| I am sometimes asked about tongue thrust--what | | | | swallow. There should not be any forward |
| it is, how it impacts speech, and what to do about | | | | movement of the tongue. Generally, children with |
| it. | | | | a tongue thrust are unable to swallow with their |
| All babies have a tongue thrust or reverse | | | | lips parted. |
| swallow. When the baby swallows, his tongue | | | | What are the results of a tongue thrust? |
| pushes forward toward his gums or front teeth, | | | | -The tongue is a very strong muscle. If it is |
| if he has them. Think about feeding a baby | | | | pressing against the front teeth during thousands |
| pureed food. The baby's tongue pushes forward, | | | | of swallows a day, it will most likely cause the |
| pushing some of the food back out of his mouth. | | | | teeth to protrude. If this happens, the tongue |
| The adult scoops the food off his lips and face | | | | thrust must be corrected before orthodontic |
| with the spoon and puts it back in his mouth and | | | | work is done or the the teeth will quickly move |
| the cycle continues. As babies mature, they learn, | | | | out of place again. |
| not only to keep their lips closed when they | | | | -The strong habit of tongue protrusion often |
| swallow, but to effectively move the food back | | | | affects the speech patterns. The most typical |
| toward the throat with a more mature swallow. | | | | speech errors seen with a tongue thrust are a |
| In the mature swallow, the tongue tip is held on | | | | "th" for "s" or "z" substitution. In more severe |
| the alveolar (gum) ridge behind the top front | | | | cases, all of the tongue tip sounds (t, d, n, ch, sh, |
| teeth and the tongue efficiently moves the food | | | | j) can be affected. It can be difficult to correct |
| backward with a rolling motion. Children should | | | | these speech errors when there is an |
| have a normal, adult swallow by the time they | | | | uncorrected tongue thrust. |
| are seven. | | | | What should be done? |
| Sometimes, however, a child continues to tongue | | | | -If your child is under seven, give the issue more |
| thrust or reverse swallow. When this occurs, | | | | time. If your child is seven or older, find a speech |
| generally his teeth are slightly separated, the | | | | pathologist who is experienced in tongue thrust |
| tongue presses forward against or between the | | | | therapy. Be prepared to supervise your child with |
| front teeth, and the lips are tightly closed to | | | | tongue exercises one or more times a day. It will |
| prevent the tongue from protruding. Many children | | | | take a lot of practice to change this ingrained |
| who have a tongue thrust are mouth breathers, | | | | habit. |
| often due to either allergies or enlarged tonsils/ | | | | -If your child is a mouth breather, try to find the |
| adenoids, causing the tongue to sit between or | | | | cause. If he cannot comfortably breathe through |
| against the front teeth at rest. Then, when they | | | | his nose due to allergies or enlarged tonsils and |
| swallow, the tongue pushes forward against the | | | | adenoids, this problem needs to be corrected first. |
| teeth. | | | | -Encourage your child to keep his lips and back |
| How can I know if my child has a tongue thrust? | | | | teeth together and his tongue at rest on the |
| -The most obvious answer is to have him | | | | upper gum ridge. Having him hold a Tic-Tac or |
| evaluated by a speech pathologist. But you may | | | | orthodontic rubber band in place with his tongue |
| be able to diagnose this yourself. | | | | for 10-20 minutes a day can encourage this habit. |
| -Is he a mouth breather? Does he keep his | | | | As with all speech and language issues, I |
| tongue between his front teeth when at rest? | | | | encourage you to be alert to your child's |
| These are signs that he likely has a tongue thrust. | | | | development and to seek professional advice and |
| -Have him take a sip of water and observe his | | | | take action when necessary. |
| swallow. Try to pry his lips apart during the | | | | |