Can I Give My Teething Baby Rum?

I've done it and it helps for a little while. I found taking it directly myself helps the most!

Didn't know Hyland's recalled the teething tabs - thanks!!!

There is another teething tablet on the market made by Humphries. I have found it at my local Giant Eagle and you could probably find it at some of the same places you would find the Hyland's teething tables. Skip the rum though, better safe than sorry.

Wow, people can get all crazy on here!
I would stay away from rum. I know people used it for years, but people used cocain as a home remedy for years too. Doesn't mean it's good for you.
Freezing a wet washcloth is good. Zweibech biscuits are good. Ambesol is good. My sister in law just bought an amber teething necklace and says it is amazing for teething. It's just a necklace, they don't chew on it, just wear it. something in the amber itself soothes the pain. She is swearing by it now. (I found out about them by googling amber teething necklace, if you are interested in learning more!) Good luck to you!

Whiskey. Do it. And what you don't rub on baby's gums, rub on your own.

Didn't read any posts prior to this but I'll just tell all the do gooders out there that if a bit of whiskey on your gums and your parents gums was good enough back then, it's good enough now. Oh, and if you were raised in the south, you probably got moonshine!

Call off the hounds! MammaD is asking a *question*, NOT coming at her baby (or your baby), with a fifth of Rum, a bottle of cough medicine, and a shotgun. She's asking for a reason.

And also: While the AAP does not recommend this as a form of pain relief, it *has* been used for generations. MammaD is not coming out of left field, as many will still recommend it. Meanwhile, she's obviously aware of her baby's discomfort, the reaction baby is getting from Triaminic and the fact that Triaminic is made from *acetaminophen*...what some of you are (self righteously) advising, after slamming her for USING it! She's clearly doing the research, work and observation it takes to be a good parent.

Whew.

Triaminic is a cold medicine, for children ages 4 and up. Under no circumstance, should that be given to an infant. Who in the world told you to do that? He's probably gassy, because his body is not equipped to handle it. Would your baby a swig of rum? No, you wouldn't. Babies should NOT have rum rubbed on their gums. I am so shocked people still ask this. Giving alcohol to a baby is illegal, keep that in mind.

Parents used to do this. They also used to drive without car seats, think smoking was a status symbol and medicinal, and all kinds of things we know are terrible now. The old excuse that "we grew up OK," is not a good one. A lot of kid DIDN'T grow up OK. Please don't do this to your baby. This is a phase, it passes.

NO.. my suggestion: buy the book "What to Expect the First Year" (http://www.amazon.com/What-Expect-First-Heidi-Murkoff/dp/...) because you are not informed and are making BIG mistakes. Triaminic is NOT appropriate for a 5 month old baby and certainly is NOT for teething. You are hurting him by giving him medication that is not for a tiny baby. Where did you even get a dosage? See your doctor for recommendations, but please stop experimenting with medications and alcohol to see what works. Rum is an obvious NO! You need some serious guidance, I'm glad you asked this question.

I know you've received a whole slew of responses, but I hope you don't mind my two cents!

I use rum on my son's gums, sometimes when he's very uncomfortable. I don't give him shots or put a nipple on it and let him go to town, I just wash my hands, dip my finger in a bottle and rub it on his gums.

Let me go ahead and say that I do everything I can to make sure that any intake my son has are of the most pure and natural substances available. I make his food, salves, etc.

Rum, Whiskey, Wine even after the distilling processes are still more natural than any synthetic lidocaine/benzocaine/procaine or any other medication you could give for teething.

I'm sorry that these women on here tried to tear into you! You asked a legitimate question and you deserved a dignified response, not a mob of angry women armed with pitchforks and their self-righteousness. Do what works for you as a mother, you are obviously intelligent enough to get advice and ask a question. And the answer is, "No, alcohol isn't the devil and no, your sweet little boy will not get drunk or hepatic cirrhosis from a q-tip of alcohol."

Reading back on my response I'd like to add: I'm also a first time Mom, and while I have a lot of child care experience babies are a totally different ball game. I took this post to heart because at the time, my almost 4 1/2 month old was teething. 11 days after I posted my response, my 4 1/2 month old son broke through his first tooth and 10 days after that came the other one! When babies are this age it's difficult to hand the, a frozen food (which is a choking hazard anyway), a teething toy, a frozen washcloth etc, because they aren't yet in the phase of really holding things in their mouths. We used Tylenol for fevers, and rum for teeth numbing and it worked like a charm! We would also wash our hands very thoroughly and rub a finger on his gums for a bit every couple of hours. And those things broke through quickly! Hope this info will help someone down the road! And I hope that your babies teeth have broken through... onto the next ones!

