Many moms swear by amber teething necklaces for their toddlers, claiming that the amber drastically reduces fussiness and pain associated with teething. Others say that the concept of amber makes no sense and that the jewelry is a waste of money. So what’s the fuss with amber teething necklaces, anyway?
I’ve been secretly dying to get my daughter a teething necklace and I finally did it! Now I’m here to share everything I’ve learned and observed.
I do have affiliate links in my article. I’ve spent my own money so that you don’t waste yours! And I appreciate your support, so thanks for helping my little family!
So what’s the deal with amber teething necklaces, anyway?
For the longest time, I thought that this was just some weird homeopathic thing that super crunchy moms did; maybe they willed it to make their kid feel better? Maybe they were just hoping that it would help? Maybe it was a placebo?
Finally, I did some real research into it; there were tons of sites with information, but I’ll share two that I found; firstly, this quote from Baltic Secret’s Amazon page:
While scientists continue to debate the mechanism behind amber’s mysterious effects, the secret most probably lies in succinic acid. Baltic amber is the only type of amber that has a rich concentration (3-8 %) of this acid. One theory has it that succinic acid is released from the gems in response to the warmth of the child’s body and absorbed through the child’s skin. The acid’s natural analgesic effect then takes place.
And this from What To Expect:
It’s a teething necklace made of Baltic amber; in theory when baby wears it, his body heat triggers the release of a minute amount of oil that contains succinic acid, a naturally-occurring substance in the body. When the oil is absorbed, advocates say, it has an analgesic effect on swollen, sore gums.
I went to Amazon to compare prices, sizes, and styles. I’m sure that there are plenty of affordable, reputable makers out there. However, this one by Baltic Secret is the brand that I went with: not only are they affordable, but they had great ratings and they were one of the few who had a smaller size available. The packaging was really nice and I appreciated all of the information which came along with the necklace itself. You can look at the Baltic Secret homepage here.
First Impressions
As far as the Baltic Secret purchase, I can honestly say that I’m quite happy. It was packaged well and is a beautiful little necklace, with a secure sturdy clasp for putting on your child. The beads are lovely and surprisingly lightweight.
When we put it on my daughter, I honestly had to have my husband distract her so that she wouldn’t see it; knowing my crazy stubborn kid, it was important that she forget about it instantly! Luckily, it was a success: the necklace was too short for her to easily grab or chew on, and she didn’t really notice it was there.
And even my husband, who was even more skeptical than I was, noticed that within half an hour, my daughter was a lot less fussy. Normally she would run to me throughout the day, asking for me to pick her up (and ultimately wanting to comfort nurse); however, that afternoon, she didn’t ask me for hours!
At the time this article published, she’s been wearing it non-stop for about a month and a half. We are in the middle of cutting those top molars right now, and she does ask to comfort nurse when she’s hurting (or when she’s bored, or when she’s tired…). However, I still feel like the necklace has helped calm her. It’s almost like it’s quieted her restlessness.
I can tell that the necklace didn’t magically take away 100% of the pain, nor did I expect it to. I just don’t want any of my readers to think that this is a one-and-only type solution.
General Suggestions for Teething Amber and Your Baby
Make sure that you measure your kid before ordering
I got a soft measuring tape and measured my daughter’s neck. The goal is to make sure that the necklace is short enough that your child can’t manuever it up over their chin and into their mouth. That would be really bad.
My daughter is exceedingly tiny and her necklace is one of the smallest I found, at about 10.5 inches long.
Some brands do also make much shorter teething jewelry, to be used as an anklet or bracelet; I can’t personally see that as a good idea, since you don’t want your kid to notice it. The amber is not to be chewed on, nor would it be safe if your child gets it off!
Always supervise your child
It goes without saying that you should always watch your child and immediately throw away the necklace if it gets broken or chipped. And even if you properly measured so that your kid can’t get the necklace over their chin and into their mouth, don’t be negligent!
I’ll admit that Baltic Secret says in their instructions to “remove the necklace at night” for when the kids go to sleep; honestly, my daughter’s teething pain is the worst when she’s laying down, so she wears hers to bed. However, she literally sleeps next to me so I am confident that she won’t be playing with it without my knowledge!
Watch out for the car seat straps!
My daughter’s neck got pinched with the tightening straps against her little necklace, so just be aware when you go to strap them in. This is true whether or not you have the car seat strap guards, like we do.
Overall, we are quite happy with our amber teething necklace. For us, being new to this whole thing, the key was to find a necklace which was affordable so that we could test it out.
I’ll admit it though: while I used to be pretty skeptical, I’m now a believer!
I appreciate the fact that I should have some contrary evidence on here, so here’s a Science or Not article which breaks down the (lack of) evidence about Baltic amber. As I already said, I can tell that the necklace has calmed my toddler quite a bit, but of course you should always supervise your baby and ensure that they can’t chew on the beads.
In the end, don’t buy an amber necklace and think that it will magically imbue your child with painlessness. This was one of many solutions we’ve tried to help our poor baby girl with her damn teeth! I don’t regret spending my $20 at all, but I am not convinced that this is a miracle cure or anything.
The necklace is lovely and I do feel that it’s really taken the edge off my daughter’s pain… and I should know, I’m her Mama (and her comfort nursing doll too)! But I’ll be extra-clear here and say that scientifically, no one is truly convinced of the effectiveness of Baltic amber. So you’ll just have to make up your own mind!
Do you use amber teething jewelry for your child? Tell me about it in the comments!
I'd love to hear from you!