Teething is painful for most babies, though the level of discomfort varies widely from one child to the next. As a tooth migrates from inside the jawbone up through the gum tissue, it triggers inflammation, swelling, and tenderness in the surrounding area. Some babies sail through with barely a fuss, while others become noticeably irritable for days at a time.
Why Teething Hurts
Each baby tooth starts deep inside the jaw and slowly pushes upward until it breaks through the gum surface. That journey puts pressure on the surrounding tissue and triggers an inflammatory response, the same basic process that makes any swollen area of your body sore and tender. The gums around the erupting tooth often look red and puffy, and they can be sensitive enough that normal feeding becomes uncomfortable.
Babies can’t describe what they’re feeling, which is part of why teething pain has been debated for so long. But the biological picture is straightforward: tissue is being displaced, blood flow to the area increases, and local inflammation sets in. That combination produces genuine discomfort, even if it’s mild for some babies and more intense for others.
What Teething Actually Looks Like
The most common signs are increased drooling, fussiness, and a strong urge to chew on anything within reach. Babies often rub or press on their gums because counter-pressure can temporarily relieve the soreness. Sleep disruptions are common too, since lying down can shift blood flow toward the head and make gum swelling feel worse.
Some parents notice a slight decrease in appetite, particularly during canine eruption (the pointed teeth on either side of the front four). One clinical trial found that canines caused significantly more appetite loss compared to incisors or molars. Beyond that, the type of tooth coming in doesn’t reliably predict how much discomfort your baby will experience. Incisors, canines, and molars all produced similar overall levels of teething disturbance in the same study.
Teething and Fever: Where the Line Is
Teething may nudge your baby’s temperature slightly above its usual baseline, but it does not cause a true fever. A fever is defined as 100.4°F (38°C) or higher. If your baby hits that threshold, something else is going on, likely an infection that happens to coincide with the teething timeline. Babies are losing the immune protection they got from the womb during the same months they’re cutting teeth, so illnesses overlap with teething frequently enough to create a false connection.
A temperature above 104°F (40°C) warrants emergency care regardless of whether teeth are coming in.
Safe Ways to Ease the Pain
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends two simple approaches: rubbing your baby’s gums with a clean finger, and offering a firm rubber teething ring to chew on. The pressure from chewing or massage works against the swelling and gives real relief. A few practical details matter here. The teething ring should be solid rubber, not liquid-filled, and it should be chilled in the refrigerator rather than frozen. A frozen ring becomes hard enough to bruise tender gums, doing more harm than good. Always supervise your baby while they use one, since small pieces can become a choking hazard if the ring breaks down.
A clean, cold washcloth works well too. Some parents wet and chill a washcloth, then let the baby gnaw on it. The texture and temperature both help soothe inflamed gums.
Products to Avoid
Several over-the-counter teething products are still widely sold despite clear safety warnings. The FDA has warned that topical gels and creams containing numbing agents like benzocaine (sold as Orajel, Anbesol, and similar brands) offer little to no benefit for teething pain and carry serious risks. Benzocaine can cause a condition called methemoglobinemia, where red blood cells lose much of their ability to carry oxygen. It can be fatal.
Prescription-strength liquid lidocaine, sometimes used for mouth pain in adults, is equally dangerous for babies. It can cause seizures, heart problems, severe brain injury, and death if too much is applied or accidentally swallowed. Homeopathic teething tablets fall into the same category of products the FDA warns against.
Amber Teething Necklaces
Amber teething necklaces are marketed with the claim that a substance called succinic acid leaches from the beads into the baby’s skin and reduces pain. There’s no evidence this works, and the risks are well documented. The FDA has received reports of both death and serious injury from teething jewelry. One 18-month-old was strangled by an amber necklace during a nap. A 7-month-old choked on beads from a wooden teething bracelet while a parent was in the room. The hazards include choking if a bead breaks loose, strangulation if the necklace catches on a crib or wraps too tightly, and mouth infections if a bead fragment pierces the gums.
How Long the Pain Lasts
The worst discomfort tends to cluster around the few days just before and just after a tooth breaks the surface. Once the tooth is fully through the gum, the inflammation settles quickly. Most babies start teething around 6 months and continue cutting new teeth until roughly age 3, which means teething is an intermittent process rather than one continuous stretch of pain. There will be quieter gaps between rounds of eruption.
The 20 primary teeth don’t all arrive at once, and not every tooth will produce noticeable symptoms. Some will slip through with nothing more than a bit of extra drool. Others, especially when multiple teeth erupt close together, can make for a rough few days. Knowing that the discomfort is real but temporary, and that the simplest remedies are also the safest, makes the process easier to manage for both of you.