Why does my preschooler STILL put everything in his mouth"
After five kids, Sharon Fernandes* thought she?d seen it all. But the Pickering, Ont., mom has never seen a child explore the world with their mouth like her four-year-old son, Brady.* Pencils, Play-Doh, Silly Putty, doorknobs and even commuter train windows are among the many things he has sucked, chewed or licked.
?He will suck on markers, caps off, and he even likes to colour his teeth,? says Fernandes. ?I know he can be a daredevil and he?s super curious, but I worry that he?s reckless. At some point, it can?t be a normal thing.?
We expect kids who are two and under to use their mouths to help them learn or calm down?it?s called oral sensory input. But the majority of children outgrow this behaviour by age three.
While you may have heard the Freudian term ?oral fixation? before, it?s not a label Meghan Prouse, a paediatric occupational therapist in Ottawa-Gatineau, likes to use. ?I see it more as a kiddo who?s trying to regulate their body by seeking oral-sensory input,? she says. ?Children might chew or suck on things to calm their bodies when they are overstimulated or overwhelmed,? she explains. Some kids use chewing to help them focus. Fingers, toys, collars, sleeves, rocks and tennis balls are among the items she?s seen kids mouth.
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