[Imogen]

Hi wonder if anyone can help on this?

My wee boy is 19 wks today but was 17 days early.  Weighs 14lb 7oz.  B/F until 10 wks then mixed, now all formula. 
He chews both fists frantically the whole time he is awake.  His wee fists are all red and sore.  I've tried giving him teething rings/rattles but he's not v good at holding them tight yet and tends to drop them and shove the fists back in.  Is he teething then?  (can't see anything). 
Also (poss. related) - H/V is on at me to begin weaning him but I thought WHO guidelines were to wait until they were 6 months?  He is taking 6 bottles a day on ave 6/7 oz.  He's up at 7am and goes down at 7.30 but I give him a last bottle and change at 11pm or he doesn't go thru the night.
I'd be grateful for advice...

Cheers. Imogen.x.

 

[van]

Hi Imogen
I hope I can help from my experience!

DS started chewing and dribbling like mad from about 12 weeks .......everything was put in his mouth yet he didn't produce his first tooth until he was 8 1/2 months old.  I think the teeth start moving in the gums at this stage and the babies can feel them, hence that they start to want to bite down.  All ds' friends went through this and they generally got their first teeth from 6 months onwards.

As for feeding - I was told that the WHO guidelines are just that and not strict for every baby.  It is better for babies to wait, if possible, for the 6 months but you need to look at your individual baby.  For example, ds was a very large baby from birth and grew proportionately.  When he was about 4.5 months and solely breastfed it was clear that he needed more and was ready to start weaning.  He was active and sitting up at that age and showing all the signs so I started weaning him very slowly.  Other babies I knew were not ready at the same time as he was and therefore weren't weaned then and if they were my child I would have held on longer.  I was always told to be guided by your child!
I'm sure someone else will have different ideas - but that's just parenting!

 

[Gill]

Hi Imogen

When I read your post on the mummies board, my immediate thought was that you little man was ready for weaning.

Rebecca used to chew on her her fists and dribble and everyone used to say she must be teething, but her first tooth didn't come through til she was about 10 months old, so with hindsight, i think all that extra saliva meant she was ready for weaning.

Gill x

 

[jeanette]

Hiya

It does sounds as if your ds is teething. Often you cant always see any changes and then one day you will look in and see one!

Re weaning have a look at:

http://www.fertilityfriends.co.uk/forum/index.php/topic,5851.0.html

Be guided by your own child.

If your baby has excess dribbling...gently dap the chin dont rub it. A speech therapist told me that rubbing the chin increases the amount of saliva produded!

jeanettex