Help Needed with a Child That Literally Bites Pieces off of 'Anything' !!!

Updated on September 18, 2010
R.D. asks from Evansville, IN
8 answers

I have a one year old that literally eats on plastic, wood, paper, anything she can bite off.......no matter what we do to cover things up, or move things out of her way, she will find something else to bite on....we are 'forever' pulling things out of her mouth that she has bitten off of something, whether it be furniture, toys, rug threads, cushions...etc...... Any comments or suggestions????

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A.S.

answers from Detroit on

My son would chew on the wooden tables and hard plastic cars, but he stopped as soon as his teeth were in. Teethers were not hard enough for him.

But my first thought since it's everything and anything (not just hard objects) was some kind of vitamin/mineral deficiency or pica.

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L.D.

answers from Las Vegas on

Buy a few tough plastic teething rings (make sure at least one of them vibrates) and everytime you see her starting to bite into somthing that she shouldn't, pick her up and out of the way of whatever she's planning on sinking her teeth into, hand her one of the teeth rings and tell her something like, "this is what we can chew." This could all be part of her teething process or her need to explore her world with her mouth -- all perfectly normal.

If you find that, several months down the line, her interest in chewing things and mouthing things doesn't seem to be fading away, I would suggest talking to your pediatrician about this and ask him to give you a referral to have your daughter evaluated by an Occupational Therapist. Some children have what's knowns as Sensory Processing Disorder which causes them to seek out sensory input with their mouth. If this is the case, the the OT can help regulate your daughter's senses so that she is not constantly putting inedible objects in her mouth and chewing on them.

Hope this helps. Have a good day.

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P.M.

answers from Portland on

Your little one could have a sensory integration issue. Some children have a strong craving for certain kinds of touch, sensation, textures, smells, etc., and some children have aversions to the very same things. Throw in teething, and you can end up with a chewer/biter. This is a common disorder (I have some issues myself) and doesn't mean your child won't have a normal life. She may just need more (or less) of certain sensations.

Have you tried keeping a few dedicated chewing items around, like teething rings, an organic cotton toy? There are also products made just for children with a strong need for oral stimulation. http://www.flaghouse.com/Giant-Leaps/Sensory-Integration/...

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D.P.

answers from Pittsburgh on

Most kids "mouth" and chew things to O. extent or another. It's most likely a phase.
Have you ever heard of Pica?

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J.D.

answers from Washington DC on

Sadly, I think this is just a phase you'll have to deal with. Just watch her very carefully. Eventually, kids outgrow the phase where they want to put everything in their mouths. My son is the same way. We try to offer teether toys for him to chew on, but he much prefers to chew on things that he shouldn't chew on.

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B.

answers from Augusta on

My daughter did that , her toddler bed looked like a beaver had gotten a hold of it so did just about everything else in her room.
you can try teething rings. Also try giving her things to eat that crunch might help. keep a small bowl of say goldfish or something like that in her play area.
No it does not cause eating problems. I did this with my daughter she's a skinny mini just like I was when I was her age.
Also try maybe putting some origel on her gums , she could be getting molars.

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J.P.

answers from Los Angeles on

Our dog did that, sorry, nothing else to compare it to. She had a mineral deficiency and when we started giving her minerals, she stopped eating rocks, chairs, etc. Maybe just a little liquid calmag might do the job. if it doesn't, then a a tad of liquid multi-mineral might help?

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P.R.

answers from Cincinnati on

Pica was the first thing that came to mind for me, too.

1 mom found this helpful
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