Have You Tried Whiskey for Teething?

on March 27, 2009 at 10:49 AM

whiskey for teething, my baby is teething

Would you give your

teething baby whiskey?

My friend's baby is teething and she's looking for advice on how to alleviate his pain. Her pediatrician recommended dipping a damp washcloth in whiskey, wringing it out, and then letting her son chew on it. There was a discussion on using whiskey for teething in the Stay at Home Moms group, and a majority of the moms said they wouldn't use whiskey for teething.

"I did do it when my baby's were teething. But I used tequila and applied it with a Q-tip." — cam9lak

"Nothing would help my daughter when she was teething—it was hell. I did rub whiskey on her gums and it seemed to help a lot. I know that there are a lot of people that would say that this is bad, but my mom did it for me and I turned out fine." — brandiragsdale

"No, there are better ways to deal with teething for infants." — MommaJesi

"It's not going to hurt an infant to have a little on the gums, there is alcohol in Orajel as well." —RheaF

"I could understand back in the day when there was no other option, however, we've got so many other options—Orajel, teething tablets, teething rings—that you would have to want to give your child alcohol to do this." — hot_momma88

About the author Suzanne Murray

is the Parenting & Political editor at The Stir/Moms Matter 2012.

Filed Under: teething

Comments (40)

SamanthaAgain

on Mar 27, 2009 at 11:26 AM

I DID try everything. Tylenol, orajel, teething tablets, teething drops, frozen washcloths, frozen waffles, teething rings, biscuts, amber necklace, shoot I know there's more but I can't think right now. I tried EVERYTHING that everyone threw at me. Motrin helped quite a bit, but it would wear off after 3-4 hours and I could only give it every 6 hours.

I finally resorted to dipping his pacifier in rum one night when he was just absolutely screaming in pain. I couldn't watch him hurt anymore. It worked. I did it I think twice, maybe three times. I would absolutely reccomend that parents try other methods first because the idea of it doesn't sit well with me either. But when you've tried everything and nothing works, you just have to make the pain stop in any safe way that you can.

Report this comment

jalex

on Mar 27, 2009 at 11:27 AM

I really find it hard to believe that a pediatrician told her to do this...

teenagemama19

on Mar 27, 2009 at 11:28 AM

my son just started teething, and the teething tablets work just fine, but if his pain gets worse, instead of giving him a whole tube of orajel, i would feel much better about giving him just a finger dipped in liquor to chew on, or a washcloth, depending on how many pearly whites have broken through already.

heatherama

on Mar 27, 2009 at 11:42 AM

Umm... no. Hyland's teething tablets worked well for us and when the pain was really bad at night I would just give motrin.

debra_benge

on Mar 27, 2009 at 12:01 PM

My pediatrician told me about this. He was really old school, and said there were studies out that said children that had gotten a lot of Orajel are more resistant to Novacaine when getting dental work done. (I've never personally researched it, so I don't know.) I kept one of the single shot bottles in the freezer, and would get some on a Q-Tip and rub over the gums. Soothed them right away.

jlk1110

on Mar 27, 2009 at 12:02 PM

Umm havent tried Whiskey since modern medicine has proved it can do more harm than good, just because my parents did it and I turned out fine is silly logic behind this one. I think its complete bs that some ped told someone to do it. I can calling bullsh*t. Sorry.

This is coming from a mom who has spent the whole week on zero sleep due to a teething child.

on Mar 27, 2009 at 12:03 PM

Also I would never use orajel either

babyboomboom

on Mar 27, 2009 at 12:20 PM

Um, hell no! Children should not be given ANY amount of alcohal. If my doctor told me to use whiskey for teething I would report him. And if I saw a parent dipping a washcloth i whiskey I would call social services. IMO that is borderline child abuse.

ilovemyson2002

on Mar 27, 2009 at 12:33 PM

i sted dad used it on my sister when she was a baby n nonething happiend to her

Kaci_Eden

on Mar 27, 2009 at 12:38 PM

I wouldn't use alcohol on my children. Heck, I don't even drink. For my DD, we used the teething tablets and we bought a teether from walmart that vibrated when she bit down on it. She loved that. She didn't have too rough a time teething, so I never had to try anything else, just the teether and the tablets.