You wait, you peek, you might even poke. You get through some fitful nights with your unusually fussy baby ... and ta-da! That first teeny-tiny baby tooth appears. But once those little pearly whites start popping up, then what?
Baby teeth, also called primary or deciduous teeth, are temporary placeholders for the permanent set, but they play an important role in your child's development.[1] Here’s a baby teething chart with everything you should know about the arrival of your baby’s first tooth.
At what age do babies get teeth?
When it comes to baby teeth eruption, there’s a wide range of normal. The average first baby tooth peeks through around 6 months, but first teeth may also emerge at 12 months (or even later).[2] And some babies cut their first teeth very early, at around 3 or 4 months old.[3]
It’s hard to predict exactly when your baby’s teeth will arrive. Your little one might experience teething symptoms like drooling and irritability before his first tooth erupts — or he may have virtually no noticeable symptoms at all.
If your child is having teething symptoms, you're likely wondering how long they'll last. "Anecdotally, it can take up to two months before that first tooth cuts through", says Michelle Kelman, D.D.S., a pediatric dentist in Los Angeles, California and member of the What to Expect Medical Review Board. "Symptoms tend to be worse one week before, so I usually say that it’s the worst up to one week before the eruption."
Baby teeth chart and order of tooth appearance
For many babies, the bottom front teeth (also known as lower central incisors) erupt first, at around 6 to 10 months, although some get their first teeth earlier than 6 months and others as late as 12 months. It’s also typical for the upper central incisors to appear first on the top of your baby’s mouth, at around 8 to 12 months.[4]
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The teething process can be painful and uncomfortable for babies. But most babies get used to the feeling of baby teeth eruption and aren’t too bothered later on.
So you know when to be on the lookout, here’s the order that baby teeth typically appear:
Upper teeth:
- Upper central incisor: Erupts 8-12 months
- Upper lateral incisor: Erupts 9-13 months
- Upper first molar: Erupts 13-19 months
- Upper canine or cuspid: Erupts 16-22 months
- Upper second molar: Erupts 25-33 months
Lower teeth:
- Lower central incisor: Erupts 6-10 months
- Lower lateral incisor: Erupts 10-16 months
- Lower first molar: Erupts 14-18 months
- Lower canine or cuspid: Erupts 17-23 months
- Lower second molar: Erupts 23-31 months
How many teeth should babies and kids have?
By the time they're 1 year old, most kids have between two and four teeth. Your child’s baby teeth eruption will continue until about age 2 1/2, at which point most children have their full set of 20 primary teeth.
Despite being called “baby teeth,” these tiny chompers stay put well past the baby years. The first baby tooth will typically fall out to make room for your child’s permanent choppers when he’s about 6 or 7 years old. The last of his primary teeth won’t be replaced by permanent teeth until around age 12 to 13, although some kids don’t get all of their 32 permanent teeth (which include their wisdom teeth) until they’re 21.
It’s actually possible to keep baby teeth for longer or even for life. These “retained primary teeth” usually occur when there isn’t a permanent successor. Your dentist will form a treatment plan to manage the over-retained tooth.
If no teeth have erupted by 12 months, make an appointment with a pediatric dentist. You should also reach out to your practitioner if your child appears to have a blue "bubble" around an erupting tooth, as this may be an eruption hematoma. "An eruption hematoma looks like a bluish, semi-translucent bump or dome, and it can look like a bruise on the gums," says Dr. Kelman. If your baby has one, it’s best to see a pediatric dentist for an evaluation, she says.
Do babies need their teeth to chew?
Your baby will use those first few teeth for biting on food (and toys, and fingers) rather than for chewing, which starts when his molars come in between 13 and 33 months.Until then, he’ll primarily use his gums to mash food.
There’s a wide range of normal when it comes to the eruption of your child’s baby teeth. On average, his first tooth will probably cut through around 6 months, though some teeth emerge earlier or later than this.
The bottom front teeth (aka your child’s lower central incisors) usually erupt first, around 6 to 10 months, although some kids get these first teeth earlier or later. The upper central incisors generally appear first on the top of your baby’s mouth, at around 8 to 12 months.
By the time your child is 1 year old, he’ll probably have between two and four teeth. His baby teeth will continue to erupt until about age 2 1/2, at which point most kids have their full set of 20 primary teeth.
To care for his baby teeth, make sure to brush them twice a day as soon as the first tooth pokes through, serve low-sugar foods and drinks, and schedule your child’s first dentist appointment.
How do I care for my baby’s first teeth?
Just because they’re not permanent doesn’t mean they’re not important. To prevent cavities and keep baby's teeth healthy, follow these baby teeth care tips:
- Brush baby's teeth regularly. Make sure to brush your baby’s teeth twice a day as soon as the first tooth pokes through. A playful baby toothbrush makes the job more fun. Both manual toothbrushes and electric toothbrushes for kids do the job well, so choose whatever option your little one seems to prefer. Make sure the toothbrush has real rather than rubber bristles, which work well for massaging gums but not for brushing teeth. You can also wipe down your baby's teeth after nursing and after meals with a washcloth or tooth wipe.
- Serve up low-sugar foods and drinks. Sugary foods, especially potentially sneaky ones like processed foods and fruit juice, are thought to be a major reason why nearly a quarter of toddlers have cavities.[5] Babies under 1 should have no juice whatsoever, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP),[6] and if you must give your toddler the sweet drink, limit it to no more than 4 to 6 ounces of 100% fruit juice per day. Also skip the sugar-sweetened beverages and always read food labels.[7]
- Be cautious with bottles. To help prevent tooth decay, avoid serving juice in a bottle. You also shouldn’t put your baby to bed with a bottle of breast milk or formula, as sugars can still eat away at teeth. After nursing or bottle-feeding, either brush your baby's teeth or wipe them with a wet gauze or washcloth.
- Use a plain pacifier. Never dip it in honey (which can cause infant botulism) or sugar.[8]
- Visit the dentist. Schedule your baby’s first dentist appointment by the time he gets his first tooth or turns 1 year old, whichever comes first.
- Use fluoride toothpaste. Pediatricians and dentists once recommended that you not start your baby on fluoride toothpaste until he could spit it out, around age 3 or 4. But the AAP now recommends starting babies on a tiny smear of fluoride toothpaste (about the size of a grain of rice) once they cut their first teeth, and gradually working them up to a pea-sized amount when they can spit it out well, around age 2 to 3.
- Ask your pediatrician about fluoride supplements. Babies under 6 months old don’t need fluoride supplements, and older babies only need it if the local water supply isn’t fluoridated, or if they just drink bottled water, which contains no fluoride. If your child is at high risk for tooth decay and your primary drinking water isn’t fluoridated, your pediatrician and pediatric dentist can help you determine whether your child needs a special supplement for babies or toddlers.
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