Do you have a baby? Are you expecting a baby? Do you know a baby? Are you a baby?
If you answered yes to any of the questions above.. this post is for you! :)
Tonight I'm going to be sharing with you our family's experience with a Baltic amber teething necklace from the Etsy shop Amber for Sale.
Check out their Etsy shop or their website if you get a chance!
:: About Amber for Sale ::
They are located in Riga, Latvia and sell teething necklaces made of 100% natural Baltic sea amber. They use AAA class jewelry grade raw amber material. They carry many shades of amber beads in both traditional and contemporary designs as well as different shapes. They sell worldwide. "If you like amber jewelry and want to buy a gift for your teething baby then you are in the right place. Browse through our
site and see what you like."
:: About Baltic Amber ::
Amber is not produced from tree sap, but rather from plant resin. Amber is the ancient resin of trees. The resin has gone through a number of changes over millions of years. The result of this metamorphosis is an exceptional gem with extraordinary properties. It is exploited and used by both craftsmen and scientist. Amber, which is in fact a fossil, is often held in the same class as semi-precious stones such as turquoise and jade because of its ornamental uses. Unlike these stones, amber is not mineralized. Rather, it is simple the fossil of resin, or tree sap.Although considered a gem, amber is a wholly-organic material derived from the resin of extinct species of trees.In the dense forests of the Middle Cretaceous and Tertiary periods, between 10 and 100 million years ago, these resin-bearing trees fell and were carried by rivers to coastal regions. There, the trees and their resins became covered with sediment, and over millions of years the resin hardened into amber. Although many amber deposits remain in ocean residue, geological events often repositioned the amber elsewhere.Amber can be found on the shores of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. The main producer of amber worldwide is Russia. In fact about 90% of the world’s available amber is located in the Kaliningrad region of Russia, which is located on the Baltic. Here, amber is washed up on the coast after being dislodged from the ocean floor by years of water and ocean currents. Amber can also be found in the forests of Ukraine. Ukranian amber, which is found within the marshy forest floor in the area surrounding the Volhyn-Polesie border, is prized for its wide range of tones and colors.Amber is still widely used in jewelry and ornament today. Many jewelers who create stately designs enjoy working with amber because such large pieces are available. Furthermore, amber is significantly less expensive than gemstones. Because of the color range within amber, a necklace made of amber beads can include a stunning arrangement of tones and hues.To learn more about Baltic amber
click here.
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 frequently asked questions about using Baltic amber for teething
click here.
:: Our Thoughts & Experiences ::
Olive and I were sitting on the front step waiting for my husband to get home from work when the mailman passed by and handed us this package. We opened it immediately and I put it right on Olive!
I was able to choose which necklace I wanted for Olive. I love the contrast between the light and dark beads on this necklace!
It's just over 12 inches long.
When Olive began wearing a Baltic amber teething necklace (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 7.5 months old), Olive has two teeth! The bottom center right tooth came in first and is nearly all the way in and the other bottom center tooth to the left of the first one broke through about a week ago. There have been a few times 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. Olive has bouts of significant drooling during the teething process but it rarely lasts an entire day. She continues to mouth numerous objects but I think she's been doing that consistently since gaining decent hand coordination. :)
When Olive's second tooth was coming close to breaking through the skin I could tell for a few days prior that it would be happening soon.. I could see the tooth getting closer and closer to the surface. And then one morning there it was! There were no signs during those couple of days that Olive was having an increase in pain or swelling or any other typical symptoms (save for drooling). That's amazing!
But unfortunately I cannot ask Olive for her opinions for the purpose of this review so I can only tell you that during the appearance of her first two teeth 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 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).
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.
Clearly Olive loves her necklace. :)
:: 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 for Sale! You can use the necklace for your own little one or win it as a gift for a friend!
To enter visit Amber for Sale’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 for Sale on Etsy
~ Subscribe to this blog or follow via a reader
~ Follow @bymyelf http://twitter.com/#!/bymyelf
~ “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 Monday, October 10th
** 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. **
