Teething does NOT cause pain/fever in babies.....

[dboo]

What do you guys think of this?
My 11 month old gets sick (runny nose/very high temp which doctors can't find a reason for) sometimes. He has 6 teeth and I swear he gets like this 3-4 days before his teeth start coming through. The doctor as well as others have said that teething doesn't cause pain since the tooth doesn't actually come through - the cells die off the gums which may cause some itchiness/discomfort but that's all. So many reputable websites and parenting books I read say the same. I know they have to cover themselves and say something like that so parents don't overlook other possible causes of a fever, but they are pretty definite and some say "Teething never causes a fever" and things.
Soooo, what are your experiences?
My son was a whimpering mess the night before his first teeth came. Could it all be a coincidence, or do you think teething can be painful?

[The Fox]

My son had a 40+ degree temp right before his top molars erupted. The doctors could find no other causes for the temp and he was otherwise well. This has been the case for every tooth he has gotten. The horrible nappies and irritability also come with his teeth

[MamaKoala]

I've never had fever with my 3 kids when teething but I do believe it causes pain. I don't know what everyone is talking about when they say teething poo because I've never experienced any change in the look or smell when teeth come through. So I'm undecided on fever, but I don't believe it's painless.

[Bell & Bug]

I don't believe cutting teeth hurts. I believe moving teeth does in a way.

My wisdom teeth came through pain free, but before they started coming through, my jaw hurt where they were obviously moving and I felt the need to chew on something and when I did, it hurt, but in a good way.

My first daughter hardly had a issue with teething. I'd only know about teeth if I looked. It was only when the first molars started moving that it was ever an issue.

I tend to believe that colds, temperatures etc are coincidental if they occur around the time a tooth cuts.

[FearlessLeader]

well i have watched hundreds (literally- childcare worker for 10 years) of children and babies teethe and this is what i say to the 'experts' who say it's not painful, doesn't cause fevers or nappy rash


:rolleyes: what EVA!

[shockinamillion]

:rolleyes: is my face when I get told that. I have seen mine clawing at their mouths crying in agony from teeth. They got fevers when molars were coming in.

I felt so much pain when my wisdom teeth cut (no issues, dentist said I had room for them), I cannot believe there is no pain.

[Bell & Bug]

I guess people experience different things when cutting teeth?

[myhusbandswife]

I experienced pain when i got my wisdom teeth why wouldnt my baby feel the same kind of thing...

[OurLittleBlessing]

When DD1 was cutting her 2nd lot of molars at 19 months, she repeatedly told me 'my mouth hurts, my mouth hurts' (she was and is an excellent talker). So there you go.

[Linda01]

My sons speechy said it does hurt. My son also gets high fevers and goes off his food and drs can't find any other causes.

[FiveInTheBed]

my three were visually in pain - grabbing at their mouth and whinging/crying. they had slight temperatures but no 'fever'.

..maybe individual babies bodies react differently to teething? ..maybe some immunity systems are fighting an infection or illness from all the 'sticking hands in mouth after crawling on the floor' ??

[LibranTwin]

My DD always had pain with teething. Teething is not fun, I am so glad she is through it now!

And yes my wisdom teeth hurt when they cut too, so it is painful for some!

[WorkingClassMum]

I didn't realise my kids were teething or cutting teeth until I'd notice they suddenly had an extra tooth

BUT my wisdom teeth never hurt until they were taken out - and by golly that was a drama

I think it probably hurts for some and not for others

[trishalishous]

fil is a gp and he agrees that teething DOES hurt and cause fever (DD had a mild fever, and he took one look in her mouth and pointed out a tooth coming through)
she has also had the 'teething poo' and is DEFINITELY in pain/discomfort from her teeth

[Janesmum123]

Every person is different and every baby is different.
As for teething doesn't cause pain I couldn't disagree more! My wisdom teeth hurt like hell. DS screamed of pain when his teeth where coming through, bright red cheeks, flustered look, generally unhappy (and for good reason) however when I measured his temperature it was normal.
My DD on the other hand experience nothing, I didn't even know she was teething till I saw the teeth.