I know you've already updated us, but I wanted to throw in my two cents: I used to give my kiddos a frozen waffle to gnaw on. They loved it.

Of course, now you (and I) will get slammed for giving our kids processed foods. Oh, the horror.

Hang in there and good luck- you are a great mom and everything is going to be okay.

Oh I am horrified that someone recommended tea tree oil!!!!! Tea tree is not to be taken orally and certainly not given to babies and NEVER in a babies mouth! Please do not take that advice!

The other ladies are right. No triaminic. No rum.

Edit* don't come down hard on these ladies. They were working with the info that you gave them and they were only concerned for your baby. They were not intending to be rude. You should have asked your pediatrician about the rum anyway.

Yes, this is perfectly ok to do. My dad is a pharmacist and actually recommends this to all his mothers that come in with teething babies. He recommends whiskey though. I am a midwife and have done it with all three of my children. This is safe and effective. Just use common sense and don't give your baby the whole bottle :)

Lisa

No, rum or brandy or whiskey or any other hard liquor is a bad idea. And Triaminic is a cold medication and not appropriate for teething pain - it's not even recommended any more for kids under 4, much less an infant. Infant Tylenol or Motrin would be more appropriate but are you sure he's fussy from teething? You mentioned him getting gassy - could it be that is actually why he is fussy?

Before trying anything else, or assuming it's teething without being sure, I would be talking to your pediatrician first, rather than going on here or trying random things. I've had pet owners give their dogs and cats aspirin just because they thought the pet seemed sick - not only did the pet not have anything that aspirin was going to improve, but aspirin can be toxic to them (and BTW, babies should not get aspirin either).

Please DO NOT give your baby rum, tea tree oil, vanilla extract, Triaminic or anything else!!! You could make him seriously ill. INFANT Tylenol or Motrin is the ONLY thing you can give babies for pain.

Go to your doctor, check out www.askdrsears.com, and get a copy of "What to Expect the First Year". And please, stop playing scientist with your baby.

I am laughing at all these responses. Shes not giving her baby a shot people!, a little rum/whiskey rubbed on the gums is much less toxic than any pain reliever! I say try it, and if it works do it!........Then maybe rub a little on your gums too. :)

What always worked with my daughters was the hylands teething tablets, i wasnt aware there was a recall, but i am certain they are up and running again. Teething toys thaw out or break. frozen food thaws and becomes a choking hazard. orajel can inflame the area making pain worse after the area is no longer numb. Everything that has to do with a baby can be good and bad. It can all be argued. I am not ashamed to admit i tried the rum trick, although i used a very expensive whiskey on my finger. It only worked momentarily, but all babies are different.

Hi MammaD, I know how you feel, I'm sometimes afraid of asking questions on here because half the time you get criticized and judged by moms that think they are so much better then you and get snotty comments even on things that you might think are safe...
This web site is for asking questions and getting advice. If you can't answer or help keep your mouth shut.

Don't worry MammaD!!

You did the right thing by at least ASKING for advice. Funny how people forget they were once first-time parents, too, and asked first-time-parent questions. Most of these moms gave very sound, reasonable advice. Blow off the few rude comments out there... they don't deserve your time or worry :)

Good luck!

These responses are giving me a good laugh this morning. My mom used to give me sips of her martinis when I was little (in the 60s) and I'm 1) not an alcoholic, 2) not brain damaged and 3) a responsible parent. I don't do this with my daughter because I've never needed to, but quite honestly, I was a handful when I was little and probably needed it. Good luck with your son.

HA! This is so funny to me because my Mom would advise me all the time to rub whiskey on my baby's gums when I would complain about the teething! Even though I didn't my Mom constantly reminded me how she did that with me and my sister all the time and look how great we turned out!

What worked for my babies was a frozen bagel =-)

Don't feel bad. We've all been new Moms at one point or another and sought out advice I'm sure for all kind of stuff. When I had my first I remember calling my sister crying asking her to come over because I was too afraid to give my baby a bath and needed her to come over and show me how. I felt so stupid but what is that saying??
"It takes a village...."

