Mealtime should be a joyful and nourishing experience for every child and family. At Global Child Wellness, our Feeding Problems Therapy program provides compassionate and expert support for children experiencing a wide range of feeding challenges. We’re dedicated to helping your child develop positive eating habits, expand their diet, and transform stressful mealtimes into happy, healthy occasions.
Understanding Childhood Feeding Problems
Feeding difficulties in children can manifest in various ways and stem from a multitude of factors, including medical conditions, sensory sensitivities, developmental delays, or behavioral patterns. Common signs of feeding problems may include:
- Picky Eating: Extreme fussiness with food, refusing entire food groups, or eating a very limited number of foods.
- Difficulty with Textures: Gagging, vomiting, or refusing foods based on their texture.
- Mealtime Resistance: Crying, tantrums, or avoidance behaviors at mealtimes.
- Swallowing Difficulties: Choking, coughing, or struggling to manage food in the mouth.
- Poor Weight Gain: Insufficient intake of calories and nutrients leading to slow growth.
- Oral Motor Weakness: Difficulties with chewing, sucking, or manipulating food in the mouth.
These challenges can create significant stress for both children and parents, impacting nutrition, growth, and family dynamics.
Our Holistic Approach to Feeding Therapy
Our team of experienced therapists at Global Child Wellness utilizes a comprehensive, evidence-based, and child-centered approach to address feeding difficulties. We recognize that each child is unique, and our therapy plans are highly individualized, often integrating:
- Thorough Assessment: Identifying the underlying causes of feeding difficulties, which may include medical history, oral motor skills, sensory processing, and behavioral patterns.
- Oral Motor Skill Development: Exercises to improve jaw strength, lip closure, tongue movement, and chewing abilities.
- Sensory Exploration: Gradually introducing new foods through playful, non-pressured sensory experiences (touch, smell, sight, taste).
- Behavioral Strategies: Developing positive routines, reducing mealtime anxiety, and encouraging acceptance of new foods in a supportive environment.
- Dietary Expansion: Systematically working to broaden the variety of foods your child consumes.
- Parental Coaching & Support: Providing practical strategies, education, and emotional support to help parents confidently manage mealtimes at home.
- Collaboration: Working closely with pediatricians, nutritionists, and other specialists as needed to ensure holistic care.
Benefits of Feeding Problems Therapy:
- Improved Nutritional Intake: Ensuring your child receives the nutrients necessary for healthy growth and development.
- Expanded Food Repertoire: Helping children learn to accept and enjoy a wider variety of foods.
- Positive Mealtime Experiences: Transforming stressful meals into enjoyable family time.
- Enhanced Oral Motor Skills: Strengthening the muscles and coordination needed for efficient eating.
- Reduced Family Stress: Empowering parents with tools and confidence to manage feeding challenges.
- Increased Independence: Fostering a child’s ability to self-feed and explore foods.
Is Feeding Problems Therapy Right for Your Child?
If your child is a very picky eater, has difficulty with certain textures, shows resistance at mealtimes, or if you have concerns about their growth and nutrition, a feeding assessment can provide clarity and a path forward.
Let Us Help Your Child Develop a Healthy Relationship with Food.
Contact Global Child Wellness today to schedule an assessment and learn how our Feeding Problems Therapy can help your child become a happier, healthier eater, making mealtimes a joy for everyone.
