Both babies and parents can find teething challenging. As your little one’s first teeth emerge, they may experience discomfort and irritability. Providing the right teething food for babies can help alleviate their pain and make the process more manageable.
Here, I’ll explore a variety of safe and nutritious teething foods for babies. From chilled fruits and vegetables to soothing purees, I’ll cover everything you need to know about feeding your teething baby. So, if you’re looking for ways to soothe your little one’s sore gums and introduce them to new flavors, keep reading for all the essential tips and recipes.
When Will Your Baby Start Getting Their Teeth?
It varies greatly when babies begin to develop teeth; there is no single “normal” age at which the first tooth appears. Some kids are born with teeth, while others do not see a single tooth until they turn one.
However, many youngsters develop their first teeth between six and 10 months. Typically, the lower central incisors (the two front teeth on the bottom) are the first to emerge (break through the gums). By age three, most children will have all their primary teeth.
How Soon Can A Baby Start Teething?
A newborn can start teething at any time. A baby’s first tooth might erupt before birth (natal tooth), within the first 30 days of life (neonatal tooth), or at any time afterward.
Teething before six months is usually not a cause for concern. However, when a baby’s teeth appear substantially sooner than six months, the teeth and roots may be immature. Teeth that erupt early may have enamel abnormalities, making them more prone to cavities. (For additional information on other issues that can occur when teeth emerge prematurely, visit our article on natal and neonatal teeth.)
If your infant begins teething particularly early, or you have any worries about your baby’s teeth as they emerge, you should consult a pediatric dentist. Your child’s dentist may teach you how to care for their teeth properly and advise whether your infant would benefit from fluoride treatments to build any weak dental enamel.
What Are Signs of Teething?
Teething may be experienced differently by each youngster. There are numerous symptoms your child may experience while teething. The most common signs of teething include:
Irritability and crying
The most common teething symptom is a marked shift in mood. Because the erupting tooth irritates the gum, your youngster may become irritable, fussy, and cranky due to the discomfort.
Drooling more than usual
Excessive drooling is persistent and can start early in the teething period. This may produce a rash on a child’s face, so consult your child’s pediatrician about the best method to aid if the rash appears.
Excessive biting and chewing
Biting and chewing may relieve your child’s dental pain or discomfort caused by an erupting tooth.
Changes in sleeping and eating habits
Teething discomfort, such as hurting teeth or sore gums, may lead your child to change their sleeping and feeding habits. Feeding may irritate sore gums, and dental pain might interrupt sleep.
Ear pulling/Cheek rubbing
During the teething period, your child may pull on their ear or rub the cheek on the side of their face where the tooth is coming in. Your child may feel tenderness or pain in the cheek or ear as a result of nerve connections.
There may be additional symptoms, such as a low-grade fever, for your child.Your child’s pediatrician and pediatric dentist will advise you on the best treatments for your child’s teething issues.
What is the teething food for babies?
Teething is a pain, literally! Teething pain can make your infant uncomfortable and even unpleasant, so it’s normal for parents to try a variety of toys and cures to alleviate the pain. One of the most effective ways to relieve teething discomfort is to give your infant foods that help soothe swollen gums. If you want to discover what teething foods for babies are ideal for teething babies, explore the following options.
Cold Foods
Chilly food is highly calming to teething babies since the freezing temperature is somewhat numbing and can also help minimize gum irritation. This makes a range of cold foods excellent for your infant as their teething pain worsens. Chilled meals from the fridge, such as chilled yogurt, hummus, and soups, can help relieve teething pain. Avoid anything containing citrus fruit, acidic, spicy, or salty, as they can irritate the gums and worsen discomfort.
Mushy Foods
Mushy meals can be an excellent alternative for teething babies since the mushy texture may comfort red and painful gums, and the fact that they don’t need to be chewed allows your baby’s sensitive teeth and gums to rest. The most common mushy foods for teething are vegetable or fruit purees, soups, mashed bananas, mashed avocado, and anything else with a similar mushy texture. It is advisable to avoid serving these items hot or even warm if possible, as most teething babies prefer colder foods to relieve pain. Ideally, refrigerate these mushy foods for at least an hour before feeding them to your baby.
Hard Foods
Hard foods are great for certain forms of teething pain, as some newborns prefer to apply pressure to their sensitive gums to alleviate pain. Some parents feed their children carrot or cucumber sticks, but be careful because these can break off and pose a major choking hazard. Teething cookies dissolve in the mouth, therefore you should look for baby-safe options. You should also search for a brand that does not utilize a lot of additional salt or spices, as these can irritate your gums.
