Oral sensory needs and preferences
the urge to bite, suck, & chew
Five Key Points Important to Remember and to Pass on to Others:
- It is completely normal and typical to have the sensory preference and need to chew, suck, or bite on something...even when you are not hungry or thirsty. This applies to every single one of us...some just take it to a more intense level.
- Oral sensory input (biting, chewing, sucking,) is one of the most effective ways to self-regulate and support attention to task.
- When a child is biting on something (or someone) or chewing on a sleeve or other non-food object, he/she is giving the sensory signal of attempting to self-regulate.
- Biting provides a very simple, yet powerful dose of proprioceptive input to the jaw which is most commonly calming, soothing, organizing and regulating for the brain.
- Do not treat this sensory signal as a behavior, because most of the time it is not. Children who bite themselves or others is likely seeking oral sensory input to help self-regulate, and not trying to hurt someone. Yes, occasionally a child may bite out of anger, frustration, to get their way, or seek attention, but rule out the sensory needs first before jumping to this conclusion.
Ideas to help an oral seeker and ways to provide ongoing sources of oral sensory input:
Provide ongoing/available access to some sort of chewy/oral sensory tool. The all time favorite in my clinic over the years has been the ARK'S GRABBER® ORIGINAL ORAL MOTOR CHEW which comes in different textures and flavors, such as grape, chocolate, lemon, vanilla. ARK Therapeutic has now developed all sorts of additional oral sensory tool options! There is an oral sensory tool for every sensory preference and need you can imagine, with options for all ages and chewing preferences! Each type is color coded for the amount of resistance it offers, for the light chewer/biter all the way to the aggressive and constant oral seeker. They are all very durable, excellent quality, and in fun designs and colors.
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Providing a CamelBak® water bottle is also a great way to have an available oral sensory tool, as the mouthpiece provides excellent oral sensory feedback as well as resistive sucking AND is an excellent way to stay hydrated all day.
Offering crunchy or chewy foods is also an effective way to provide oral sensory input.
Suggestions: Nuts, fruit leather, bagels, pretzels, apples, carrot sticks, crushed ice.
Use small straws, such as coffee stirrers, or regular straws to drink fruit smoothies, non-dairy yogurt, or non-dairy pudding to provide resistive sucking input. Using curly straws is also a great way to encourage resistive sucking.
Offer natural or organic chewing gum.
Offer an electric toothbrush or other vibrating oral sensory tool.
Encourage the use of mouth toys such as a harmonica, whistle, kazoo, recorder, etc.
One of my favorite activities and a real hit with the kids is blowing a “bubble mountain”!
Suggestions: Nuts, fruit leather, bagels, pretzels, apples, carrot sticks, crushed ice.
Use small straws, such as coffee stirrers, or regular straws to drink fruit smoothies, non-dairy yogurt, or non-dairy pudding to provide resistive sucking input. Using curly straws is also a great way to encourage resistive sucking.
Offer natural or organic chewing gum.
Offer an electric toothbrush or other vibrating oral sensory tool.
Encourage the use of mouth toys such as a harmonica, whistle, kazoo, recorder, etc.
One of my favorite activities and a real hit with the kids is blowing a “bubble mountain”!