Baby teething in early modern England: theory and therapeutic practice

Abstract

Oral and dental healthcare was a major medical concern in 16th- and 17th-century England. The analysis of a representative corpus from Early English Books Online (EEBO) reveals that the general principles and therapeutic management of baby teething were found most often in pediatric and midwifery treatises. The chapters devoted to this babyhood process usually gave information on factors determining teething onset, eruption schedule, order of appearance, associated disorders and short-term prognosis. Among the remedies available to alleviate children's pain, the authors mention anti-inflammatory herbal ointments, soothing fomentations, periodic mouthwashes, and minor surgery. Although the selected chapters on baby teething do not include detailed accounts of teething-related symptoms, one can find consistent data in the different descriptions and recipes provided. This scholarly agreement indicates systematic medical and midwifery practices to deal with a predictable, but frequently troublesome, stage of children's development.