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Home › Articles › Dental Health › Teething Troubles

Teething Troubles

Taking the Bite out of Teething Pain

By Carma Haley Shoemaker

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Drooling, crying, screaming and gnawing on anything within reach -- thus is the life of a teething baby. To the parents of a teething child, life can become a series of twists and turns in attempts to soothe a baby and ease the pain. Be prepared. This part of child-rearing really bites!

There is an old wives' tale that says, "A baby's intelligence can be determined by how early he/she begins to cut teeth; the earlier the teething, the smarter the baby." However, as there is no truth to this tale, the process of teething can begin as early as 3 months and continue through the child's third birthday. But by no means should parents base their interpretation of the child's intellect on when she cut her first tooth.

crying baby Typically, a child's first tooth will begin to show around the age of 5 to 6 months, but there is no cause for concern if a child does not begin to teethe until the age of one year. Each child is different. Just as children will grow and develop at different rates, they may also teethe at a rate all their own.

"When my daughter started teething early -- around 3 c months -- the pediatrician said it wasn't possible," says Shirley Jump, a writer from Fort Wayne, Ind. "I informed him that it was and when she got a tooth a couple weeks later, he saw I was right."

Generally, the teething process follows a pattern. Although the time and age at which a tooth may appear are different, the order in which they appear usually is standard. The first teeth to appear are the bottom front teeth, called the central incisors. Approximately four to eight weeks later, the four upper front teeth -- which are also known as central and lateral incisors -- begin to make their way through the gum to the surface. Usually within one month to six weeks, evidence of the lower lateral incisors -- the teeth on either side of the lower central incisors -- become apparent. The next teeth to surface are the first molars, located on the bottom jaw. Molars are the teeth that are used to grind food. Finally, the eyeteeth, which are the pointy teeth in the upper jaw, make their way through to complete the set of 20 primary teeth. Most children will have all 20 primary teeth by the age of 30 to 36 months, or around 3 years of age. If a child is substantially behind in the number of teeth that have surfaced, a family physician or dentist may offer a simple explanation as the cause.


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