Breastfeeding a Baby Who Bites

Breastfeeding is often a calm and relaxing ritual, once nursing habits become established between mother and child. However, things may become challenging again if your baby starts teething and becomes a biter. Not all babies will bite their nursing mothers, and some may only do it once. Once is all it may take for a mother to become tense and nervous during a feeding, though. There are precautions to take, should your baby bite you, that will make breastfeeding enjoyable for you again.

Some mothers may mistakenly believe that once baby has teeth, breastfeeding is over. That isn’t true- the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that a mother nurse her child for at least one year. Considering most babies get their first tooth at around six months old (sometimes sooner!), there are obviously ways around this obstacle or else babies would be weaned much too early. I know that when I began to nurse, I thought that I would do it until my baby cut his first tooth, but I was greatly misinformed. Some mothers nurse their child for several years without incident!

So, why do babies bite? There are several reasons. If your baby is teething, he will do this to relieve pressure in his gums. Suckling usually intensifies the teething pain in his mouth so he reacts with biting. An older baby may also bite when he is distracted and not very hungry. He may see Mommy as a playmate and start chewing on her. He doesn’t realize that this biting causes her pain, so there is no malice behind it. It is also possible that an older baby is biting in order to get his mother’s attention when she is focusing on something besides him.

Remember, if baby is eating, he can’t be biting. It is physically impossible for baby to bite while he suckles because his tongue will positioned over his lower teeth and that would mean biting your nipple and his tongue. So, if baby has begun to back off the nipple, break the seal with your finger and take him off as quickly as possible. If he is really hungry, he will eat and not bite. It is possible for baby to be too distracted to eat. If you think that is the case, take him to a dim, quiet room to feed. If he bites you, don’t react severely or with a yelp. He may see this as funny and it will do it even more. Calmly take your nipple out of his mouth and say, “Please don’t hurt Mommy”. You may want to put him down or hand him to someone else until baby decides he is ready to get serious and eat.

A baby has sharp, little teeth. It is quite painful to be bitten and it is even possible for your baby to break the skin. However, you shouldn’t be discouraged from breastfeeding. It really is your baby’s best source of food. Most biting is a short-lived phase. Just be sure to watch his cues to see if he is done eating, if he is backing off your nipple, or if he is getting distracted and antsy. Before long, you will be able to circumvent any danger of being bitten by your baby. Don’t worry, this too shall pass.