baby

A mum's "lifesaver" hack for teething babies went viral. We got an expert's verdict.

A mum has gone viral for her hack aimed at helping ease the pain of teething babies.

Emelia Jackson from Washington posted the hack earlier this month on Facebook, and it’s already been shared more than 100,000 times, as well as picked up by websites around the world.

It involves a dummy that can be filled with water.

“If your babies are teething, mamas, put water in your Soothie and then put it in the freezer for a couple hours,” Jackson wrote. “Seriously, a lifesaver for teething mamas. He was so content with his cold binky.”

Jackson tells Mamamia that she had “no idea” her hack would go viral.

“I was just trying to help out some of my fellow friends on Facebook,” she explains. “Then it blew up.”

She says she’s had a lot of people thank her for the hack, but she’s also had a lot of backlash.

“Some mums have never seen the binky before, so they thought there was a hole in it. They then assumed the baby was guzzling icy cold water.”

However, it seems that the frozen dummy hack may not be the best thing for teething babies – and it doesn’t have anything to do with guzzling the water.

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Professor David Manton, the chairman of the Australian Dental Association Oral Health Committee, says he wouldn’t recommend freezing for a couple of reasons.

“The ring or filled dummy would become very hard – an infant’s oral soft tissues are very soft, so there is the possibility of damaging this delicate tissue,” he tells Mamamia.

“Also, depending on the temperature of the freezer, damage due to coldness is also possible.”

The Australian Dental Association recommends “chilled teething rings – not frozen” for teething babies.

“Chilled teething rings (from the fridge) can assist with temporary pain relief, and the pressure and cold act as a distraction.”

Would you try this hack for teething?

Photo via Facebook/Emelia Jackson