The most effective ways to soothe a teething baby are simple: gentle pressure on the gums, chilled (not frozen) objects to chew on, and keeping drool-irritated skin clean and dry. Most babies start teething around 6 months, and while it can make them fussy, teething causes less pain than many parents expect. The discomfort typically isn’t enough to cause prolonged crying or disrupt sleep significantly.
What Teething Actually Feels Like for Your Baby
Teething gets blamed for a lot, but the proven symptoms are fairly limited: increased drooling, a facial rash from that drool, and a stronger urge to chew on things. Your baby will likely seem a little more irritable than usual, but the discomfort is mild. It’s more of a nagging pressure than sharp pain.
Teething does not cause fever, diarrhea, diaper rash, or a runny nose. It might nudge your baby’s temperature slightly above the normal 98.6°F, but it won’t reach 100.4°F, which is the medical definition of a fever. If your baby hits that number or higher, something else is going on and it shouldn’t be written off as teething. The same goes for excessive crying or sudden changes in eating and sleeping. Those warrant a closer look.
When to Expect Each Tooth
The lower front teeth (central incisors) usually arrive first, between 6 and 10 months. The upper front teeth follow at 8 to 12 months. From there, according to the American Dental Association’s eruption chart, the timeline looks like this:
- Lateral incisors (upper): 9 to 13 months
- Lateral incisors (lower): 10 to 16 months
- First molars: 13 to 19 months
- Canines: 16 to 23 months
- Second molars: 23 to 33 months
That’s a wide range, so don’t worry if your baby is a few months ahead or behind. The molars tend to cause more fussiness than the front teeth because they’re larger and flatter, putting more pressure on the gums as they push through.
Pressure and Cold: The Two Best Remedies
Rubbing your baby’s gums with a clean finger or a piece of wet gauze for about two minutes can relieve discomfort noticeably. The counter-pressure works against the pushing sensation from the emerging tooth. You can do this as often as your baby seems to need it, and it’s one of the fastest ways to calm a fussy teether, especially before sleep.
Cold also helps by gently numbing the area. Chill a teething ring, a pacifier, or a damp washcloth in the refrigerator and let your baby gnaw on it. The key word is “chill,” not “freeze.” Frozen objects can cause frostbite on delicate gum tissue, so skip the freezer, ice cubes, and frozen popsicles. A refrigerator temperature of around 35 to 40°F is enough to provide relief without any risk.
For babies older than 12 months who are eating solid foods, you can place chilled soft fruit like banana slices or berries into a mesh or silicone feeder. The mesh keeps choking-sized pieces contained while letting your baby mash the cold fruit against their gums. Avoid hard foods that could break off into chunks. For babies under 12 months who are already eating solids, a large chilled celery stalk (too firm to bite through but satisfying to gnaw) can serve a similar purpose, though you should always stay within arm’s reach.
Managing Drool Rash
All that extra saliva can irritate the skin around your baby’s mouth, chin, neck folds, and chest. The rash looks red and slightly bumpy, and it can make an already uncomfortable baby even crankier. Prevention is straightforward: keep a soft, clean cloth nearby and gently blot drool away throughout the day, especially after feedings and naps. Check the neck folds where saliva pools. A bib helps keep things dry, but swap it out as soon as it gets damp.
If a rash has already developed, wash the area with warm water twice a day (no soap needed) and pat it completely dry with a soft cloth. Then apply a thin layer of petroleum jelly or a healing ointment to create a moisture barrier. Don’t use scented lotions, medicated soaps, or essential oils on the irritated skin. Stick to fragrance-free products for laundry, bath time, and anything that touches your baby’s face.
Helping a Teething Baby Sleep
Most teething discomfort isn’t intense enough to wake a baby repeatedly, but some nights are harder than others, particularly when molars are coming in. A gum massage with your finger right before putting your baby down can ease the pressure enough to help them drift off. You can also offer a chilled washcloth to chew on during the bedtime routine, then remove it before your baby falls asleep.
Try to stick to your normal sleep routine rather than introducing new habits you’ll need to undo later. If your baby wakes, a brief gum rub and some quiet comfort is usually enough. Teething discomfort from a single tooth typically lasts only a few days, so any sleep disruption is short-lived.
When Over-the-Counter Pain Relief Makes Sense
For nights or days when your baby is clearly uncomfortable despite the non-medical strategies, infant acetaminophen is an option for babies 3 months and older, and infant ibuprofen works for babies 6 months and older. Both are dosed by weight, not age, so check your baby’s current weight against the dosing chart on the package. Acetaminophen can be given every 4 to 6 hours; ibuprofen every 6 to 8 hours.
These are best reserved for occasional tough stretches rather than daily use. If you find yourself reaching for pain relievers regularly for more than a few days, the discomfort your baby is experiencing likely has a cause beyond teething.
Products to Avoid
Some of the most widely marketed teething products are the ones you should skip entirely.
Numbing gels and liquids. The FDA has warned against using any teething product containing benzocaine or lidocaine on infants. Benzocaine can cause a potentially fatal condition where red blood cells lose their ability to carry oxygen effectively. Lidocaine, even in prescription form, can cause seizures, serious brain injury, and heart problems in young children if too much is applied or accidentally swallowed. These products also wash off the gums quickly with saliva, providing almost no lasting benefit.
Amber teething necklaces and bead jewelry. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends against infants wearing any jewelry. Amber necklaces pose a strangulation risk, especially during naps or unsupervised time, and the beads are a choking hazard if the string breaks. The FDA issued a formal warning in 2018 after receiving reports of children choking on broken beads and an 18-month-old who was strangled by an amber necklace during a nap. There is no scientific evidence that amber releases any pain-relieving substance through skin contact.
Homeopathic teething tablets. These products have been linked to adverse events in children and offer no proven benefit. The FDA has also issued warnings about inconsistent ingredient levels in some brands.
A Simple Teething Toolkit
You don’t need much. A few items kept within reach will cover most teething episodes:
- Two or three teething rings: Rotate them between the refrigerator and use so one is always chilled.
- Clean washcloths: Dampen, chill, and offer for chewing. They also double as drool cloths.
- Petroleum jelly or healing ointment: For protecting and treating drool rash.
- Soft bibs: Keep several clean ones ready for quick swaps.
- Mesh feeder (for babies eating solids): Fill with chilled fruit for soothing and snacking at the same time.
- Weight-appropriate pain reliever: For the occasional rough night, dosed carefully by weight.
Teething is a stretch of low-grade discomfort, not a medical crisis. The simplest tools, a clean finger, a cold washcloth, and a little extra patience, are consistently the most effective ones.