Feeding disorders
Feeding disorders are complex and do cause a lot of concern among parents. If they are severe then they can cause failure to thrive and problems with growth. Children often have specific aversions to different types of foods but it is important to distinguish the picky eater from the child with a pathological feeding aversion. This is the child who will not put different textures or consistencies or flavours into his/her mouth and has in some cases a sensitised oral cavity due to a bad feeding experience during infancy. Associated gastro-oesophageal reflux can precipitate this and then although the reflux may have disappeared the legacy of the problem may continue.
A concerted effort to extinguish all ongoing reflux with a Paediatric Gastroenterologist, a desensitisation programme for the oral cavity with a feeding therapist and a behavioural feeding regime for both child and family will usually with a lot of hard work from therapists and parents alike eventually solve this problem. In addition with children with neurological problems such as cerebral palsy there may be a swallowing deficit and a coordination problem in the oro-pharyngeal region which can be distinguished by a special form of x-ray swallowing of a contrast medium which shows up on x-ray. This is called video-fluoroscopy.
For further information please have a look at the following website.
www.foodrefusal.co.uk