My point is every baby is different and I would never dismiss pain while a baby is teething.

[Fuchsia!]

I personally think it a bit of a coincidence that every time one of my children are teething or about to pop a teeth through that they go crazy. Same symptoms every time.

They also get the loose poo which i was told was a myth as well but it also seems a coincidence that every time my children are teething they get the runs and temps.

Also heard it in a lot of other children as well, so not just my own.

[Merla]

I think teething does hurt and can cause other symptoms.

My DD run's fevers when she teethes, 38 degrees for 3 days before a new tooth, she is irritable, had burning poo's and has heaps of booby. The day after the tooth pops through, fever gone, baby back to normal.

[sahm]

fil is a gp and he agrees that teething DOES hurt and cause fever (DD had a mild fever, and he took one look in her mouth and pointed out a tooth coming through)
she has also had the 'teething poo' and is DEFINITELY in pain/discomfort from her teeth
That's refreshing to hear. I love my GP but if
if tells me again that teething has no symptoms I may turn violent. I agree it's different for each child but I put my faith in this area in the anecdotal evidence of millions of mums!

[Kovi]

I'm a first time mum and DD has just had one of her bottom teeth cut through and the other one about to (I hope/think). I believe the poor thing is in pain as she chews on her finger and sleeping bag and cries her lungs out when she's trying to sleep.:(

[Annabella]

None of my kids have had teething symptoms. I haven't notice d a tooth til its just about to come through and is a big white lump (like the day before it cuts). My wisdom teeth didn't hurt either. I kind of thought it was a it of a myth til I saw my cousin-in-law's son, every time he got a tooth he got a runny nose, bright red rashy cheeks and a temperature, it was definitely not a coincidence.

[Amara]

I just don't understand the experts who say it. Clearly lots of kids do experience pain & high temps from teething. My son got them with about half of his teeth & I'd have to take him out of daycare for a day or two then there would be teeth again. It wasn't like the kind of temp you get with illness that comes on & stays up for days it would spike, so a completely different thing altogether & he'd be otherwise well. With the first few I even took him to the doc who could never find anything wrong with him as his temp would always have dropped by the time I got there.

[Nicky2006]

I agree with whateva lol. My son never had fever, but at each single tooth runny poos and a bottom that was purple red! And if it doesn't hurt I wonder why panadol always helped... I read this a lot too... But then again I was also told by a paed that fever is not a reason to go to the dr...

[jazzybaby]

My DD is now almost 17 months. Her eye teeth are currently coming through now.... you know the ones that every mother swears are the worst by far?? I can confirm that so far, they are!!
Anyways, whenever she got her teeth previously, she has always come down with a cold, an ear infection, fevers (that do come hand in hand with colds anyway), etc. Except, this time she hasnt. She is just teething. Its actually not so bad.
I do have a very VERY good doctor that i see for my little one and she has been in practice treating kids for years. She said to me that when babies do teeth, they are in pain to some degree. Some more so than others. It depends on your babies general pain threshold. She did also say that some babies do tend to come down with a cold, etc because their immunity is down in 'general' due to a muck up in routine from disturbed sleeps, grumpiness, lack of appetite, etc. Some babies are just more suseptable to colds when they are not sleeping and eating as per normal.
It does make sense to me!

[SassyMummy]

I remember getting my wisdom teeth. I was mid-teens (I got them very early) and I was chewing on everything I could with the back of my gums, and it did hurt. Not so much that I'd cry or anything, but I mean, I wasn't a baby/toddler, so I could suck up a lot of things they don't seem to be able to anyway.

I know DD didn't experience weird poo or any fever... but she didn't even seem to show any signs of pain or anything, so I'd say she was just lucky.

I absolutely believe that teething causes pain. Not sure about weird poos or fever, but anecdotal evidence seems to suggest it certainly does...

