Son Not Chewing Well

Hi M.,

I would suggest that you call a speech pathologist and/or an occupational therapist and get an oral motor evaluation as soon as possible. This is important for all the reasons you list, but also for the proper development of speech because the tounge and lips gain strength from chewing and moving food, and without the proper muscle tone, he may not be able to make all the sounds he will need. The earlier you intervene, the better his outcome will be.

M.

Our twins were born at 27 weeks and we had to have therapy this is what they had us do. At this age they should be mimicking you, so whenever they eat you need to eat something as well, and literally sit there and chew your bite "very obviously" and say chew, chew, chew as your doing this and hopefully they will watch and repeat. Goodluck

You can make a game and practice numbers counting 1-10 for each time he chews before he swallows. Or you can coninue to make sure the food is soft or blended before he gets it. Or you can give him smaller bites so it takes him longer to eat. There are alot of options.