Three Structures in a Child ’s Mouth That Can Cause Picky Eating

Babies, toddlers, and older children can develop feeding difficulties—ranging from general picky eating to severe feeding disorders—for a variety of reasons. As a speech-language pathologist who specializes in feeding challenges in children, I peer into a lot of little mouths. In my professional experience, these three “mouth offenders” can shape a child’s willingness to try new foods. Misaligned teeth: Crowded, missing or blocked teeth that haven’t erupted properly can impact a child’s ability to adequately chew food. The way the teeth contact each other might also indicate misalignment of the jaw. As a child’s face grows, the misalignment can worsen, affecting facial appearance and swallowing patterns. Kids who have trouble breaking down foods for comfortable swallowing might stick to softer foods, like macaroni and cheese, or meltables that blend easily with saliva, such as fish crackers. An anterior open bite—possibly caused by thumb, finger or pacifier sucking for prolonged periods—encourages the tongue to rest forward in the mouth. This forward posture might in turn create an immature swallowing pattern making certain foods difficult to propel back for swallowing. Once again, kids stick to certain foods because mechanically, they are just easier to eat. I suggest parents seek consultation with a pediatric dentist and a certified orofacial myologist. Enlarged tonsils: The palatine tonsils are positioned neatly on the left and right side of the oral ph...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Tags: Speech-Language Pathology Early Intervention Feeding Disorders Swallowing Disorders Source Type: blogs