You seem like such a wonderful new Mommy who is trying so hard! Please know you are not alone!

Peace & Blessings to you and your family!

NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO..... NO not at all.
You will poison your baby.

And yes, get the book "What To Expect the First Year."

Triaminic is NOT for babies.

Call your Pediatrician....

I know that our parents' generation sometimes did it, but I personally wouldn't. And honestly, I can't see why this would work. I don't feel my mouth is all that numb when I drink rum - certainly not as numb as it is with just a little bit of Orajel.

I've never heard of giving Triaminic - isn't that a decongestant? Have you tried ibuprofen? Or Tylenol? Or a frozen teething ring?

I always used the frozen baby washcloth treatment.

NO! Alcohol can go straight to the bloodstream to the baby and make your baby sick. Don't give baby triaminic either--its for older children only. You can give Hylands Teething Tablets (they work well) tylenol ever 4-6 hrs. make some waffles and freeze them. Perfect for baby who is teethiing-- But don't put any alcohol on the gums.

Good luck!

M

Oh, my. I'm sorry you got so many rude responses.

When my 16-year old was teething, my pediatrician recommended that we dip our finger in the whiskey bottle and rub it on his gums. Then, she said, take a shot yourself and everyone will go to bed happy. My grandmother was with me for this appointment and she said HER pediatrician said the same thing to her back in 1946.

In the end, I wound up just giving my son baby tylenol and a cold, very-large-so-he-couldn't-choke-on-it carrot to gnaw on and he was just fine. But, that was only because we didn't have any whiskey in the house and I didn't feel like buying any. If I had had it in the house, I probably would've tried it.

A rule of thumb for being a first time mommy...if it makes sense to you, as an intelligent, rational person, then it's probably just fine. My husband and I made it a point to trust our instincts when it came to raising our sons. If we needed advice, we turned to my grandmothers, who raised a total of 6 productive, wonderful children between them. Sixteen years later, I can tell you that our most unpopular decisions as parents have produced the best results. I have two very well-behaved, gentlemanly teenage boys. Trust yourself and you'll be just fine. The rest of the world can stuff it.

Good luck!

I am not saying no to a few drops of alcohol on a qtip. Here is what I would use. Clove oil....the oil release from a clove has numbing qualities and is usually tolerated well. The alchol may provide a temporary relief needing to be repeated every hour. the clove oil acts closer to a numbing med that a dentist would give to work on teeth and may offer a few hours of relief. Along with that frozen items, safe frozen foods. Also check with your doctor about Ibuprofen as it has anti-inflammatory properties which I can see that the responders to this question needed.

Updated

I am not saying no to a few drops of alcohol on a qtip. Here is what I would use. Clove oil....the oil release from a clove has numbing qualities and is usually tolerated well. The alchol may provide a temporary relief needing to be repeated every hour. the clove oil acts closer to a numbing med that a dentist would give to work on teeth and may offer a few hours of relief. Along with that frozen items, safe frozen foods. Also check with your doctor about Ibuprofen as it has anti-inflammatory properties which I can see that the responders to this question needed.

There was a massive Tylenol/Motrin brand recall over the past year and the company has not yet recovered from it. Makers of Triaminic have started to produce a straight acetaminophin product as well as an Ibuprofen product. This is not cold medication or have any other active ingredients. Tylenol and it's generic form and Ibuprofen and it's generic form have been given for years to infants for fever/pain. Tyelenol/and it's generic are processed by the liver and Motrin kidneys. Using the Alcohol on swab along with the tylenol probably shouldn't be done due to the immature liver of the baby. Anything that is used for a baby should be done so informed and that is what she is trying to do.

The Mom's come here for help, a listening ear, gentle advice( there are plenty of things I didn't want to go to my Mom or Mother in law about), so when a question is asked, leave out your passionate Motherly advice and give a friends point of view...a little more gentle, a little more kind. The world has enough snarky people, when you need help it's a Hard hearted reaction is not what your looking for.

