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Home › Articles › Behavior › Why Do Babies Bite?

Why Do Babies Bite?

When Teething Goes Too Far

By Shannon McKelden

Pages:  1  2  3  

Babies explore much of their world with their mouths. Tasting, testing. What's hard? What's soft? Does it taste good? Then, of course, comes teething time, during which it seems like your baby is biting anything and everything within her reach.

But what happens when biting goes a step too far? What do you do when you find yourself – or others – on the receiving end of a few too many sharp nips?

Why Do Babies Bite?
While learning by putting things in their mouths starts very early in life, actual biting doesn't generally take place until about 6 months of age.

Dr. Ari Brown, a pediatrician in Austin, Texas, mother of two and co-author of Baby 411: Clear Answers and Smart Advice for Your Baby's First Year (Windsor Peak, 2006), says babies start to bite when they grow teeth. "At first it is novel to bite to see how those teeth work," she says. "It can also be a strategy to soothe those pounding gums by gnawing on something."

But what happens when the biting becomes inappropriate? "Some babies, when being held, will bite Mom's shoulder when extremely excited," says Dorene Page, a mom and daycare owner from Martinsville, Ind. "Sometimes it can be teething, but not often, I've found."

In Page's experience, biting seems to be a stress reliever for an over-stimulated infant or because they can't do the things they want because they are physically unable to, are tired or even sick. Page says biting also may occur because the child is mad or frustrated.

Sue Carney, a mother of 16-month-old twins from Gilbertsville, Pa., had a biting problem with her daughter, Megan, when she was about 10 months old. "I think it was just an extension of the normal mouthing that babies do ... wanting to put everything in their mouths to check it out," she says. "It also seemed to get worse when she was tired or out of her usual routine, like when we went on vacation."


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