BABY’S TEETH.

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 17972, 18 March 1930, Page 5

BABY’S TEETH.

Six or seven months after baby’s birth may be a trying period for the mother, for it is at this time that- the first teeth usually appear. Some children seem to go through their teething without any trouble at all, while others—mainly those that tend to be highly strung—may have a very uncomfortable time. They may become very irritable, -screaming often, ancl suffering from sleeplessness; they may even have convulsions, though in such cases it is best to consult a doctor, to be sure that nothing more serious is wrong with baby. The First to Appear, The first teeth are not difficult to see, as they are the two lower front, ones. They are soon followed by all four upper front teeth, one on each side of the very first pair. In this way, by the end of a year, or a little more, baby has got eight teeth. After this comes tlie first set of lug grinding teeth—the four first molars. Then come the sharp-pointed canine teeth, and, finally the second molars. Now, at the end of two, or at the latest, two and a half years, baby has twenty teeth; and these have got t,o last him till he is -six or -seven years old, when the permanent teeth begin to make their appearance to replace the “ milk teeth. ’’ Babies do not always keep to this schedule, though iL is the commonest. On the contrary, -cases have been recorded of babies who have been born with one or two teeth already there. Such an occurence is, however, very rare. A more common abnormality is late teething, which, some people say, is caused by rickets, hut such a conclusion should not be drawn on this one sign alone. As a matter of fact, rickets generally cause quite a different abnormality of teething, namely, the teeth appearing out. of their turn, or one at a time, instead of in pairs.