How to stop a baby with first teeth from biting the nipple when breastfeeding?

Answer 1

If they're biting then they're not feeding and so you end the session. If they want to nurse for comfort and alone-time with you, they'll get the point really quick not to do that. Same goes for if they're actually hungry. You don't smack them, flick their cheek or yell or get angry - certainly if baby hurts you, giving a yelp of pain is ok and may do the trick - but don't make a production out of it - baby may either a) go on a nursing strike and refuse to nurse because they're scared witless or b) decide it was funny to see your reaction and continue doing it. Neither is a good thing.

As long as the baby is actually latched on and suckling it is actually IMPOSSIBLE for them to bite you - the lower teeth are covered by the tongue when they are nursing and so even if they squeeze down for whatever reason, it doesn't hurt. My daughter is 16 1/2 months and still nurses about once a night, usually right after we get home from our day (reconnect time). I'm not actively weaning her, but I do the 'don't offer, don't refuse' thing --- she has a mouthful of teeth and has never bitten me. The last time she 'bit' down was before she had teeth (still hurt like crazy!) and doing what I suggested above put an end to that very quickly.

Good luck!

edited to add: ok having read through some of the posts - regarding the 'don't breastfeed once teeth come in because they need solids' is ridiculous. You obviously don't have children. My first daughter got her first teeth at 4 months old. NOT old enough to switch to solids. front teeth do not grind food - babies do that with their gums. That's why they're not given steak or fibrous veggies first. Do not use nipple shields or anything complicated. It's a very simple, normal issue that is typically easily solved so long as you're practical and use common sense and not get hysterical. You do not need to stop nursing your baby because they nip once in a while. The benefits to you both far outweigh the occasional discomfort. If it's not occasional, then you're not addressing the issue (just like if a child continues to throw fits - fits every once in a while are normal, typical and to be expected - repeated tantrums indicate a parent is not really addressing the underlying issue or correcting their child's behavior). Anyway. It just irritates me when people without a clue suggest such ridiculous stuff.

Answer 2

There are a few different reasons baby may be biting.

Maybe there is some teething pain going on? Offer some Hyland's Teething Tablets or something cold to chew on before nursing. The Hyland's tablets are better than Orajel as they don't numb the mouth, which messes with baby's latch and desire to nurse.

Biting at the start of a nursing session is often related to teething. It could also be related to frustration is mom's letdown isn't fast enough.

Biting at the end of a nursing session when baby is still awake is usually an indicator that baby is getting bored or playing around. Watch your baby for signs that he is no longer actively nursing and take him off the breast. Keep a finger close by to break the suction BEFORE he can bite. If he does clamp down, pull baby IN to the breast so he has to let go in order to breathe.

If baby is biting in the middle of a nursing session, tell him firmly "NO biting" and then put him down on the floor or somewhere else safe. (Don't yell as you might scare him. Also, sometimes they think the big reaction is funny and will do it again because of that.) He will probably be upset. Remember this is one of the first discipline lessons you are teaching him. It's OK if he is upset for a minute. After a few minutes, let him finish the feeding. If he bites again, put him down again. Etc.

Is he distracted? Wiggling around a lot, looking around, etc? Maybe he is nursing out of boredom and not out of hunger at the moment? If so, try distracting him with some other fun activity and see if he really wanted to nurse or not.

Maybe you are engaged in something else (TV, book, phone call) and not paying attention to him? Maybe this is his way of getting your attention and asking for eye contact? Try being more involved with him while nursing and see if that changes things.

Hope this helps!

ETA:
If you have any nipple soreness or damage, Lansinoh will help heal it.

ETA Again:
I also forgot to say.....
If he is falling asleep and biting, it may be that his head is not supported well-enough. If they are falling asleep and you don't support their head well enough, they can get a sensation like they are falling and may clamp down to "catch" themselves. So look at how you are holding him if this is the case.

Answer 3

My daughter did the same thing. Man it was painful and I sadly had to give up breastfeeding her at six months.. she had cut her two bottom and two top teeth and wouldn't stop biting. The things I were told to do when she would bite from my breastfeeding consultant were.
When she bites, remove her from the breast and place her away from you and tell her 'NO!" very firmly.
Or, push her face against your breast so her nose is pushed into your breast and she has to release herself from the breast in order to breath. Warning though... when I tried this one w/ my daughter she just bit me harder and started struggling w/ my nipple inbetween her teeth. My daughter was biting so hard that she was actually cutting me I had about three cuts on my nipples, I was bleeding. It got to the point where I didn't know if she was biting me or sucking when I breastfed it was that painful. So good luck w/ your struggle.... I know my sister-inlaw ... her son would bite her once or twice but then stopped.
It's a comfort thing for the babies... hope all goes well!!

Answer 4

Hi. I know the feeling.Im still breast feeding my little boy whos 8 mths old!
He has had his two bottom teeth since he was 5 mths!
He never bit until 2 weeks ago, i took him off my breast, said no gently, let him cry for a second for it then put him back on! He didnt do again during that feed. I think he just bites has hes pulling, trying to get more milk- (greedy)
Dont let you baby get in a state before feeding because then they clamp down on you nipple, i usually give a dummie to calm my son down(when he just wants milk) After his food, i offer it straight away!
They dont do it for long because they know what its for. Everytime my son sees my breast he stares-their not stupid
Good Luck
Cat

Answer 5

OUCH, you do not need to stop BF but I understand you for wanting to. If you want to stop BF, you need to get him to take the bottle first and take away one feeding every 2-3 days. You need to make your baby understand that biting hurts, I use to scream in pain (and it was not fake) when my daughter bit me, I also unlatched her and stopped BF for half an hour. After 3-4 days she was not biting me anymore, now she has 6 teeth (9 months) and does not bite me. Good luck and if you find a bottle that works for you, let me know because I tried everything with my daughter :-)

Answer 6

I breastfeed my youngest until she was 9 months old and she had a full mouth teeth and it hurt like hell each time she bit me. I always would tell her no sternly and take the breast away for a little while. This worked for a few months but she started bitting all the time and finally bit so hard she made me bleed and I had to quit nursing. I did not go to a bottle of formula, instead I went straight to milk and a sippy cup.

Answer 7

Young infants learn via conditioning. Simply unlatch the baby for a few seconds every time the baby bites, then relatch to continue feeding. You might like to repeat a sentence along with the above action, e.g. 'No biting please; it hurts mommy...' Baby will soon pick that cue up and stop biting because milk supply stops everytime baby bites.

Answer 8

If they nip you, pull them off and firmly say NO. They soon catch on my son only nipped me a few times. ( I breastfed until he was 11months old and had 8 teeth.)

Dont listen to some of the other answerers telling you to stop breastfeeding, this is nonsense. They obviously never breastfed in the first place.

Answer 9

My second baby used to bite me when he had had enough milk. I didn't like to be bitten so I took him off the breast whenever he did it. He soon worked out that biting me was not a good idea. When the baby bites he/she may need something to chew on, I used to give mine rusks, they loved them. Best wishes.

Answer 10

Well...good luck with that!!!!! The baby is teething...and chewing on the nipple gives the baby some relief from mouth pain!!!!