When do babies start teething
Summary: The order in which your baby's teeth begin to appear is much more predictable than the schedule of which they follow coming in.

Babies start teething as early as two or three months of age or as late as twelve months of age, though the average age that a baby begins teething is around seven months.  The majority of babies get the bottom two middle teeth in first, and then the top two middle teeth, followed by the teeth on the sides of each.  The molars (the big, teeth for chewing) come in next, immediately trailed by the canine teeth, and then the next set of molars.  It takes approximately two years for your baby to get all of his teeth in.

Occasionally infants are born already having one or two teeth.  If these are not secured tightly in the gum they need to be removed to keep the baby from swallowing and/or choking on them.  If your baby is born with teeth already exposed, your doctor can determine if they are anchored firmly enough in the gum to remain in place or if they need to be removed.  The hospital should automatically find and address this issue at birth but for the safety of your newborn, it's worth asking them if you do notice this.

Your baby will likely begin showing signs of teething a month or two before they actually break the gum surface.  You will notice that he is drooling much more than he ever did, so much so that a bib is needed to keep him clean and dry.  Use a soft, wet cloth to wipe his chin throughout the day to avoid chaffing.  He might begin chewing on anything and everything.  We already know that babies like to put anything and everything in their mouths - this is part of the reason why.  The pressure of biting onto something relieves the pain in the gums, so as he will instinctively want to bite down on your fingers if you put them near his mouth, your breast if you're breastfeeding, any toys that he has access to and even the spoon of which you feed him from.  

Crying is another sign, babies tend to cry quite a bit during the teething phase because it is uncomfortable.  There are over the counter gum numbing medications that you can apply to your baby's gums to help ease the pain; if this is not successful you can contact his pediatrician and request something for the pain.  Refusal to eat is yet another sign that your little one is in pain.  The reason for this is because the sucking motion created when a baby takes a bottle or your breast often irritates the pressure, worsening the pain.  Although this is a normal sign, if your baby goes more than a few days being fussy about eating and does not appear to be eating as much as he should it is best to contact his pediatrician.

Finally, sleepless nights are also a sign.  Babies often have difficulty sleeping through the night when their mouth is hurting, this leads to them crying in the middle of the night and needing some bedside TLC.  Once the first tooth has successfully surfaced, subsequent teeth are easier.

It is undetermined if fever and diarrhea are symptoms although most parents believe that they are.  And most parents agree that, at minimum, gum numbing gel should be used to help the baby get through this difficult time.  Another commonly used remedy is a teething ring.  These are designed to relieve the pressure and pain experienced  and offer a non-medicinal way of easing the pain.