Food for Thought, Thoughts for Food
“Here comes the choo-choo train! Choo-Choo!”
Long gone are the days when this was our most creative feeding strategy. Sure, babies love that...sometimes. But what about a five year old? A seven year old? A teenager?
Last week, our Lead SLP, Courtney Sistak, completed the SOS Feeding Training with Dr. Kay Toomey (cited below). Courtney is eager to offer this specialized therapy to the Gilbert, AZ community as she is now one of two licensed and certified Speech-Language Pathologists (as of 6/27/2021) in town that is trained.
Why is this training important?
The SOS Feeding approach is based on sensory needs. We all have sensory needs. For example, have you ever thought to yourself, “Ew, I got syrup on my hands, too sticky!”, or, “This burger is too greasy for my liking,” or even, “Peanut butter gets stuck on the roof of my mouth and I just don’t like that feeling”? Some individuals experience aversive thoughts like these with more foods than you may expect.
>This potato chip is too crunchy. I don’t like that sound.
>This chicken has such a big smell. It makes my tummy upset.
>That carrot is such a wild color. I do not want to look at it.
Taste, smell, color, texture, sound, vestibular, proprioception, interoception. There are so many aspects to food. And, the likelihood that children are able to express their thoughts about why nonpreferred food is not preferred is rare. Dr. Toomey emphasizes that eating is so complex since it incorporates all the senses. If something in this integration is off, it’s likely that children with sensory aversion may avoid their food.
In addition to sensory aversions, feeding skills and health specifics impact overall feeding capabilities and desires. Some individuals require more explicit teaching of feeding skills. Maybe they need to be informed of how to chew, or perhaps where to chew/which teeth to use. Whereas, others may experience muscle weakness, nutrition deficits, or indigestion, for example. In order to understand the difficulty with feeding/mealtimes, it is essential to understand the “why”.
According to the SOS Feeding trainers:
The sooner you start feeding therapy, the better. Feeding problems become more difficult/more involved the older the child gets.
(We are able to start feeding therapy with children even before their first birthday!)
Worried your child may be a “picky eater” or a “problem feeder”? Click on this link (PICKY EATERS VERSUS PROBLEM FEEDERS (sosapproachtofeeding.com) which may answer some questions.
As always, we offer free 15-minute consultations during which we would be happy to answer more specific questions, address your concerns, or get you set up with a feeding therapist/the right professional if necessary.
“The SOS Approach to Feeding program was developed by and copyrighted by Dr. Kay Toomey. Please note, all materials, documents, and forms taken from the SOS Approach to Feeding program are copyrighted and cannot be reproduced in any form without the written permission of Dr. Kay Toomey. For more information on the SOS Approach to Feeding program, please visit www.sosapproach.com.”