Ok. I was reading some responses and I was a criminology major going into forensics. Alcohol (contray to popular belief) does not go right into the blood stream. At least not most of it. Carbonated alcohols go directly into the blood stream due to the carbonation (such as beer.) That is why you get drunk faster with beer then other types of alcohols and in my opinion it doesn't cause problems if you only use a very tiny bit. I maybe partial because I come from a very Italian family that used this for teething children and when we were older and losing our baby teeth but It didn't cause any problems for me or my siblings so it can't be so bad. Also to mothers who think giving a 5 mth old frozen waffles or pizza is a good idea, that is a stage 3 food giving it as a teething ring causes pieces to break off and can choke the baby.

Please, for the sake of your own sanity and your baby's health, consult a pediatrician. A doctor or nurse practitioner is the best source of information for baby's health. You should tell them exactly what you mentioned here so they know what you have tried. They will be able to give you strong, solid, accurate advice that you can rely on.

Try freezing cut lemon rind and letting him chew on that until it thaws. The juice that comes out of the lemon rind is a natural anesthetic. Try that before the rum. Make sure you cut the lemon rinds in big enough pieces that you can hold one end while he chews the other.

MammaD - I couldn't agree with you more. I recently posted a question about homeopathic remedies for my teething B. and boy, did I get a slew of rude responses! But, I did get a couple helpful responses that actually worked. So, it was worth it. Hang in there. As new parents, we'll probably get judged a whole lot more. Think of it as training for future rude, critical people. Because, it will happen.

FYI - My B. started to teeth at 8 1/2 months and didn't get her first teeth in until a few weeks later. Hyland's Teething Tablets were recalled, but not the Hyland's liquid gel -- which worked so much better for my B.. She also loves Humphrey's teething tablets.

Let me know what works for you! I'd L. hear about it since my little one is still teething.

Many many years ago, they used to put teaspoons in the freezer and then give them to the kids to chew on to help with the teething. Gone are the old fashioned rubber teething rings that they had. Also get a wash cloth and freeze that if the spoon bothers you. The whiskey or rum on the gums helps to numb the pain and make things feel better for baby. It's not like you are pouring the alcohol down the throat of the child.

This too shall pass.

The other S.

PS My mom told me that she wondered why I was so quiet with my dad as a baby, he had given me a pork chop bone to chew on. When she took it away I had a fit. So go figure. No there there were no bone splinters for me to break off or anything just the smooth hard part to massage the gums. This was over 60 years ago.

I used whiskey instead. but rum should be ok

I just wanted to say I'm sorry you were attacked for asking a question on here. Some of the ladies on here that were so rude to you are the same ones who make me not even want to get on this site anymore.

I always use Tylenol w/ my kids and the Oragel that is in a Qtip so you can just rub it right on. Good luck! I hope your son gets some relief soon.

Isn't triaminic for colds or coughs? I wouldn't use that or rum!! And I hate orajel. We used teething tablets and gel, and if really, really bad motrin or Tylenol (store brand weren't recalled). Wet washcloths, frozen pizza crust, and plenty of teething toys. Have a shot of the rum (if you're not nursing) and hang in there!

Well I haven't read your responses, but judging from your update they were pretty intense!! You know nothing I ever put on topically helped much. I think bc there is so much drool in their mouths it is like almost impossible to actually get something on the affected area. So I think it would be fine to dab a little if you could actually get it on the affected area. I also didn't know about the hyland's recall, I have given my 11 month old some with no ill affect recently, but I am going to check it out so thanks for that info! My MIL gave me this really awesome teether, here is the link, http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000JWSO9I/ref=pd_lpo_k2.... It looks like a raspberry and is texture all over. My son would chew the mess out of that thing, it worked better than anything else. For Christmas I got him this vibrating teether that looks like grapes and he absolutely loves it. So maybe something like that can help as well. Good luck!! I know it is so hard to see them in pain, it will pass soon, hang in there :D

Sorry you have been getting slammed for asking questions......I know it is hard to be a parent and know what is right and wrong. I have been giving both my children Triaminic per their pediatrician, and I think they know what they are talking about! Obviously these other parents have been misinformed! I have a 10 mth old and almost 2 yr old, and I have thought about the whiskey thing too but have yet to do it. I usually just use teething tabs (which by the way I didn't realize were recalled either) or motrin or tylenol if it gets really bad. Mostly I just give them frozen washcloths, frozen teethers, or frozen waffels for my older daughter. My oldest is getting her molars in right now and she really just likes a paci even though she has never taken one before now.....

Oh boy!!! I didn't read through all of these because I I just couldn't get any more frustrated!

