Feeding, Oral Motor, & Sensory Issues

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What Is A Feeding Disorder?

A child with a feeding disorder does not consume enough food (or liquid or a broad enough variety of food) to gain weight and grow normally. A child with a feeding disorder, may only eat a few foods, completely avoiding entire foodgroups, textures or liquids necessary for proper development. As a result, children diagnosed with feeding disorders are at greater risk for compromised physical and cognitive development. Children with feeding disorders may also develop slower, experience behavioral problems and even fail to thrive.

Are there different types of feeding disorders?

There are many different types of feeding disorders, and they can take on one or more of the following forms:

Trouble accepting and swallowing different food textures

Throwing tantrums at mealtimes

Refusing to eat certain food groups

Refusing to eat any solids or liquids

Choking, gagging or vomiting when eating

Oral motor and sensory problems

Gastrostomy (g-tube) or naso-gastric (ng-tube) dependence

What are some signs or symptoms of a feeding disorder?

Children with feeding problems have a wide variety of symptoms. Not all signs and symptoms are present in every child. The following are signs and symptoms of feeding problems in very young children:

arching or stiffening of the body during feeding

irritability or lack of alertness during feeding

refusing food or liquid

failure to accept different textures of food (e.g., only pureed foods or crunchy cereals)

long feeding times (e.g., more than 30 minutes)

difficulty chewing

difficulty breast feeding

coughing or gagging during meals

excessive drooling or food/liquid coming out of the mouth or nose

difficulty coordinating breathing with eating and drinking

increased stuffiness during meals

gurgly, hoarse, or breathy voice quality

frequent spitting up or vomiting

recurring pneumonia or respiratory infections

less than normal weight gain or growth

What Are Oral Motor Skills?

Oral-motor skills involve the movements of the lips, jaw, tongue, and cheeks. These muscles are important for eating, drinking and speech. Examples of oral-motor activities including drinking from a straw, chewing, and blowing a toy horn. Children who struggle in this area may have problems tolerating different food textures, drinking from a cup, having their teeth brushed, and may overstuff their mouth with food.

Sensory Modulation Disorder

A problem in regulating responses to sensory inputs resulting in withdrawal or strong negative responses to sensations that don not usually both