So, I'm super excited; yesterday Avi's first two teeth started to poke through her gums! She's been teething, at least a little, on and off, since she was about 8 weeks old, but it's gotten much more serious the last couple of weeks, and yesterday the very tips of her lower incisors started to poke through!
Teething so far hasn't been too hard on my baby. She gets the hot rosy cheeks, drools like a faucet, gets some red patches under her diaper (I wouldn't really call it a rash, but there are some irritated looking spots). She is perhaps, mildly more irritable, but she's such a happy and easy going baby that its hard to tell. All in all, I wouldn't say is causing her a lot of pain or distress. That may change as she gets more teeth, but for now I'm not too concerned.
In my husband's family amber teething necklaces area big thing. His sister used them on both her kids (her daughter still wears hers, at 18 months old), and his cousin's wife, who is a doula, gives them to all the new babies in the family. (If you're not familiar with what a doula is, they're a sort of birth coach; quite handy during labor, actually). Everyone in the family swears by these necklaces, says they're the best things and work amazingly. Except me.
If you're not familiar with amber teething necklaces, here is the basics: baby sized necklaces, made of baltic amber, which are said to help soothe the pain of teething. Baltic amber contains succinic acid, and when the amber beads come in contact with the skin, supposedly the succinic acid is absorbed by the skin and has an analgesic effect. For safety, there is a special clasp that the baby cannot undo, but will break if it gets caught, and each bead is individually knotted, so if the string breaks only one will come loose. The necklaces generally look like this:
Note the screw-clasp and individually knotted beads
I received one shortly after Avi was born just like everyone else in the family. I was told to put it on at the first sign of teething and never take it off until she outgrew it. This immediately raised some red flags. She was even supposed to wear it to bed? Was that safe? How was it supposed to work?
I didn't mention that I had seen a poster in the health nurses' office that had warned against exactly this thing. Strangulation danger, it said, not recommended. And I especially didn't mention that I had every intention of following that poster's advice. I don't want to offend anyone; I sometimes feel like I walk a very thin line with my in-laws.
So I did what any sensible person my age would do; I consulted the internet. Now, obviously the internet abounds with false information, and one must be very careful about who to trust. I was specifically looking for evidence of the effectiveness of the necklaces, and any incidences of actual injury or death caused by one of these necklaces.
A brief google search did not return any incidences of children dying from these necklaces, thank goodness, but there was one of a child whose necklace had become twisted around her neck and arm (you can read it here).
Something else that I didn't find was any solid evidence that the necklaces actually do what they're supposed to. Tons of anecdotal evidence, but nothing solid and scientific. One site, Science or Not? had an excellent breakdown of why the necklaces don't work. Firstly, succinic acid doesn't melt at body temperature. Secondly, there is no evidence to suggest that succinic acid has any sort of pain relieving effect. In large doses, it is considered an eye and skin irritant.
I also believe that if anything were being "excreted" from these beads, there would a) be some evidence of it on the skin (color,oily feeling, etc), and b) the beads would eventually wear away or dissolve, and they don't, as far as I know.
So, to sum it all up: no real evidence to suggest that the necklaces actually do anything, and a potential strangulation/choking hazard. This was a real easy decision for me; that thing is not going anywhere near my baby.
But, any time teeth or teething are mentioned in conversation with my mother-in-law, she asks me why Avi doesn't wear her necklace. So far, I haven't had the courage to stand up and say why. I lie, and say I can't find it. Because if I say I don't believe they actually work, I'll get an onslaught of stories about how well they have worked for her daughter and the other cousins' children. If I say I think they're dangerous, I'm also saying that I believe her daughter and all the other cousins are endangering their children. A very tough spot to be in.
However, this is the internet, and there's a level of anonymity here that doesn't often exist in the rest of the world. So I can tell you, dear reader: I believe that teething necklaces are not only useless, but pose an inherent danger to children who wear them. You can disagree with me if you like; I have explained my reasoning. I am somewhat ashamed that don't have the courage to tell my family that these things are dangerous, and if anything were to happen to one of their children because of one of these things and I didn't say anything, I would feel terrible.
So, if you're reading this and haven't made up your mind about teething necklaces, I urge you to stay away from them. Even if no babies have died from one yet, there's a first time for everything, and it is a very real possibility.
Best wishes
README
No comments:
Post a Comment