Frozen Foods
Frozen foods combine the soothing pressure of hard foods with the numbing effect of cold foods; frozen foods are much more relaxing since they increase cold numbs gum pain more than refrigerator food. In fact, many teething babies prefer frozen foods since they combine the two therapies. The finest frozen foods are frozen fruits like frozen bananas or blueberries, but you can use any of your baby’s favorite frozen fruits instead. Just make sure to avoid citrus fruits since they may cause extra irritation and may even sting in already sensitive gums.
What Foods Should You Avoid When Teething?
You should avoid raw carrots and most hard foods. The reason for this is that they can break off in a baby’s mouth and cause choking. Teething biscuits are an exception. To prevent choking, they dissolve into soft pieces after a baby chews them, making them hard to chew. The following recipe can be used instead of store-bought biscuits, which may be higher in sugar or additives:
- Two cups of oat flour, one mashed banana, and two tablespoons of coconut oil are combined.
- Bake at 350°F for 10 minutes per side or until firm, but not browned, after forming the dough into finger shapes.
- Before serving, let the food cool completely.
Recipe Of Teething Food For Babies
Avocado and Spinach Smoothie
One of the best natural teething foods for babies is this recipe.
What you will need
- Banana 1
- baby leaf spinach 1 Cup
- Avocado½
- Medjool Dates pitted -1-2
- Lime Juice 1/2
- Milk of your choice 1 + 1/4 Cups
- Natural Yogurt 3 Tablespoons
- Ground Almond optional 1 Tablespoon
How To Make?
- In a blender, combine all the ingredients and pulse until completely smooth, about 1 minute. To make sure the medjool date is thoroughly mixed, you might need to add a few more seconds.
- Pour, then savor!
Banana and Turmeric Lassi
This recipe is one of the most effective natural teething food for babies. Prepare a batch and freeze in little ice pop moulds. The cooling relieves painful gums, and turmeric’s anti-inflammatory effects assist a little.
What you will need
- Banana1 Large
- Yogurt Of Your Choice250 Ml
- Turmeric½ Teaspoon
- Milk Of Your Choice125 Ml
- Vanilla Extract1 Teaspoon
- Ice Cubes4
- Sprinkle Of Nutmeg To Serve
How To Make?
- In a blender, combine all the ingredients and process until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the contents into a sippy or baby cup, add a straw, and you’re done!
- To make teething pops, pour liquid into ice pop molds and freeze until solid.
Peanut Butter & Sweet Potato Chocolate Mousse
One of my favorite all-natural teething food for babies because it’s so full of deliciousness and healthy fats. Freeze the mousse into small pops; these are an ideal gum-cooling treatment for young children going through teething.
What you will need?
- peanut butter120 g
- cooked sweet potato300 g
- medjool dates 4
- full fat coconut milk 400ml
- cacao powder3 tablespoons
- vanilla extra 1 teaspoon
- To serve mousse bowls
- Banana ¼
- Ground peanuts
- Desiccated coconut
- Sprinkle of cacao powder
How To Make?
- Put the peanut butter and sweet potato in a blender.
- Once the medjool dates have been taken out of the boiling water, combine them with the cacao powder, coconut milk, and vanilla essence in a blender.
- Blend for five to seven minutes, or until the mixture becomes light and airy.
- Transfer to several small bowls and chill for about two hours to let the flavors meld. (Alternatively, if you want to make ice pops, pour into molds and freeze until solid, around 4 hours).
- When ready to serve, finely chop some almonds and coconut, add a chopped banana, and then pour in a small amount of additional cacao powder.
Healthy Popsicles for Baby led Weaning
This recipe works incredibly well for babies going through teething and will quickly soothe their gums! It is a great teething food for babies.
What you will need?
- Fresh Strawberries 200 G
- Fresh Raspberries 125 G
- Frozen Summer Berries 100 G
- Lemon Juice 1/2
- Vanilla Extract 1 Tsp
- Whole Milk 250 Ml
- Â Greek Yogurt 1/2 Cup
- Banana 1
How To Make?
- Hull the strawberries and put them in a skillet with the raspberries and frozen summer berries. Pour in the lemon juice and squeeze in the vanilla.
- Heat it slowly; do not allow it to boil. This is to ensure that every vitamin is fully conserved! Once the frozen fruit has become loose, take it from the heat and mash it gently with a fork until you can still see some of the individual berries. Switch off the heat source and let it to cool down.
- Process the banana, yogurt, and milk together until smooth.
- Spoon a tiny quantity of the milk mixture into an ice pop mold and cover with a spoonful of the fruit mixture.
- Freeze for at least four hours, or until fully set.
Mango and Passionfruit Cooling Ice Pops
Easy to make, these mango and passion fruit ice pops are naturally sweetened with mango juice and passion fruit juice. Popsicles are an excellent natural teething foodfor babies and a great way to hide fresh fruit and vegetables from picky eaters.
What you will need?