There are some things that I agree shouldn't be done anymore. Example: When I was little we didn't even have to wear seat belts in the back seat (let alone be in a freaking booster seat till middle school), I remember fighting with my brother over who got to stand on the hump in the back of the car! 30 years later, things have changed, IMO for the better. Restraining your kiddos in the car is a good idea (not rocket science here)!!

Now, onto your rum question. You are not asking if you should give your baby a bottle of rum to get him drunk so he sleeps it off. You are asking if you should rub a little rum on his gums jeeze! I have never done it because Tylenol and a spoon has always worked for me, however my hubby has rubbed a little rum on the boys gums, and he said it really did help. I didn't get mad at him, because like you, he was not getting our son drunk!

Good luck with the teething mama! It is a tough stage for baby and mommy. Don't let some of these responses get to you!

I take it you are using the new Triaminic? The one that's a pain reliever? I think that would be ok as long as you are following the directions. I believe it has the same ingredients at Tylenol, right? If that's not working, you might want to try Ibuprofen. That's the absolute only thing that ever worked for either of my kids. My youngest has one heck of a time with her teeth. If the Triaminic makes him gassy, switch to something else.

Ambesol for Babies works great. Rub a little on the gums, and it numbs them! Good luck!

No, never for any reason give a child alcohol. That said, if the teething meds aren't working try a damp wash cloth put it in the freezer just until stiff. I tend to little was all the time this one method seems to work for most of them. Also Infants Motrin works great.

I haven't read your responses, but I know people on here can be quite judgemental and rude. My gut reaction is no to any alcohol on a tiny one, but I know that is what all of our grandparents and possibly parent used so...

I swear by Gental Naturals Teething Drops. They are amazing! My daughter (who is working on her 2 year molars now) recognizes the bottle and asks for them occasionally. They used to sell them at Target and Walgreens, but I haven't seen them there for awhile. I bought my current bottle at Buy Buy Baby and I've heard that Babies R Us (which I HATE) sells them. You can also order directly from the Gental Naturals website.

Hope that helps!!!

First off, I did not read the other responses, nor do I feel I need to given your "What Happened." I will say that I empathize....it is an old wives tale that you can give a baby rum (actually I heard whiskey - same difference) to calm them or help teething. Now they know (research shows) the earlier you introduce alcohol, the worse it is for them. (This goes ALL the way until AGE 25 YEARS OLD when the brain is fully formed!! I know...I was shocked too!!) I am NOT BASHING YOU!! Just giving a bit of *trivia* if you will.

Get some cheese cloth and put frozen fruit in it. Make sure it is something that will soften, like banana, peaches, strawberries, etc. (Not raspberries that will be kinda hard and have seeds.) Let him chew on that. Safe and natural.

Baby Anbesol or Orajel will numb gums, but (depending on how much he slobbers) might not last long. Also, get some teething rings and keep them rotated in the FRIDGE. (Freezer gets them too cold for baby's mouth.) Good luck and have a Merry and Blessed Christmas!!

Motrin is the only thing that works for my daughter...she's 9 mos old. For gas I give her Milicon drops...make sure the medicine is age appropriate..another great resource is www.askdrsears.com.

UPDATE: OK, I'm not sure if you already read my post but I had posted a loooong thing about how Triaminic doesn't offer Infant Acetominophen and then did some more research and found out that they actually just came out with it. lol. I feel stupid now. Let me just now revise and say, try frozen washcloth for the teething. My son really liked chewing on it and sucking the water out as it melted :) Best of luck!

Try tea tree oil on a q-tip. 2 drops of oil and a drop of water usually does it.

Ibuprofen and acetaminophen together always helped my teething babies. I know the older generations used rum or whiskey but I really frown upon this method. It's just not a wise thing to do even if great-grandma swears by it.

Isn't Triaminic a cough syrup? Are there different Triaminic's now? I don't know...but stick with ibuprofen and acetaminophen.

NO NO NO NO NO NO - This was covered in a FEW of my child development classes
the baby can get alcohol poisoning and die (actual cases of it happening can be found if you don't believe me)

Tylenol works, a cold wash cloth for them to suck on works, your fingers rubbing their gums work

The Triaminic may cause gas due to dye in it. Did you doctor say that was ok? I thought nothing but plain tylenol was ok for under 6 mos old usually. Or it could be the symptoms that you were treating that were causing the gas, some babies who have sinus drainage or drooling are better off having those come out rather then stay in (if that makes sense).

