The Feeding Clinic
The Journey With Food Starts From Birth And Is Lifelong.
The Feeding Clinic is committed to supporting children with feeding difficulties and their families in experiencing positive mealtimes and relationships.
Who Do We See
Breast Feeding and Bottle Feeding Infants:
Long excessive feeding
Poor weight gain and growth
Crying with feeds
Nasal stuffiness with feeds
Drooling with feeds
Difficulty commencing solids
Difficulty accepting new textures
"Picky Eating" in school age and older children
Concerns with tongue and lip tie
Dysphagia / swallowing difficulty - including difficulty coordinating breathing, eating and drinking
Complex feeding difficulties - Including tube fed children and children on modified diet and fluids
Our Services
Assessment and intervention for infants and children with feeding difficulties.
Infant Feeding
Breast and Bottle Feeding Assessment
The Feeding Clinic is committed to supporting parents and infants in establishing positive early feeding relationships.
We assess babies with feeding difficulties caused a variety of reasons including:
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History of prematurity
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Low Birth Weight
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Heart conditions
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Genetic conditions
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Restrictive Lingual Function/Tongue Tie
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Respiratory problems (e.g. Laryngomalacia)
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Gastrointestinal disorders
Oral Motor and Feeding Assessment
Assessing Oral Structures and Oral Feeding Milestones
Assessment of lingual restriction/tongue tie or ankyloglossia
Assessment of orofacial musculature. This includes the tongue, jaw, cheeks, lips, oral structures and how their movement may be impacting your child's feeding milestones.
Observation of how your child breaksdown foods with a variety of textures.
Solids/Texture Progression and Picky Eating
Positive Mealtime Experiences
There are so many approaches to introducing solids. There is no "one size fits all" approach and The Feeding Clinic Therapists adopt an individual response to feeding.
We see children from 6 months onwards who show difficulty starting solids and progressing to harder textures (gagging, coughing or choking) or may seem "picky" with their choices of foods as they grow. This can create stress and anxiety for all family members.
At The Feeding Clinic we believe in responding to your child's individual needs. This includes:
Their abilities (determined from an oral motor and feeding assessment). This ensures we select a safe texture for your child where swallowing difficulties may be an underlying cause of food refusal.
Teaching you to read and respond to their feeding communication cues.
Creating positive experiences and supporting you to encourage your child to be a happy food explorer.