[delirium]

I can't understand how any so called professional would say kids don't have pain and fever from erupting teeth. At 2 and under they don't understand faking it, and they certainly can't change the temperature they are.

Both my kids had temps, my DS got massive EI's cutting his 2 y.o molars. They went thru heaps of pain, cried and gnawed on their hands.

I think your GP has been smoking the hooch :laughing::p

[Tls5431]

DD always ended up with an ear infection everytime she cut teeth.

[TheSudgestionator]

Do you have your wisdom teeth? (as in did they come through or did you get them removed?)

Dentis said I had plenty of room in my mouth for them and they were coming up straight so he wouldnt rememve them.

I was a whimpering mess till they finally came up. While i didnt get a fever I certinally was in alot of pain, and i just remind myself of this everytime DD's 'teething'.

[dboo]

Nobody in my family has had their wisdom teeth and I have never even had a toothache so can't imagine the pain.
It's not only my doctor who says it doesn't cause pain - I read it in books, online, hear it from other people whose doctors have said the same (in Aus)...I am living overseas and nobody here had ever even heard of teething causing pain and they believe gums get itchy. Doctor here looked at me like I was from outer space :confused:.
I really don't get it either with all the anecdotal evidence....

[billy80]

HAHAHAHAHAHA I can only laugh at this. Experts who say there is no connection to teething and pain, high temps and other symptoms. My question is where do you think this came from. No one one day woke up and said I am going to say teething hurts even though it does not. Or babies will get sick and nappy rash even though they will not.

Over years patterns emerged and if 9 out of 10 babies are suffering very similar symptoms at the time of teething I would have though scientists of all people would work on the theory that majority rules. If you do an experiment 10 times and get the same result 9 times the conclusion seems pretty obvious to me.

All babies get it at a varying level of course, but ladies, we all know our babies. We know when they are in pain and not feeling well. We know when their personality changes and we also see physically the change in the gums and face. So experts can stick it as far as I am concerned. The only EXPERT in your babies life is their Mum and DAD.

[BigRedV]

Babies put everything in their mouth, especially when teething, and pick up germs this way.

[Benji]

My DS has always been a real trooper when it comes to pain and discomfort, so I had no idea that any teeth were coming apart from the weird poos! Like a PP mentioned - massive coincidence that he had the runs every time a tooth came!

[SWandSH]

My GP says that anyone who says teething causes nothing but teeth hasn't had kids!!!

[share a book]

well i have watched hundreds (literally- childcare worker for 10 years) of children and babies teethe and this is what i say to the 'experts' who say it's not painful, doesn't cause fevers or nappy rash


:rolleyes: what EVA!

Me too! Although my own child was never botheted by teething, I wom't say it doesn't cause problems. Some bubs show no sign of teething while others get the runny poo, rash on the face, high temp, disrupted sleeping patterns, increased nappy rash from more acidic wee, the lot. Some only show one of thosr signs. so yeah my child showed none of it but it's a bit narrow minded to say none of them do based on ours. None of us 3 had a problem either.

[BlackEyedPea]

On a side note - I don't believe getting adult wisdom teeth should be compared to baby teething... wisdom teeth are enormous and different to all the other teeth in our mouths...

My bub definitely gets irritable and goes off his food, and also gets fever when he is otherwise well. He is normally a happy, content bub and very good eater so when things change I check his gums and sure enough there's a new tooth breaking through....

A couple of weeks ago he woke with a high fever and proceeded to vomit all through his bed (from the fever) - I had to throw him in a cool bath it was that high... his first 2 molars cut through the gums just after this, and since then he has been a bit all over the pace with his day naps and eating, plus a bit irritable and naughty.

Ow, and he always gets very snotty too when teething - as for the runny poo, well he often does horrid poos so there's no real pattern there, apart from the fact he always does them after/during a milk bottle, so yeah I'm not sure cows milk agrees with him but that's another issue.

