Speech therapists help children and adults with many different aspects of communication and feeding. We work together with other professionals to help people with feeding and eating difficulties, including occupational therapists, dieticians, nutritionists, doctors and specialists.
Some feeding difficulties that people can have include: eating a limited range of food/textures, food/drink going into the airways often, needing parents/carers to feed them, or difficulty maintaining a healthy weight.
Why do children have feeding problems?
Many children are labelled as ‘fussy eaters’ by their parents and carers. It is important to find out why a child is a fussy eater, to know how to help them. 97% of children who are fussy eaters have an issue with their body, which can explain why they are ‘fussy eaters’. Body problems may include difficulties with processing sensory input, muscle strength/co-ordination, overall feeding skill level, constipation, or other medical and physical problems.
Children learn new feeding skills when they experience good consequences such as feeling good because they’ve eaten, nice taste and positive responses from parents. Children stop practicing and developing skills when they experiences negative consequences i.e. linking a past eating experience with feeling sick, negative responses from a parent, etc.
A child’s current feeding skills reflect their body, skills, and previous feeding experiences. Read on to see how you can help children develop their feeding skills.
5 easy ways to help your child eat better
- Mealtimes should be shared, social, positive experiences with exposure to a range of familiar, new, and interesting foods. Praise children specifically for any positive mealtime behaviour (e.g. “I like the way you stayed in your seat!” “Nice work touching the new food!” “You chewed that chicken well!”)
- Structure meal times and snack times – try to feed your child at a time when they have an appetite. Build routines and include your child, to help their bodies and minds get ready for eating. Routines can include preparing a meal together, washing hands, eating and socialising at the table, and cleaning up together.
- Social modelling – children learn by watching other how people act. Show your child how you eat a range of foods, try new foods, and participate in mealtime routines. Praise siblings for positive mealtime behaviours, and your other children may try to do more of that positive behaviour.
- Talk about what you eat, and how you eat. Talk about textures, colours, tastes, how you prepared the food, and different preferences. (e.g. “crunchy”, “chew chew chew”, “mmm yummy”, “that’s sweet”)
- Playing with food is OK (actually, it’s GREAT!) – Any exposure to new or non-preferred food will help your child become more used to it, and may help them eventually try eating it. This includes: looking at foods on the table or their plate, touching a new food, painting with food, making artworks on the plate, or even smelling new foods. Make it fun, join in, and explore all senses of food.
When is feeding a ‘problem’? Seek support if…
Talk to a speech therapist or your doctor if your child:
- is not gaining weight
- frequently gags, chokes and/or coughs during meals
- doesn’t eat any solid foods by 12 months of age
- eats a range of less than 20 different foods
- is missing an entire category from their range of foods (e.g. no proteins, no vegetables, or no starches)
- drops food from their range, and doesn’t start eating dropped foods again
- becomes very upset when new foods are presented
- has feeding difficulties that lead to family frustration
If any of the above are true for your child, contact a speech therapist or your GP to discuss feeding concerns.
Ask us a question about your child’s eating
Some of the above information and ideas comes from the Sequential Oral Sensory (SOS) Feeding Program. Clear Communicators Speech Therapy has therapists trained in the SOS Feeding Program. We run small feeding groups in Bondi Junction, and support children individually using the SOS Feeding therapy approach to help fussy eaters.