'A four-year-old boy in our nursery has suddenly started chewing on his sleeves or other parts of his clothing, or on soft toys, for long periods of time. Are children of this age still teething?' Dr Pat Gilbert replies:
At four years of age all the 'milk teeth' will have erupted, and the second set of teeth, the 'permanent' teeth, will not as yet have begun to appear. This will occur around six years of age, when the milk teeth will fall out to make room for the permanent set. It is worth looking in the child's mouth, however, to be sure that there is no decay going on in his teeth. This could be giving him pain, which he tries to relieve by chewing. Look also for any sore spots in his mouth.
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