Have you taken her to the doctor to make sure it IS teething? It could be an ear infection or something that is really causing her to fuss. Unless you see/feel the points of the teeth it usually isn't really teething.

I always used baby ora-gel and kept teething rings in the fridge. Also they will chew on a wet wash cloth.

We do Brandy have with all three of ours, just a dab...but I don't see why rum wouldn't work. And yes it is the same Idea as orajel im my opinion safer.

Hey Mama!
My son went through this too. He was about 4 or 5 months, and miserable, turns out he had ear infections, he NEVER had a fever with it so I just assumed it was teething. Just a guess, from experience, mine have never been miserable just from teething alone. Have you had is ears checked?

I have not read the other answers, but I'm sure that most mamas will tell you no. The truth is that parents have rubbed whiskey, brandy, and rum on teething children/infants for over 100 years and it's done no harm. My mother used on me, and her parents on her. I used it on my daughter.

IMO giving him rum is not any worse than any of the other teething medications. At least rum in made from natural ingredients.

I would not give him Triaminic, unless it was specifically prescribed by your doctor.

Giving him a cold teething ring or wetting a tip of a wash cloth and putting it in the freezer for awhile will help to provide some temporary relief.

You may want to concider some baby tylenol or motrin.

I remember 23 years ago when my daughter was born, My mother told me to rub whiskey on her gums. And I did and it helped a lot. I would dip my finger in the Whiskey and rub their gums. I know now a days people frown upon this. I did it to both of my older children. I also froze bones for them to chew on, I know it sounds gross but it also worked. I got this idea from a grammy. Its the old ways, we all survived.

OMG!!! I can not believe some of these mothers and they're opinions. Just because you don't agree with something doesn't mean you have to be rude about it.
I have had 2 kids myself who have suffered and still the 14 month old suffers with his teth very much and I know a little bit about pain conrol when it comes to teething. With both my kids I have used tylenol and motrin whenever I thought it was needed which believe me at times it was quite often. But I will tell you that one doctor told me this and I think its the best advice I could have gotten which is CLOVE OIL. you might be able to find it at whole foods or another organic store. You can mix a little bit of clove oil with olive oil so it does not sting too much and rub it on his gums. My daughter loved it by my little guy is not a fan of it. I think its the best and I wish I had known about it when my first baby started teething as she suffered a lot with them. And we know its just a phase but if we can help the poor baby out why not do it.
And I don't think rum will harm him. So I would use your best judgment and do what feels right to you and not the rest of the world because after all its your child and you want the best for them :) Hope this helps!! Good luck!

I know people can get a little opinionated on this website. All I wanted to add is I have a cousin who put whiskey on her little ones gums and now same little one always wants a drink of it when someone has alcohol ;-) But it worked for her!
I didn't try it with my own, but I don't think a little on her gums is going to cause any issues.
J.

We use homeopathic chamomilla. It works wonders for our children. The teething tablets were recalled (stupid!), but you can still get all the components and do the same thing. They recalled it because of the homeopathic belladonna in it. If they had a clue how homeopathy works, they would know that homeopathic belladonna actually is a pain reliever, and works wonders. I wouldn't take herbal belladonna because that is deadly. Homeopathic= safe. So, you could give one each chamomilla and belladonna (pain relief and soothing). But, we just used the chamomilla because it was wonderful. My children all loved it and did great on it.
About the rum, we never actually used it, but have friends who have. They just rubbed a little on their gums and it deadens the gums a bit. I would think the kids would hate the taste though. If I were to do this, I would probably put a tiny bit on my finger and just massage the gum that way.
Blessings!

lol. I'm old school, I'll admit, coming from a European family. And yes, I kept a small bottle of Jack Daniels fruit-flavored whisky in my fridge to use with a qtip. It's just a drop, not a shot, and works great.

What is working for my little one currently is Advil Pediatric Drops for longer stretches when she is in the worst of it and overnight, and Camilia (a homepathic medicine) for "as needed" relief.
Good luck! We just got our fourth tooth in and I hope the rest come easier.

Motrin was the only thing that helped my daughter. Also, every time she was teething, she also got an ear infection, which made it worse. I know the ped said one had nothing to do with the other, but it happened every single time. Good luck, momma.

