How to Make Breast Milk Popsicles for Teething Discomfort (Yes, It Works)
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You’ve come to the right place if you’re running out of ideas to help soothe your teething baby. Today you’ll learn how to make the easiest breast milk popsicles for teething babies who need comfort and relief using Nuby popsicle molds.
Teething is no fun for anyone, especially your baby. Between their sore gums and the teething gel not working — you need a better remedy. And that remedy is these easy breastmilk popsicles.
Breastmilk popsicles, also known as “momsicles,” are a gentle and effective way to alleviate some of the discomfort associated with teething while nourishing your baby at the same time. The cold temperature can help numb the discomfort, while the slow melting process encourages your baby to suck and gnaw, which can alleviate the pressure on their gums. Just be sure to use safe and age-appropriate popsicle molds and consult with your pediatrician to ensure it’s suitable for your baby.
In this post, we’ll explore the reasons why breastmilk popsicles are such a valuable tool for teething babies, offering insights that can empower moms like you to provide the best care for your little ones during this important developmental milestone.
*Friendly reminder to never leave baby unattended when eating or consuming any kind of food*
What Breastmilk Popsicle Mold Should You Use?
I’ll be using the Nuby Garden Fresh Fruitsicle Frozen Pop Tray in this article. However, these aren’t the only frozen cube trays that can make popsicles to fit in your baby’s mouth.
So, we’ll be going over all of the best popsicle mold trays to make breast milk popsicles.
1) Nuby Garden Fresh Fruitsicle Frozen Pop Tray
These small popsicle molds were one of my favorites when it came to making breast milk popsicles with fresh breast milk and other pureed fruits popsicles as my boys got older.
The Pros:
- I love that this mold didn’t require a lot of liquids, making it perfect for small hands and mouths.
- Made of BPA-free material
- Easy for small hands to grip and hold
- Can make up to 4 popsicles at once
The Cons:
- Not dishwasher safe
- Can be tricky to pull out of the tray
2) Munchkin Fresh Food Feeder (mesh)
This baby-sized popsicle mold isn’t my favorite for making popsicles, but it can hold things like frozen fruits, veggies, and more to help soothe your baby’s gums as they cut that first tooth.
The Pros:
- Great for introducing new foods (like chunks of fruits, veggies, or making popsicles)
- Mesh design helps reduce the risk of choking
- Mesh texture can be soothing on teething gums
- Dishwasher safe
The Cons:
- Very difficult to clean (food gets stuck in mesh easily)
3) EZPZ Tiny Pops Mold
If you’re a frequent reader here, you’ll know we LOVE EZPZ and the products they make for kids. It’s no surprise we also love their baby popsicle mold!
The Pros:
- Small, short, flat handles for easy grip by small hands
- Textured frozen sensory bumps for oral awareness (and can be soothing for teething babies)
- Easy to remove from the mold thanks to the silicone sleeve design
- Dishwasher safe
The Cons:
- This small popsicle mold only makes 2 (1/2 oz) popsicles at once
4) Baby Fruit Feeder Pacifier
I absolutely LOVE these fruit feeders! They’re shaped like little pacifiers and have the same idea as the mesh feeders above except — you can actually take them apart and clean them thoroughly after each use, yay!
The Pros:
- Pacifier comes in 3 different sizes
- Certified by World’s Leader in Testing, Inspection, and Certification (TIC)
- Easy to dismantle and wash/sanitize
- Has an adjustable knob to help push fruit or frozen milk out
- Thin handle that’s easy to hold
The Cons:
- Silicone nipples stain easily
- Doesn’t hold much food or milk
How to Make Breast Milk Popsicles for Teething Babies
Making this special cold treat, breast milk popsicles, for your teething baby is incredibly easy. And if you’ve tried countless other teething remedies that aren’t working, this might be the only thing that gets you through the storm, so get ready for relief!
It’s ideal to use fresh milk (pumped or manually expressed). Once frozen milk is thawed, unused milk should be discarded within 24 hours. If you’re not familiar with how to store breast milk, make sure to review the milk storage guidelines here first.
You can also use baby formula, but we’ll cover that down below.
Below are the steps you can follow to make your own breast milk popsicles.
Step 1: Take your Nuby Garden Fresh Fruitsicle Frozen Pop Tray and pour breast milk into each of the 4 popsicle molds with approximately 1/2 oz of breast milk (I like to use just shy of 1/2 oz).
Step 2: Take your popsicle mold handles and snap them into the open popsicle mold tray.
Step 3: Place your popsicles in the freezer for (at minimum) 2-4 hours to ensure they’re frozen all the way through.
Step 4: Once your popsicles are ready, remove one from the tray and let your baby enjoy gnawing on this delicious frozen treat!
These breast milk popsicles truly are a safe alternative to most teething remedies and are a great way to offer both nutrients and comfort.
How to Make Baby Formula Popsicles For Teething Babies
Yes, you can 100% use baby formula in place of breast milk as a safe alternative. These cool and soothing treats can provide relief to your little one’s sore gums just like breast milk popsicles. Baby formula popsicles are not only a tasty distraction, but they also offer hydration, which is crucial during this stage of development.
And, most importantly, you can follow the exact same steps above in your Nuby popsicle mold (or any other preferable popsicle mold) to make these yummy frozen treats.
How Long Should Teething Popsicles Stay In The Freezer?
Breast milk popsicles, when prepared with freshly expressed milk, can be kept in the freezer for about 1-2 months.
Frozen baby formula popsicles should be discarded within 24 hours. Unlike frozen breast milk, it’s not recommended that baby formula be stored in the freezer for prolonged periods of time.
When in doubt, play is safe, and use your best judgment.
When Can Babies Have Breast Milk Popsicles?
Once your baby is developmentally capable of bringing food or items to their mouth and is able to sit up, you can comfortably let them suck on a breast milk popsicle. On the contrary, if your baby is not able to sit up, you might be able to hold them upright and hold the popsicle for them so that they’re getting the relief of the cool, frozen milk on their gums without worrying about them actually sucking on the popsicle.
For some babies, this can be as early as 4-5 months of age, while for others it’s 6+ months old.
The most important thing to remember is that teething is inevitable. Unfortunately, for some babies, it can be very disruptive — causing them to have a sore mouth and be very uncomfortable. Fortunately, breast milk popsicles are one of a few effective ways you can provide your baby with some fast relief.
Have you tried making breast milk popsicles with any of these breast milk popsicle molds mentioned in this article? Let us know how it worked for your little one!
