What is feeding therapy?

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Feeding therapy is more than just “teaching a child to eat.” Your therapist will work closely with your child and families to determine the source of the child’s difficulties and develop very specific therapies to make the entire process of eating easier and more enjoyable.  Feeding therapy focuses on helping your child develop the necessary skills to eat safely and/or help expand their tolerance to a variety of age-appropriate foods. 

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When should a child be referred for feeding therapy?

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 Some things to look for and discuss with your pediatrician are:

• Difficulty chewing foods, typically swallowing food in whole pieces.

• Difficulty swallowing foods or refuses to swallow certain types of food consistencies.

• Refuses to eat certain food textures or has difficulty transitioning from one texture to another texture (ex: from bottle feedings to purees, from purees to soft solids or mixed textured foods).

• Gags on, avoids or is very sensitive to certain food textures, food temperatures and/or flavors.

• Struggles to control and coordinate moving food around in mouth, chewing and preparing to swallow food.

• Fussy or irritable with feeding.

• The child seems congestion during feedings or after.

• Frequently coughs when eating.

• Gags and chokes when eating.

• Frequently vomits during or immediately after eating or drinking.

• Refuses or rarely tries new foods.

• Pushes food away.

• Has difficulty transitioning from gastric tube (G tube) feedings to oral feedings.

• Negative mealtime behaviors (infant cries, arches, pulls away from food; child refuses to eat, tantrums at mealtimes or “shuts-down” and does not engage in mealtime).

• Infant demonstrating signs of difficulty with coordinating the suck/swallow/breath pattern during bottle or breastfeeding.

• Feeding time taking longer than 30 minutes for infants, and 30 to 40 minutes for toddlers or young children.

• Known to be a “picky eater” who eats a limited variety of foods or consistencies.

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Learn more about feeding disorders.

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What skills are taught in feeding therapy?

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During feeding therapy, the speech language pathologist works with your child to provide them with the skills they need to make meal-time more enjoyable and nutritious. The skills taught to each child are determined based on the patient’s needs which are determined from a completed feeding evaluation.  Some of the feeding skills taught may include:

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• Oral skills:

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• Food orientation:

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• Improving the overall eating experience:

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How long does feeding therapy take?

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The length and frequency of therapy depends upon each child’s needs.  Your therapist will work with you and your child to make sure your child gets the right amount of therapy so that he or she can progress without feeling too overwhelmed.

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Questions? Please call us at 850-466-7061 or email smcilwain@gulfcoastspeechlanguage.com

Fax: 448-400-4238

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