The Amber Teething Necklace

As you've probably noticed by now after watching some of the latest videos, Ethan has started wearing a necklace. This has elicited several comments. "Is he wearing a necklace?" "Why would you put jewelry on a little boy?" His daddy refers to them as his Kabbalah beads and usually quotes Ocean's Twelve's "It's almost like this Kabbalah crap doesn't even work!" whenever the necklace is mentioned. So what is it?

Well, it's an amber teething necklace. You see, amber contains succinic acid, which is known for it's analgesic properties. You are supposed to wear amber near whatever ails you. Get migraines? Wear a necklace. Have carpel tunnel? Wear a bracelet. Have shards of calcium breaking through your flesh? The amber teething necklace is your answer! The warmth from your skin heats up the stones, thus releasing the succinic acid. The lighter the color, the greater the concentration of succinic acid. We ended up with a rainbow composition since they were sold out of the solid light ones.

Ethan has been wearing his amber teething necklace for about two weeks, and I think it has made a difference. The weekend before I first put it on him, he got his third tooth and was not happy about it so I decided to give the necklace a try. Perhaps it's just a coincidence, but he hasn't been fussy, he hasn't seemed to have any issues with his teeth (during the day, at least), and at the very least, the necklace certainly doesn't bother him.

But is it safe? Obviously, he only wears it while supervised. Since he still naps in the wrap, I usually keep it on him for naps, but at night and for baths, we take it off. It's made specifically for babies, and it's designed to break apart if too much force is applied to it, so there's not a strangulation risk. You have to choose a length that allows enough space to keep from being tight but isn't long enough for him to get in his mouth since the beads are fragile and could break. We ended up with a 12-13" one (honestly just because that's the smallest size that wasn't sold out). It is long enough that it will still work as he grows, but he has to really strain to try to get it in his mouth (enter the point of parental supervision).

Yes, it's definitely up there with the rest of my crunchy parenting affects, but if it really does work, it's well worth answering the questions! I have several friends who swear by them, so it's definitely becoming more popular. Granted, those friends are from LLL and our CSA, and thus are more inclined towards granola remedies, but still!




And as an added bonus, I think it's absolutely adorable!