[sjay]

DS gets severe bronchiolitis before teeth come in, as soon as they're through he's better.
His cousin got tonsillitis with every tooth she got through!

[confusd]

DD would get a high temp(39-40) vomiting and diarrhea for a day then there would be a tooth!!. Happened with every single tooth she got. She would have red cheeks for a few days before as well.

[Boobycino]

Same as 'they' used to say circumcision doesn't hurt hey?

Sounds like some doctors haven't actually had a baby teeth at home to know that it certainly does hurt! (some babies it doesn't - but definitely jasper! The nights I'd think I'd totally failed as a parent, jasper is insane etc get up there'd be a new tooth - oooohhh that makes more sense ;) )

[ICanDream]

My kids never got temps but loads of snot and even the green stuff which always threw me off the teeth track. There would also be the feral nappies and odd bouts of random screaming. DD is currently got green snot and sure enough 2yo molar poking through. It has to hurt IMO, just getting my teeth cleaned causes them to ache (please don't tell me what a sook I am, I know :))

[FearlessLeader]

The nights I'd think I'd totally failed as a parent, jasper is insane etc get up there'd be a new tooth - oooohhh that makes more sense ;) )

OMG YES! There's me grumbling and complaining 'i don't know *what* your problem is! There's nothing wrong! Go to sleeeep!' and of course, the next morning a tooth has appeared along with an invisible 'world's worst mother' trophy

[Jess1889]

My wisdom teeth caused me agony for years coming up and going away again every few months until they finally hosted through all the way and found space. Why wouldn't a baby be in pain when an adult is in pain from the same thing. Some drs need their heads checked.

Sent from my GT-I9100 using BubHub

[Kimberleygal1]

I can't count how many times when taking my ds into ED that the first thing the dr asks is "is he teething". It's the teeth moving that hurts and lots of bubs teeth come up, then down repetitively for months before the tooth comes through. My ds1 had a terrible time teething, he would always have high temp, sore throat and sore ears and the fact most bubs chomp on anything they can get their hands on in the area that is causing them pain is an indication "teething hurts".

I had a paediatrician tell me once that reflux doesn't cause pain. I asked him if he is in pain when he gets heartburn! :yes: Hmmmm have to wonder sometimes

[Alimia]

I do agree teething must be painful for our little ones but teeth only generally move in one direction so therefore don't move up and down in the gums. It's the constant chewing on toys that irritate the gums. My ds teethed for months, the only reason I knew was because he was dribbling heaps. We were lucky to not have too much trouble with them.

[SCORPIOGEMINI]

I see what your saying & i have to agree some doctors just shouldnt be doctors, they can somtimes give out the most stupid answers.

Took me many years to finally find a fantastic, caring doctor.

[TripleTime]

You bet it does.

Push something hard through your gum & see if it hurts.

[Michelle_N]

My 6 1/2 yo DS1 is losing his baby teeth and complains now that his mouth hurts where the adult teeth are coming through. So if it hurts him now at 6 years old why would it hurt when they are a baby too?

[Lil Bugs Mummy]

My son had a 40+ degree temp right before his top molars erupted. The doctors could find no other causes for the temp and he was otherwise well. This has been the case for every tooth he has gotten. The horrible nappies and irritability also come with his teeth

This is exactly what happened to my DD every child reactes differently to teeth i from experience agree that is can cause runny nose and increased temperature thats nice for people whose children don't experience but it certainly doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

[Myztik]

I've had varied symptoms from my three boys when it comes to teeth so nothing surprises me anymore. As for teething poo apparently their saliva becomes more acidic whilst teething and due to swallowing it you get the horrid poo and rash.

[SuperGranny]

i think doctors and "professionals," like to cover their butts, so they dont want to put everything down to teething, and have people overlook something that may be serious. but from my expierence, every baby seems to have some sort of change, some level of discomfort, with every movement of the teeth. My four children all went through the teething times at different ages, and with different effects. Doctors and health nurses, and authors, all have their own opinions, but the facts speak for themselves. Marie.