Herbal Remedies for Teething Baby

The Encyclopedia for Natural Healing for Children and Infants,by Mary Bove ND
(my comments in color)

• Give herbs to reduce discomfort, sooth inflamation, and support the immune system. This helps to avoid secondary infection and fever. Use calendula flowers, catnip, echinacea, elder flowers, meadowsweet, lemon balm, or usnea. Mix these with herbs such as chamomile flowers, linden flowers, willowbark, oe wintergreen leaves to calm and decrease pain. These herbs can be used as teas, popsicles, glycerites or tinctures. Chamomile, Lemon Balm and Catnip would be my first picks. You could also add a little lavendar in the mix. Freezing tea in icecube trays or saturating a washcloth in an herbal blend and freezing it is a great way to to apply the herbs ot the gums. The cold is also benficial as an anti inflammatory and pain reliever. You can also use a dropper or for bigger kids let it cool and give them a sippy cup.
• Herbal chewing sticks are long thin pieces of licorice root or marshmellow root that can be given to the baby to chew on. The sweet taste of both herbs is very pleasant.
• Try teething tablets. Several combinations of homepathic remedies for teething are available in healthfood stores. (This was a popular alternative to many of my customers when I had the health food club. Hyland brand was commonly ordered.)
• Make an herbal gum rub. Rub the gums with a dab of honey combined with a dab of essential oil of clove or wintergreen. This reduces pain and swelling. 2-3x a day. (I am a HUGE fan of Clove oil for the teeth/gum issues. But i am very picky about which oil I use, all are not equal when it comes to medicianl use. I am a fan of YOUNG LIVING OILS. Clove can be "HOT" so you have to dilute it for the kids. I have always used olive oil (or other good oil), but this honey idea is worth trying! **
• I have also used Bach's Recue Remedy. You can rub it right on the gums, I have also dropped it on the nipple at feeding time.
  
  In the book Natural Healing for Babies and Children by Aviva Jill Romm here are few suggestions:

• Velarian Tincture (You can buy it at the healthfood store). Althugh it is strong smelling, she says it actually has a pleasant taste. 5- 10 drops rub right on the gums. She says it's one of her favorite teething remedies.
• Chickweed and Burdock Root (tea or tincture)are reliable in reducing gum inflamation. Rub directly on the gum.
• In a pinch, you can rub brandy on the gums.

** There are those in the main stream who recommend "no honey for the first year" for fear of botulism. Personally, I go light on the honey generally speaking for the infants, but have no concern about it in baked foods, because it is a mute point. Same is true in most medicine. For instance when honey is paired with clove oil, the clove oil's properties are powerfully antimicrobial, antifungal, antiseptic, antiviral (to name a few). I think it would cancel out anything that may possibly reside in the honey. The reason why it is a problem in infants (and not any older) is because it may be such a mild trace of these elements and babies are generally more susceptible as they are working out digestion issues. However, I also think it has A LOT to do with the health of the baby. For instance; I believe that nursing full term babies (from healthy moms) are more protected FROM ALL MANOR OF THINGS, where as formula babies would be at higher risk to uncooked honey when not mixed with other medicinal compounds. That is my 2 cents about it. However, I thought I should mention it because everyone should be aware and make informed choices.

This Post was shared at The Wood Wife's Journal