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You don't want to do it, but there'll be times when you'll have to. Because there's no way to ask an infant to hold still, and no safe way to have her hold a thermometer under her tongue (something that'll have to wait until she's 4 or 5), assessing whether your little one has a fever is simply destined to be a wriggly, uncomfortable affair -- for both of you.

Your first temperature-taking step: Choose your thermometer. The most popular options are either rectal or tympanic (ear). You also have a choice between digital and mercury. Most experts recommend not using mercury since the danger of accidental mercury poisoning is too great. A rectal thermometer is really the gold standard, recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for the most accurate reading for infants....

You don't want to do it, but there'll be times when you'll have to. Because there's no way to ask an infant to hold still, and no safe way to have her hold a thermometer under her tongue (something that'll have to wait until she's 4 or 5), assessing whether your little one has a fever is simply destined to be a wriggly, uncomfortable affair -- for both of you.

Your first temperature-taking step: Choose your thermometer. The most popular options are either rectal or tympanic (ear). You also have a choice between digital and mercury. Most experts recommend not using mercury since the danger of accidental mercury poisoning is too great. A rectal thermometer is really the gold standard, recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for the most accurate reading for infants. Tympanic thermometers are commonly used because they are quick and convenient, and they do provide good results (follow the directions carefully to be sure).

A 2002 review of studies examining the difference between rectal and tympanic temperatures, published in the medical journal "The Lancet," concluded that although ear thermometers are quite accurate, rectal still is the best measure. The fact is, in infants, precision counts.

Because taking your baby's temperature rectally means, well, putting something inside your baby, consult your pediatrician on the best way to do it.

Take note

Two other temperature-taking options are available: pacifier thermometers and axillary (underarm) thermometers. Pacifiers can be accurate if your baby holds it in his mouth for several minutes. Axillary temperature are problematic for kids (imagine holding your baby's arm tight to his side for the time it takes to register the temperature, and you'll see why!).

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