Some infants begin teething as early as four months, though most children will begin around seven months. Teething may cause irritability, crying, low grade fevers (not over 100 degrees), excessive drooling and a desire to chew on something hard.

To help ease the pain, try the following:

• Massage or gently rub the gums.
• Give your child a teething toy — firm rubber teethers are better than frozen, since frozen rings tend to get too hard and will not help ease the pain.
• Teething ointments may provide brief moments of relief, but are often washed away in your child's mouth within minutes.

Once teeth have come in, it is important to care for them properly. Brush your child's teeth with a child's soft toothbrush at the beginning and end of the day.

Never put your child to bed with a bottle. This is not only bad for teeth, but also poses as a choking hazard. If your child needs a bottle to go to sleep, fill it with plain water only. Fruit juices, sugar water and milk all contain sugars that do not get washed out of the child's mouth during sleep. This will lead to tooth decay.