Pediatric Feeding Therapy for Infants
Beyond picky eating therapy, there are many signs parents and caregivers should look for in their children to determine if they need pediatric feeding therapy.
Beech Street Speech & Language is trained to provide the SOS Approach to Feeding therapy, which effectively assesses and addresses problematic feeding behaviors with steps to eating, backed by several studies.
How Do I Know If My Child Needs Feeding Therapy?
Parents and caregivers of children who struggle with feeding may not know when the right time to seek help is.
Does your child experience one or more of the following food-related difficulties?
Picky eating
Limited food repertoire (less than 10 proteins, fruits/veggies, and starches)
Frequent refusal of new foods
Anxiety around meal times
Eating the same food(s) daily and then suddenly refusing it
If yes, then your child struggles with these, you and your child would likely benefit from feeding therapy from an SOS trained feeding therapist.
Our Unique SOS Approach to Feeding Therapy
“Strengths-Based, Family Centered, and Intrinsic Motivation Focused.”
Beech Street Speech & Language can help assess and address problematic feeding behaviors, taking into account the complex sensory needs and oral motor skills of little eaters.
We’re proud to offer the SOS approach to feeding therapy so that children and families have a safe space to learn about new foods through purposeful play and without pressure.
Not only that, but our feeding specialists will also provide feeding strategies to do at home to maximize your success.
We believe that the parent’s involvement in sessions, especially in the beginning of treatment, is paramount to the success of the child.
The SOS program was created through collaboration with Pediatric Psychologists, Pediatricians, Occupational Therapists, Registered Dietitians, and Speech Pathologists/Therapists to evaluate and treat the “whole child.”
SOS Feeding Therapy:
What is the Sequential-Oral-Sensory strategy for feeding?
In the SOS Approach, the feeding problem is conceptualized as the tip of an iceberg.
The SOS Approach to Feeding stands for “Sequential-Oral-Sensory” because these are the program's major components. However, SOS also stands for Save Our Ship! 🚢
In the SOS Approach to Feeding, we assess and address all of the underlying (“under the water”) causes of the feeding difficulties.
The SOS program aims to evaluate and treat the “whole child” including:
Organ systems
Muscles (including oral motor)
Sensory processing
Learning, behavior, and cognition
Development
Nutrition
Environment
SOS Uses Play with a Purpose, the Steps to Eating, & Research to Guide Feeding Therapy
Based on and grounded philosophically in the “normal” developmental steps, stages and skills of feeding found in typically developing children.
Play With a Purpose
The SOS Approach focuses on increasing a child’s comfort level by exploring & learning about the different properties of food in a playful, non-stressful way.
6 Steps to Eating
To help comfortably introduce food, we follow these 6 steps to eating food: Looking at it, interacting, smelling, touching, tasting, & finally chewing/swallowing.
Evidence-Based Research
There are 267 research studies & scholarly publications that provide the foundations of our treatments (14 of which that directly involve the SOS Approach)
If you want to learn more about the SOS approach to feeding program, book a consultation with a Licensed Speech & Language Pathologist (SLP) below.
Common Questions about Feeding Therapy & SOS Approach
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Feeding therapy is appropriate for children of all ages, even for infants.
To determine if your child needs feeding therapy, book a consultation with our Feeding Specialists to get a complimentary assessment.
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Does your child experience any of these difficulties surrounding food?
Picky eating
Limited food repertoire (less than 10 proteins, fruits/veggies, and starches)
Frequent refusal of new foods
Anxiety around meal times
Eating the same food(s) daily and then suddenly refusing it
If yes, you and your child would likely benefit from feeding therapy from an SOS trained feeding therapist.
Contact us today to discuss your options.
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On your first day of feeding therapy for picky eaters, you will be asked to bring a few preferred and non preferred foods from home.
During your first few sessions, your therapist will help you establish a modified mealtime plan for home and/or school, and you will learn how to support your child during meals and snacks, physically and emotionally.
You will also learn about the Steps-To-Eating Hierarchy and how getting food from the table to your child's stomach takes not one, not two, but THIRTY TWO steps.
Once the new feeding strategies and supports are implemented, parents report seeing and understanding their child's progress almost immediately.
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Yes, we have several Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) on the Beech Street Speech & Language team that are Certified in the SOS Approach to feeding therapy.
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Looking at the food: First we must tolerate the physical presence or the look of the food. This might even include just being in the same room as the food.
Interacting with the food: Then, perhaps, we can interact with the food without directly touching the food to your skin, maybe by using a kitchen utensil like a mini food chopper or a fork.
Smelling the food: Next, our body needs to process and manage the smell or odor of a food.
Touching the food: The play then expands to include touching the food with your fingers, hands, body, and mouth. Think about that baby first learning to eat!
Tasting the food: Tasting comes next, which might look like quickly poking the food with the tip of your tongue, or maybe putting the food in your mouth, and spitting it out.
Chewing & Swallowing the food: Finally, we are ready to practice chewing and swallowing so that eating can officially begin.
Your Child’s Picky Eating Habits Cannot Wait!
Get in touch with us today for a free consultation and screening to see if your child could benefit from pediatric feeding therapy.
We're here to guide you every step of the way, promoting clear communication and self-confidence.