The role of the occupational therapist in feeding therapy is to improve skilled movement of the mouth that leads to safe and efficient eating and drinking.  We also help develop overall movement coordination skills that support feeding development and help children develop better control of his or her body as a whole.  Through therapy we can provide strategies for improving coordination and overall muscle tone with a child’s oral/facial muscles.  We also focus on building the fine motor skills needed to develop coordination of more precise movements between the eyes, shoulders, arms and hands, and strengthen head and trunk control to provide the foundation for specific movements of the mouth, chest, and abdomen used for breathing, eating and swallowing.  We can assist you in determining if oral-motor and/or oral-sensory problems are contributing to your child’s feeding challenges and develop a plan to address those issues.  We will also work with you to develop strategies for improving sensory experiences of eating and strategies that incorporate all of a child’s senses in an organized way during mealtime.  We also can help children increase their comfort level when eating a wide variety of different food textures.