Mouth play II
Friday, October 22, 2010
Activities for improving oral functions
Because of hypertonia and hypotonia of oral muscle, most of the children with disability have feeding problems. It includes inability to chew, poor control tongue for moving bolus, poor jaw coordination and instability. Many of children have poor oral sensitivity varying from hypo to hyper sensitivity which also affects the feeding and speech. Children with hypersensitivity are hesitant to try new taste and tend to swallow the food than chewing. They are “picky eater”. The hyposensitive child takes longer time to eat and keeps the food inside mouth for longer time. They are less aware if the food stick around the mouth and most of time they have hanging tongue or drooling. Because of poor oral tone they develop open mouth posture.
Mouth play can improve all these above problem and even can prevent the problem to arise if started as earliest.
- Deep pressure around the jaw improves the jaw stability and awareness. It helps in improving the tone of facial muscles and helps in oral function like chewing, swallowing and sipping.
- Firm pressure on the root of the tongue with the help of spoon increases the muscle tone of tongue and increases the voluntary control over gagging. Controlling gagging reflex helps in preventing the vomiting.
- Blowing plays an important role in developing oral functioning. Assist the child to learn blowing and sipping. Both the activities play an important role in breath control and tone regulation.
- Exposure to different type of food helps to desensitize the oral hypersensitivity.
- Pleasant touch around the mouth reduces the hypersensitivity. Touch should be firm but given in a playful way so the child accepts it well. Activities like bathing and grooming can distract the child and child readily accepts the touch. For younger children mouthing toys can be helpful which assists in chewing and improves the oral tone. For elder children chewing rubber stick, tubes or chewing gums are advisable.
The above activities do need an Early interventionist, Occupational therapist or Speech therapist guidance.
Posted byNeeti at 8:50 PM 2 comments
Labels: cerebral palsy, child disability, developmental disability, Down's syndrome, early intervention, feeding, oral issues, parenting tips, play, speech therapy
Happy feeding
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Feeding to infant is difficult but pleasurable act. It is not only the source of the nutrition but also for emotional and early communication. Infant spends most pleasurable time with mother during feeding. However, feeding is not pleasurable to mother and child every time. Many a time it needs lots of effort from parents. But, little modification may bring comfort and pleasure to both.
1. The feeding position should be comfortable to both child and mother. Mother should be comfortable and have proper support in cradle position for infants and tailor position for toddlers. The child hands should be placed forward and head tilted little forward. This helps in smooth swallowing and prevents choking and aspiration. This position not only provides stability but also opportunity for eye contact and early communication of their emotions. This position also helps in head control and midline orientation. It is important for children with Down’s syndrome and cerebral palsy. For children with special need, this position avoids the excess air intake which may lead to stomach cramps.
2. Environment plays an important as well. The environment should be calm and less distraction. The act should be pleasurable by adding some music or singing lullabies
3. Mouth play is important for developing better oral functioning and speech
Enjoy feeding!!!
Posted byNeeti at 11:44 PM 2 comments
Labels: cerebral palsy, Down's syndrome, early intervention, feeding, nutrition, parenting tips, sensory integration, speech therapy
