Why Use a Teething Ball to Help During Teething?
With teething, the products to avoid matter more than the products to buy, so I'll start with those.
Amber teething necklaces are a strangulation and choking risk and there's no evidence they do anything. Teething gels containing benzocaine or lidocaine are advised against for infants by medicines regulators, benzocaine because of a rare but serious blood disorder it can cause in young children. Homeopathic teething tablets have been recalled after inconsistent levels of belladonna were found in them. None of those belongs near your baby. All three are still widely sold.
What's left is pressure, cold and patience, which is where a teething ball comes in.
What does a teething ball do?
Counter-pressure, which is what relieves a sore gum. It works the same way as rubbing the gum with a clean finger: firm pressure where a tooth is pushing through eases the discomfort. A baby biting on something applies that pressure herself, at the spot that hurts and as hard as she wants, which is more precise than anything you can do for her. Cold adds a mild numbing effect. Between them, pressure and cold are all any teething product does. A ball shape helps because she can grip it from any angle before she's worked out which way up things go, and some part of it can always reach her back gums. That's where the molars come through, at twelve to sixteen months, and nobody warns you about the molars.
| Age | Usually | What helps |
|---|---|---|
| 3-6 months | Drooling, chewing fists | A clean cool cloth to gnaw |
| 6-10 months | First lower incisors | Chilled, not frozen, silicone |
| 8-12 months | Upper incisors | Firm textured toys; pressure on gums |
| 12-18 months | First molars | The sorest stage. Cold food helps |
| Any age | Fever, diarrhoea, rash | Not teething. See a doctor |
Why a silicone one
Because of what it needs to survive: being chewed, dropped, sterilised, and put in a refrigerator daily for months.
Food-grade silicone tolerates heat so it can be properly cleaned, it doesn't splinter or crack the way hard plastic can, and it's soft enough not to bruise a gum while still firm enough to give resistance. Wood is attractive and can split. Hard plastic can crack. Anything liquid-filled can leak.
Look for one-piece construction with no join, no glued parts and nothing detachable. That rules out most of the novelty ones, and it's the rule to stick to.
On teething
When should you offer a teething ball?
From around four to six months, when hands are reliably going to the mouth, and expect it to be good until the second molars are through at around two to three years.
Signs it's teething: drooling with a rash on the chin, chewing everything, sore or swollen gums sometimes with a visible white edge, disturbed sleep for a few days around a tooth, and a mildly raised temperature, meaning under 38°C.
Treat a fever as a fever. Whatever anybody says, teething doesn't cause a fever of 38°C or above, diarrhoea, vomiting, a cough, or a rash anywhere other than the chin and neck from drool. Those are signs of illness. Babies start teething at the same age they start catching things, and I suspect that overlap is where the myth comes from, though I haven't seen it tested.
Keeping teething safe and clean
Six rules, and the first two are the ones that get broken.
- Refrigerate, never freeze. A frozen-solid teether is hard enough to bruise or damage a gum, and that much cold hurts more than it soothes.
- Never attach it to her with a cord, a ribbon or a necklace. If you clip it to clothing, use a purpose-made holder within the length limit set for soother holders and never put it in the cot.
- Check it before every use for splits, tears or anything coming loose, and discard it at the first sign.
- Clean it properly. Wash after every use and sterilise as the manufacturer directs, because anything chewed and left in a warm, humid flat will grow germs.
- Supervise. Not because a well-made one-piece toy will fail, but because this is the age when everything goes in the mouth and she may find something else while you aren't looking.
- Nothing in the cot. Teething toys are for awake time only, and a baby who's uncomfortable at night needs comfort and not an object.
Mentioned above
Teething BallS$12.90Sold outMentioned above
Where a cheaper option is fine: a clean, damp washcloth chilled in the fridge does most of this for free, and plenty of babies prefer it. So does a clean finger, pressed firmly on the gum. For a bad night, infant paracetamol or ibuprofen at the correct dose for age and weight is reasonable. Ask a pharmacist, and don't guess.
On the specifics
At what age can my baby use a teething ball?
From around four to six months, once baby can bring objects to the mouth. Always supervise, and choose a ball sized so it can't be swallowed.
Can I put a teething ball in the freezer?
Fridge yes, freezer no. Chilled silicone soothes hot gums; frozen silicone becomes too hard and can bruise delicate tissue.
How often should I clean a teething ball?
Wash daily with warm soapy water and sterilise every few days, or after any tumble to the floor. Food-grade silicone tolerates sterilising well.
Is silicone safe for teething babies?
Food-grade silicone free from BPA, PVC and phthalates is one of the safest materials for mouthing, and it's soft, non-porous and easy to sterilise.
Does a fever mean my baby is teething?
No. Teething can bring mild fussiness and drooling, but not true fever. If your baby has a fever, check with your paediatrician.
Sources
- US Food and Drug Administration, Safely soothing teething pain: benzocaine and homeopathic teething products
- NHS: Baby teething symptoms
- NHS: What to do if a child is choking
- HealthHub: Ministry of Health Singapore
This guide is general information, written to help you understand a topic and ask better questions. It is not medical advice and does not replace your own doctor, midwife or paediatrician. Anything that worries you about your baby belongs with them.
Read next: When Does Baby Start to Teethe? · Why Use Food-Grade Silicone for Baby's Utensils and Cutlery