.
If your baby is constantly crying and showing signs of discomfort, it’s possible that teething is to blame. Excessive crying is one of the hardest teething symptoms to deal with. This is usually accompanied by difficulty sleeping. Either of these situations will be uncomfortable for both you and your baby.
Most people who offer you baby advice will suggest that you give your child some pain reliever to ease the symptoms. However, discuss the situation with your doctor before administering any medications, even over the counter ones.
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