If you don't have tea tree oil, try vanilla extract. The vanilla is calming, and I think I've heard it has anti-inflammatory properties.

What about motrin? That was the only thing that really helped with my boys.

Magic mouthwash. An equal mix of benedryl, malox and oragel. Rub on gums. Benydryl helps numb. Just rub on gums. Works great

Ughh - I feel your (and your baby's) pain :) My DD (7 months) is teething like crazy (and I have 5 kids, and believe me, you need advice past the first one too :) Anyway, although I have not tried rum yet with her, I just might! I use Tylenol at night when needed, and we just went out today to get Baby Oragel because we are so desperate -- but maybe I will dig around for some rum instead LOL. A cloth diaper to chew on helps too, and mommy's finger :) Good luck, and sorry you got some negative replies. It does pass!!! The first 2 teeth are the worst in my experience, and then not so bad.

the homeopathic ingredient chamomillia is one of the ingredients in the hylands teething tablets and is usually what works so go to your local health food store and get some chamomilia in 60C and dilute it in water to give to baby

That's what my mom did, and I turned out okay.... I think :)

Orajel has a gel for babies. I used that on my girls when they were teething. I also used one of those mesh bags, made for babies to suck on things, and put ice cubes inside, instead of fruit. They loved that, but needed to be changed after because their top was soaked.

I didn't do it because my daughter didn't have that hard of a time teething. Regular tylenol and the occasional teething tablet did the trick for her.
My family has done it for any baby that had a hard time teething, as did most of my friends. Most of the people I know, and my parents would just dip their finger in the bottle, shake it off, and rub it on the babies gums.
If my daughter had a hard time with it I probably would have done it.

I would not give my baby rum if your doctor tells you not to drink when your pregnant why would it be okay to give your baby rum. My daughter is almost 6 months and is going thu the same thing what works for her is we give her Tylenol and Orajel and kept on of her pasifers in the freezer and give a cold one to her. It help alot!!!!!! Just be strong!!!!!

SOME of the hylands teething tablets have been recalled (and pulled from the shelves) there was only an issue with a couple batches. You can get online and find the ones that are recalled (wright them down). When you go to the store just make sure you don't get that batch (they SHOULD be off the shelf, but better safe than sorry).
I wouldn't do the rum, My mom did brandy when I was a kid so I'm sure that some good intention person told you that one... I wouldn't say its effective nor that safe.
Amber teething necklaces!!!! They are AMAZING! I have had one on my son since he started teething. I would highly recommend them.
My Dr told me a frozen chicken leg is a great teether toy. Once you are comfortable with solid foods try frozen berries (cut up) they also are great help.
Another thing you can do is look into homeopathic meds for the teething.... I haven't tried any but I hear they work well (there are other teething tablets besides hylands).
Sorry you have gotten so many non-helpful replies....thats not what this board is for (In my opinion).

I have 6 month old twin girls and i've used it once or twice. It definitely works. Some doctors even recommend it. You're not giving them a shot of liquor, only a dipped finger which is less than a drop. Oragel is filled with unnatural chemicals and I am a very "natural" type of person. Oragel is also known to harden the gums which can make teething even more painful for your little one. I wouldn't give my children anything I wouldn't take myself. How much alcohol does it take to do liver damage? One would have to be a hardcore alcoholic for that to happen. Alcohol is also in a lot of children's medication. I can't stand when people freak out about this sort of thing, yet recommend an array of medications (which include chemicals) as a substitute. Natural is usually better (i.e. BEST way to remove warts - apple cider vinegar soaked cotton under a bandage. 65c a bottle, the wart dies in about two days and doesn't come back). If you really want to use a store bought remedy, Gripe water is all natural ginger-based and works wonders. IMMEDIATELY gets rid of hiccups and works for many other things.

I've heard of it before, but it's not something I would do.
We used Oragel for our son. It lasted for hours.
If you want to see how long it lasts, try it on your own gums.
If I have a receded gum area that's giving me trouble, Oragel keeps me comfortable till I can see the dentist.
The only time alcohol has numbed anything for me is if I had a drink or two that raised my blood alcohol level.
Dabbing any booze on the surface, it just acts as an antiseptic, but the teeth are cutting from below so I'm not sure it would do any good.