Parenting is a tough job. Caring for a child who is unable to voice out his needs is like solving a puzzle. Like all puzzles go, you look for clues. You can only solve something when you keep a watchful eye on things and when it comes to teething, you can help your child more when you know what your child is dealing with.

Is He or She Teething or Not?

 When the symptoms and signs start to become a problem, the first question you ask is, “What is this?” You wonder what you are dealing with, so that you can provide proper address. You can only help your child, if you know that he is dealing with so in the case of teething, you have to be familiar with the following signs and symptoms: 

Drooling:

One of the simple signs you can look for is the excessive drooling. A baby drools, anyway, so how do would you know that this episode is related to teething? Any excessive episode of drooling that is accompanied by one, more or all of the other symptoms to be mentioned above should indicate it so.

Biting and Gnawing Episodes:

Aligned with the emergence of the teeth from under the bone, there will be an annoying and uncomfortable pressure that your child will experience. This will compel him to put a counter-pressure on the area affected, so he will be seen biting and gnawing. He feels an “itch” that he cannot understand and he knows that something is going on in his gums, since biting will relieve him, there will be much of that.

Red and Swollen Gums:

As the tooth will be pushing onto the tissues, you can expect for the gums to appear red and swollen. Before the tooth is able to break through the gums the bulging on the surface will occur and sometimes the activity under the gums will cause some bruising and it will be cause your child so much pain.

Crankiness and Tantrums:

With all that’s going on with your child that he cannot really fathom, expect him to be fussy. He is uncomfortable and in pain, so he will be cranky and there will be lots of tantrums to get your attention, so be on guard. You can expect for the fussiness to be increased at night because as there is less activity in the night, and with the common day distractions gone, he is now focussed on the pain. This is the same with tooth pain in adults. Perhaps you have noticed that pain episodes are much worst at night than it is in the day.

Change in Eating Habits:

Feeding will be tricky for a child who is already taking in solids. He will not want to eat solids because of the pain, but would love to nurse or bottle-feed because it helps soothe him. It is found that there may be an opposite reaction to this, with some children wanting to eat more solids and refusing to suck.

Fever:

A teething child may exhibit signs of illness or fever throughout the course of the phenomenon, but this may or may not be related to the teething phenomenon and may be brought on by the inflammation that is directly related to teething. Not that a low grade fever may be simply monitored, but if it spikes too highly and lingers for long, then it is best to involve the pediatrician to be able to get an expert to make sure that the fever is truly linked to teething and nothing else more serious. Fever of 101^oF or higher I should be good enough sign to see a doctor.

Diarrhea:

Teething is also found to be linked with many cases of diarrhea in children. Most experts say that this may be due to the excessive drooling of child. Also, a sudden diet alteration connected to teething may be the culprit for this, but do not be quick to dismissing diarrhea just because you think it is a normal teething reaction. Immediately report prolonged cases of diarrhea—especially bood-tinged and green-colored stools.

Rashes and Sores:

Some children develop rashes and sores on the cheeks and around the lips when teething because of the excessive drooling. This is very true for children with very sensitive skin. You may consult your doctor about skin remedies for this because the sores may bring added discomfort for the child.

The Right Age:

Lastly, you might want to look into how old your child is. The first teeth usually emerge at six months, but it can come out as early as three or as late as fourteen months. After observing the things above, you can further confirm your speculation by seeing if your child is of the right age to be teething. There are several teeth (twenty) to emerge and they all erupt at a specific timeline, so knowing that will be important. 

A child may exhibit one, some or all of these symptoms. Teething is part of growth and all parents will deal with a teeth child, whether they like it or not. It is important that you know what you are coming up against before the inevitable comes to surprise you, so you could prepare. Know how to spot teething signs and symptoms, to quickly identify your child’s problem and so offer him the right solution.