Thursday, September 15, 2011

amber teething necklace review and GIVEAWAY!!

I am so excited to share with you today our experience with an amber teething necklace from Amber Artisans!


Feel free to stop by their Etsy shop and their website.





:: About Amber Artisans ::


Amber Artisans is located in Lithuania which is home to natural Baltic Amber.  Each piece of amber comes straight from the Baltic Sea and is polished by hand and carefully molded into pieces such as teething necklaces, bracelets, healing necklaces, and more!  "We our passionate about Baltic amber…it is in our blood; it is our destiny and the source of our livelihood. We are obsessed with amber’s history, beauty, mythology and the amazing healing properties that only natural Baltic amber possesses."

:: About Baltic Amber ::


One of the most significant uses of Baltic amber is to reduce inflammation.  It is also said to stimulate to thyroid glands and accelerate our natural immune system (via inflammation reduction).  It is a useful non-medical tool for things such as teething and arthritis.  The amber is actually a fossil that is quite old.  It is the resin from pine trees which grew in Europe.  Specifically it is 79% carbon, 10.5% hydrogen and 10.5% oxygen.  The amber releases succinic acid and that is absorbed into skin that comes into contact with the beads.

The following excerpt was taken from Amber Artisan's teething FAQ page.
The active ingredient in Baltic amber is succinic acid, which was analysed by the pioneer of modern bacteriology and Nobel-prize winner Robert Koch (1886). He confirmed its positive influences and discovered that there is no risk of the accumulation of surplus amounts of succinic acid in the human organism. Recent scientific research has also proved that succinic acid has a very positive influence on the human organism, iIt strengthens the body, improves immunity, the course of energy-related processes and the balance of acids. Current research shows that the micronization of amber improves its assimilation by the stress-weakened organism of the contemporary man. The unfavorable environmental conditions prevailing today block the natural flow of energy-related processes in cells. Blocks affect cellular metabolism and significantly weaken the immune system, but the natural energy of amber is able to stimulate its renewal.

For more information about the benefits of using Baltic amber during teething visit Amber Artisan's teething FAQ page.

:: Our Thoughts & Experiences ::


I picked up this very well packaged necklace from the post office as I was gone when the mailman attempted delivery and the package required a signature. After getting back into our car I opened it immediately and put it on Olive. I was very impressed by the care of the packaging and I love the little pouch that it came in.


The necklace that I was given is a wonderful light amber color and it is approximately 13" long.




When Olive began wearing the necklace about a month ago (at 5.5 months old) there were no visible signs that she was teething. At around 3 months of age Olive had a few tips of teeth peeking through her gums that were not giving her any trouble but they had since disappeared. I can say that, as of today (at nearly 7 months old), Olive has the entire top ridge of a bottom tooth showing as well as the tips of a few more. There have been a few times over the past month that Olive has suddenly become upset and was nearly inconsolable for some reason that we were unable to figure out. After giving her a little bit of gripe water she was able to calm down. It's possible that these few difficult times were due to teething pain. But overall it seems that Olive has had very little pain during the process of cutting her first tooth and I have seen virtually no swelling of her gums.  (While in the midst of writing this review Olive has begun showing additional signs of teething - increased drooling & mouthing of objects, as well as more fussiness than usual.)

Unfortunately I cannot ask Olive for her opinions for the purpose of this review so I can only tell you that for her first teething experience Olive seemed to be in little to no pain.

In an effort to come up with a little more content for this review I began wearing Olive's teething necklace around my ankle at night. You see, I have rheumatoid arthritis and my joins, specifically my ankles, are extremely stiff in the morning. I am happy to report that my ankles were noticeably less stiff on the mornings that I wore the necklace to bed! My ankles were still not as flexible and limber as normal ankles but were significantly better than the way they had been recently. I wore it on my ankle on and off so as to avoid any sort of placebo effect I may be experiencing. It came to a point that I couldn't really remember if I had it on or not upon waking so I judged the stiffness of my ankles before looking down!  After not wearing the necklace to bed for a few nights in a row the significant stiffness returned, leaving me hobbling into the hallway like an old woman.


Note: Amber teething necklaces should be worn directly on the skin - the necklaces is on top of Olive's clothing for the purpose of these photos.



Note: Amber teething necklaces are not recommended for chewing on. Olive is just too grabby and can't resist sometimes. I typically keep it between her clothing and her skin (as it works best when as much surface area of the beads is touching the skin as possible).


:: Conclusion ::


I am a firm believer in natural and homeopathic strategies for ailments of all kinds.  I would rather take time to explore those options before jumping to a more medical approach or conclusion, depending on the situation at hand.  For teething pain and discomfort I hope to explore various strategies for Olive and I to use before jumping into the world of meds.  Hopefully it won't get to that point and we'll find safe and natural ways to ease any discomfort she may have.  So do I recommend you try a baltic amber teething necklace?  Yes, I do!  It doesn't hurt and it's better than unnatural meds so I 100% support it.  The necklaces may not work for every baby but it is worth the try!  My personal experiences with decreased ankle stiffness in the morning makes me support the use of amber even more!  For around $20 you'd be silly not to try!


:: GIVEAWAY!!! ::


Would you like to try a Baltic amber teething necklace?  One lucky reader can win a necklace of their choice from Amber Artisans!  You can use the necklace for your own little one or win it as a gift for a friend!
To enter visit Amber Artisan's Etsy shop and come back here and leave a comment telling me which teething necklace you would choose if you won.

For additional entries do any or all of the following & leave a comment for each:

~ "Heart" Amber Artisans on Etsy

~ Subscribe to this blog or follow via a reader

~ Follow @bymyelf on twitter

~ "Like" my photography Facebook page

~ Tweet about this giveaway & include @bymyelf in your tweet

~ Blog about this giveaway (leave a link for me to see)

This giveaway is open to all!  The winner will be chosen via random.org in the evening on Friday, September 23rd


 

** I was provided an amber teething necklace free of charge for the purpose of this review. I was under no obligation to write a positive review - all opinions stated are completely my own. **

27 comments:

  1. Very interesting, Emma! I'm passing this along to a friend of mine who is expecting a little 'un in December!

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  2. [...] « amber teething necklace review and GIVEAWAY!!  |   [...]

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  3. I heart amber artisans

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  4. I would get the dark green teething necklace.

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  5. I like your facebook page

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  6. I follow you on twitter

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  7. I subscribe to this blog

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  8. The rainbow bean necklace is beautiful!

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  9. I subscribe to this blog

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  10. I follow you on twitter

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  11. I like your Facebook page

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  12. Awesome giveaway! I would choose the light colored baby amber teething necklace. Thanks for the chance!

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  13. [...] A Baltic amber teething necklace of your choice from Amber Artisans ends Friday 9/23 [...]

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  14. I would want the "Healing Baltic amber necklace-cherry sunshine beans" necklace. It's beautiful!

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  15. I tweeted about it. ^_^ Better late than never, right??

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  16. I would choose this one http://www.etsy.com/listing/81760348/spiritual-amber-teething-necklace for my sister expecting in February.

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  17. [...] And… (drum roll please) The winner of the A Baltic amber teething necklace from Amber Artisans is… [...]

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  18. [...] tooth poked through. Thankfully she has had little to no teething pain! I think I have to thank her Baltic amber teething necklace for some of that. Olive occasionally signs milk but when she’s really hungry I don’t [...]

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  19. Great giveaway. Amber teething necklaces are very popular in Baltic countries and have been around for a long time! I am happy to see the becoming more and more popular in US too!

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