Ripe Mango 1
Passionfruit Flesh 2
Greek Yogurt 400 Ml
Mint leaves 20
Turmeric Powder 2 Teaspoon
How To Make?
- In blender, combine together the mango, passionfruit, 300ml Greek yogurt, and turmeric powder. Blend till creamy and smooth.
- Fill the ice pop molds only 3/4 of the way after dividing the mixture into them.
- With the remaining Greek yogurt, mix very hard until it starts to stream. After filling the ice pop molds, use the back of a spoon to smooth down the edges.
- Mint leaves should be finely sliced and sprinkled on the ends. After adding the pop sticks and re-entering the mixture with the spoon, freeze for two to three hours.
- Enjoy cold on a hot day!
Roasted Butternut Squash with Cardamon Coconut Soup
This soup is simple to make, and the combination of flavors is exceptionally calming. It is an excellent natural teething food for babies and a great way to hide fresh fruit and vegetables from picky eaters.
What will you need?
- Butternut Squash 1
- Red Onions 3
- Whole Bulb Garlic 3about 10 Cloves
- Full Fat Coconut Milk 1 Tin
- Homemade Vegetable Stock 1 Litre
- Dried Cumin ¼ Teaspoon
- Dried Tumeric 1 Teaspoon
- Smoked Paprika 1 Teaspoon
- Cardamon Pods 8
- Sprig Fresh Rosemary 1
- Greek Yogurt ¼ Cup
How To Make?
- Set oven temperature to 180ºC.
- Using a regular potato peeler, peel the butternut squash and then cut it in half to remove the seeds. Chop the pieces into roughly equal pieces and arrange them on a baking tray.
- Add the garlic and then the quartered and skinned onions. Since the skins provide flavor and prevent drying out, I leave them on when roasting.
- After drizzling the vegetables with olive oil, roast them for approximately half an hour, or until the butternut squash becomes tender enough to cut with a knife.
- After the vegetables are cooked, take the garlic out of its skin and put everything in a big pot, leaving the skin on.
- Stir in the yogurt and add the remaining ingredients. Heat the mixture slowly until it becomes very hot.
- Blend everything until it’s smooth and lump-free using a stick blender. Recall that you want a consistency that can be sucked with a straw. Add more water as needed, 1/4 cup at a time.
- Add the Greek yogurt and stir until well combined.
- Serve in a sippy cup or on brown toast.
Butternut Squash and Goats Cheese Pancakes
Butternut squash is one of the most nutritious vegetables available and tastes delicious.Fiber and vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants are abundant in it, and if that wasn’t enough, it has a satisfying taste.It is a great teething food for babies.
What will you need?
- Plain Flour or Buckwheat flour 1 cup
- Baking Powder 2 tsp
- Milk or soy/almond milk 1 cup
- Â egg 1
- Melted Unsalted Butter 2 tbsp
- Roasted Butternut Squash ½
- Goats Cheese 3 tbsp
- Â Sprig Fresh Rosemary 1
How To Make?
- Fill a bowl with the sieved flour of your choice and baking powder.
- In a bowl, mix the milk, egg, and melted unsalted butter. Alternatively, blend your preferred milk with melted coconut butter if you exclude dairy and eggs.
- Create a well in the flour mixture and gradually whisk in the liquid mixture until fully incorporated. Put aside.
- Stir in the crumbled goat’s cheese, one cup of puréed butternut squash, and the rosemary.
- A big frying pan should be heated to medium heat. We want to melt roughly 1 teaspoon of unsalted butter or olive oil for every batch of pancakes.
- Transfer two to three teaspoons of batter into the pan. Cook for one to two minutes, or until bubbles start to form. Turn and finish cooking the other side.
- Serve hot, but it’s also good cold.
How Long Does Teething Pain Last For?
Babies will feel teething pain from when their new tooth emerges until a few days later when it cuts through their gum.
The pain associated with a new tooth erupting typically lasts around a week per tooth. While a week may not seem like a long time, it can be extremely long for your infant if they receive numerous new teeth at once.
What Do Gums Look Like When Teething?
When babies are teething, their gums may become puffy, red, or protruding. They may also experience flushed cheeks or a facial rash due to the irritation. Examining the gums of a new tooth might reveal when it is about to emerge.
After washing your hands, carefully touch your baby’s gums to see if you can feel any teeth forming underneath. If you see a blister, don’t touch it. Blisters are ordinary and will fade away without treatment. A new tooth behind the gums is pink and protruding.
When it breaks through, the baby will have a small white part of the tooth visible through the gums.
Final Words
You can offer your baby relief and comfort by providing them with the right teething foods. From chilled fruits to teething biscuits, plenty of options exist to soothe sore gums and keep your baby happy. Always supervise your baby while they enjoy these teething foods, and consult your pediatrician for personalized recommendations. With the right teething foods, you can help your baby navigate this milestone with a smile.