Teething of Molars
The molars are the last set of teeth to emerge after the incisors and canines. There are two sets of molars " the first appearing between the ages of 1 year and 16 months: the other set appear in the baby's second year.
Can the molars appear first? Not really, your baby's first tooth is usually an incisor and this emerges in the bottom of their mouth (in the middle).
What are molars?
The molars are the squat, chunky teeth found at the back of your mouth. They act like a grindstone in that they grind down food before it is swallowed and passed down into the stomach. These are the chunkiest of all the teeth and can be the most awkward to emerge. By contrast the canines which appear in between are much less troublesome. Your baby will get 8 molars in total: four of these appear first followed by another four after their second birthday. The first four molars are often known as 'one year molars'.
Moans about molars
The molars are the last teeth to emerge and because of this and their size, can be the most painful. Sorry. Not what you want to hear but these tombstones can be a pain in the proverbial. Due to their size they take longer to break through than the other teeth and this can prolong the discomfort as well. Plus there is the fact that these teeth lie at the back of your baby's mouth which means that they are difficult to reach. So if you are thinking of applying some teething gel then don't expect this to be as straightforward as it was with the other teeth. And don't expect your baby to make this easy for you as he/she will be sore and niggly during this time. Teething is often worse during the second year and you have the molars to thank for that.
Dealing with problem molars
Before we depress you too much there is something you can do about this. Apart from accepting that it is a normal part of the teething process there are a variety of treatments available which can help to ease your baby's teething pain. These include teething rings, teething gels, teething powders, biscuits and so on. You could even try a few home-made remedies such as cold drinks or ice pops (yummy).
Find out more about these and other remedies in our teething treatment section.
