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How Speech Therapists Help with Feeding and Swallowing Issues in Kids

Submitted by sambillings » Tue 01-Jul-2025, 17:30 Subject Area: General Keywords: Speech Therapy for kids	1 member rating

When most people hear the term speech therapy for kids, they immediately think of helping children with speech sounds or language delays. But did you know that speech therapists also help with feeding and swallowing issues in children? These professionals, known as speech-language pathologists (SLPs), are trained to work with children who have trouble eating, drinking, chewing, or swallowing safely.

Feeding and swallowing difficulties can affect a child’s growth, development, and overall well-being. If mealtimes are stressful, if your child avoids certain textures, or if they cough or gag while eating, it may be time to get help. This article explains how speech therapists play a critical role in diagnosing and treating feeding and swallowing disorders—and how early support can lead to healthier, happier mealtimes for your child.

What Are Feeding and Swallowing Disorders?
Feeding and swallowing disorders are medical conditions that affect a child's ability to eat and drink safely. These disorders can happen in babies, toddlers, and older children. They may include:

Oral motor difficulties – problems with chewing, sucking, or moving food around the mouth

Swallowing issues (dysphagia) – trouble moving food or liquid from the mouth to the throat and into the stomach

Sensory challenges – extreme sensitivity to textures, smells, or tastes of certain foods

Behavioral feeding difficulties – refusal to eat, limited food variety, or mealtime tantrums

Children with these challenges may:

Take a very long time to eat

Choke, gag, or cough during meals

Refuse specific textures (like crunchy or mushy foods)

Spit out food or vomit often

Have trouble gaining weight

Show fear or anxiety around eating

Feeding and swallowing issues can lead to poor nutrition, dehydration, weight loss, and even breathing problems if not treated properly.

How Can Speech Therapy Help?
Speech-language pathologists are trained to assess and treat disorders related to speech, language, communication, and swallowing. When it comes to feeding, they don’t just work on talking—they also focus on how the mouth, tongue, lips, and throat work together to chew and swallow food safely.

Here’s how speech therapy helps kids with feeding and swallowing challenges:

✅ Evaluates oral-motor strength and coordination
✅ Identifies unsafe swallowing patterns
✅ Builds muscle tone for chewing and swallowing
✅ Desensitizes sensory aversions to textures and tastes
✅ Introduces new foods in a safe, stress-free way
✅ Helps parents create positive mealtime routines
✅ Reduces mealtime anxiety or behavioral resistance
The goal of therapy is not just to get kids to eat—but to help them eat safely, comfortably, and joyfully.

Common Causes of Feeding and Swallowing Difficulties
Feeding problems can have many causes. Some children are born with medical conditions that affect their muscles or nervous system, while others develop feeding aversions due to negative experiences.

Here are a few common causes:

Premature birth

Neurological conditions (e.g., cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy)

Cleft lip or palate

Gastroesophageal reflux (GERD)

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

Down syndrome

Sensory processing disorder

Trauma during feeding (e.g., choking or hospitalization)

Regardless of the cause, speech therapists work closely with families and other healthcare providers to understand each child’s unique needs.

Signs Your Child Might Need Feeding Therapy
It’s not always easy to know when picky eating is just a phase—or a sign of something more serious. Here are some red flags to watch for:

🔹 Babies and Toddlers
Difficulty latching or sucking during breastfeeding or bottle feeding

Frequent coughing, choking, or gagging

Arching back or crying during feeding

Taking longer than 30 minutes to finish a bottle

Poor weight gain or growth

🔹 Preschoolers and Older Children
Eating only a few types of foods (less than 20)

Refusing entire food groups (e.g., all fruits or meats)

Chewing food and spitting it out

Difficulty moving food from side to side in the mouth

Gagging, coughing, or vomiting while eating

Constant drooling or food falling out of the mouth

Anxiety or stress around meals

If you notice these signs, it’s a good idea to speak with your pediatrician or seek an evaluation from a speech-language pathologist who specializes in feeding.

What Happens During a Feeding Evaluation?
A feeding evaluation is usually the first step in understanding what your child needs. During this session, the speech therapist will:

1. Ask Questions
The therapist will talk to you about your child’s feeding history, health conditions, food preferences, and mealtime behaviors. You may be asked to keep a food journal for a few days.

2. Observe Mealtime
You may be asked to bring your child’s favorite (and least favorite) foods to the appointment. The therapist will watch how your child sits, eats, chews, and swallows.

3. Check Oral-Motor Skills
The therapist will examine how your child uses their lips, tongue, cheeks, and jaw. This helps to see if the muscles are strong and coordinated enough for safe chewing and swallowing.

4. Identify Sensory or Behavioral Issues
They may also explore whether your child’s feeding difficulties are related to sensory sensitivity (e.g., texture aversion) or behavioral challenges (e.g., control or anxiety around food).

After the evaluation, the therapist will explain the findings and recommend a therapy plan.

What Is Feeding Therapy Like?
Feeding therapy sessions are designed to be fun, engaging, and tailored to your child’s specific needs. Most sessions are 30 to 60 minutes long and happen once or twice a week.

Here’s what feeding therapy might include:

🍽️ Oral Motor Exercises
These exercises help strengthen the muscles used for chewing and swallowing. Examples include:

Blowing bubbles or whistles

Chewing on chewy tubes or straws

Practicing tongue movements

Making silly faces to build lip and jaw control

🍓 Food Exploration
Children are encouraged to explore new foods through:

Smelling

Touching

Licking

Tasting in tiny steps

The therapist might introduce one new food at a time, paired with a familiar favorite. This process helps reduce fear and build comfort with a variety of textures and tastes.

📚 Feeding Routines and Mealtime Strategies
Parents learn how to:

Set up calm, predictable mealtimes

Avoid pressure or forcing during meals

Use positive language and praise

Create realistic expectations for progress

👨‍👩‍👧 Family Involvement
Parents are key partners in therapy. You’ll be given at-home exercises and strategies to use daily, such as:

Practicing chewing with soft foods

Offering finger foods that require jaw strength

Using utensils to build motor planning

Modeling mealtime behaviors

Real-Life Example: Feeding Therapy in Action
Let’s meet Ethan, a 3-year-old who would only eat crackers, yogurt, and milk. His parents were worried because he refused meats, fruits, and vegetables and gagged at the sight of new foods.

They took Ethan to a speech therapist who specialized in feeding therapy. After a full evaluation, it was discovered that Ethan had weak oral muscles and strong texture sensitivities.

Over several months of therapy, Ethan practiced tongue and lip exercises, slowly explored new foods (starting with mashed banana and pureed carrots), and built confidence at mealtime.

By age 4, Ethan had expanded his food list to over 30 different items and no longer cried at the dinner table. His family was relieved and excited to enjoy meals together again.

How Speech Therapists Work with Other Professionals
Feeding issues can be complex. Speech therapists often work

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