Oral Sensory Seeking Mouthing, Chewing & Sucking Behaviors: Sensory Based Ideas, Activities, Exercises

Judy Benz Duncan, Occupational Therapist

Does your child chew on their clothes, toys, and other objects for longer or more often than other children their age seem to do?

Mouthing on objects is a very common way for young children to explore new things and their environment.  Most babies and toddlers do put objects into their mouths sucking or chewing on them – “baby proofing” your home will help keep your child safe, as most young children will put anything and everything into their mouths. 

Oral sensory seeking, which includes mouthing, chewing and sucking on objects after the age of two, is commonly reported alongside other issues such as sensory issues, autism, developmental delays and learning disabilities.

For children with sensory processing deficits, oral sensory seeking behaviors help with self-regulation. Chewing, mouthing, and sucking helps to self soothe and is a strategy that children use to help to calm themselves if they are experiencing sensory overload. 

Sensory Seeking Mouthing, Chewing & Sucking Behaviors

While this oral sensory seeking and mouthing stimulation and exploration does gradually decrease, some children continue to seek out this behavior to the age where it becomes a concern for parents.  

These continued behaviors may impact the health and alignment of their teeth, distracts from their ability to socially interact with playmates or in school settings, lets a child zone out when they are chewing or sucking items and therefore not listening or focusing in class, and can affect their self-esteem and self-confidence among their peers who may “call them out” on this behavior.

A growing child receives environment and body awareness (proprioceptive) feedback through their mouths. Mouthing and chewing behaviors can be very calming, and often the reason so many young children suck their thumbs or refuse to be parted from their pacifier.

Your child’s mouthing, chewing, & sucking oral seeking behaviors may simply be an exploratory stage of their development, or they may be trying to self-soothe and calm themselves.

Ideas for Kids Who Mouth, Suck, & Chew to Point of Concern

If you see your child is still mouthing, chewing, or sucking on items beyond what is expected, or longer than other children their age, you may try to teach them to explore through use of their hands instead of their mouth. For many children, they may not even realize that they are using their mouths (like with sucking their thumbs)!

For children who continue to need to mouth, chew, or suck, to meet their sensory needs and to self soothe, there are acceptable alternatives that you can gently work to reinforce their use with your child. There are also activities and exercises that you can work with your child on to help reduce or alter their oral sensory seeking behaviors.

Speak with your child’s pediatrician, OT, ST, service providers for their input, advice and guidance before making or attempting changes – these ideas may or not be the best choice for your child, and working with those who do know your child is the best bet for success!

Note: For ideas including food, consider any allergies or dietary requirements the child may have; always observe for safety, choking hazards!

Make Note: Oral input and stimulation requires adult supervision.  When you introduce new oral input, try only one type at a time, and see how the child reacts. Keep track of all responses!

o   Start tracking times of sensory oral seeking behaviors to look for a pattern (periods of stress, home or social situations, boredom, hunger, time of day)

o   For types of chew toys, if your child tends to chew on their back teeth, a longer thinner toy may be more appropriate. If they chew on their front teeth, using a more circular toy may work better for them. If your child has a combination of sucking as well as chewing, they may prefer a slightly thicker chew toy. Observe, track, and see what is going on before making changes! This will help save a lot of frustration and avoid sensory meltdowns!

o   Gum massagers (manual – there is a big variety of texture and type)

o   Chewelry and kid-safe chew jewelry and toys (necklaces, bracelets, chew items)

o   “Baby” teething items

o   Vibrating teether items

o   Electric toothbrush or ARK Z-vibe

o   Z-Vibe toothbrush/oral motor stim (tips comes in a variety of sizes and textures – please discuss technique and use with your child’s ST, OT, service provider trained in its use)

o   Sports bottle with water (for sips and sucks in small amounts)

o   Kid safe pencil chew toppers

o   If the child is able to eat safely, you can offer harder food items raw carrot sticks or broccoli stems, crisp apple strips, pretzel sticks or rods

o   Musical instruments such as a harmonica, or recorder

o   Whistles

o   Party blowers

o   Blow bubbles (use bubble straws for children who can’t use regular wands)

o   Drinking through a straw – Bendy Straws harder to suck through (vary straw size for need for increased level of suck – coffee stirrers are probably the smallest you can find)

o   Suck thickened items through straw (yogurt, applesauce, thick shakes) increase resistance needed to suck into the mouth and is a great sensory exercise

o   Frozen fruit popsicles or sticks to suck

o   Sugar free hard candy or lollipops

o   Dried banana chips and other dried fruit

o   Heavy work activities for sensory / proprioceptive input for calming behaviors

o   Chewy candy such as twizzlers, gummy bears (with supervision)

o   Chewing gum (under supervision)

o   Breathing exercise (for calming and self-soothing)

o   Pretend play making mouth noises, like buzz like a bee, hum a tune, make clicking noises with your tongue, smack your lips, blow raspberries – all for fun and also for oral stimulation! (your child will feel the vibration and input in and around their mouth)

o   Make funny faces in a mirror – try opening your mouth wide, sticking your tongue out, rotating your tongue around and around, trying to touch your tongue to your nose, making big smiles, frowning, puffing your cheeks up with air and forcible blowing air out through lips mostly closed

o   Singing one sound at a time (hold for extended period), like a long OOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, or MMMMMMMMMMMMMM, UUUUUUUUUUUUU, EEEEEEEEEEE  (this give subtle vibration at the mouth)

o   Sing a repeated note (loud and soft) like la la la la la la la, or, do do do do do, or, fa fa fa fa fa fa, making the tongue and mouth movements exaggerated (your child will feel the subtle vibration at and in their mouth)

o   Develop a Sensory Diet that works! Discuss and plan this with your child’s services providers as the best choice is in-person evaluation and assessment in order to meet your child’s needs.

What other ideas can you think of? What has worked for you and your child?

Remember, it is not that your child wants to chew or mouth items.  It’s that they have an oral sensory need to do this. Just telling them to stop is not going to help and may even aggravate the situation.

Stay Calm – Breathe – Take Breaks – Have Fun!

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