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| My son at 3 months |
So all mother's know that teething is no fun because baby is in pain and finding the relief for that is sometimes difficult. As a last resort you may have used Orajel or other similar products, but the FDA has released a warning about these products as they can be potentially deadly in severe cases due to an igredient called Benzocaine. With this new warning you MAY want to think twice about using these products!
The
FDA explains the problem on their website:
the use of benzocaine gels and liquids for mouth and gum pain can lead to a rare but serious—and sometimes fatal—condition called methemoglobinemia, a disorder in which the amount of oxygen carried through the blood stream is greatly reduced. In the most severe cases, says FDA pharmacist Mary Ghods, R.Ph., methemoglobinemia can result in death.
And children under 2 years old appear to be at particular risk.
Since the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) first warned about potential dangers in 2006, the agency has received 29 reports of benzocaine gel-related cases of methemoglobinemia. Nineteen of those cases occurred in children, and 15 of the 19 cases occurred in children under 2 years of age, says FDA pharmacist Kellie Taylor, Pharm.D., MPH.
The symptoms are as follows and can happen minutes to hours after using a product with this ingredient:
- pale, gray, or blue-colored skin, lips and nail beds
- shortness of breath
- fatigue
- confusion
- headache
- light-headedness
- rapid heart rate
Our family personally believes in natural ways of relieving teething pain! You can try to lightly brush your baby's gums with your finger, frozen teething rings, frozen bananas, a cold wash cloth to chew on, etc.
