Chew on That!

If your child receives feeding, speech, or other oral therapy, chances are they will need a chewy tube.

Chewy tubes come in different colors, shapes, and thicknesses, but they all have one thing in common: to help strengthen your child's TMJ and improve speech and/or chewing skills.

(Always consult with your child’s pediatrician or therapist before use. This post is not meant to be medical advice.)

What the heck is a TMJ?

TMJ stands for temporomandibular (tem-puh-roe-man-DIB-u-lur) joint, which is the joint underneath each ear, connecting the skull and upper jaw to the lower jaw. This joint is pretty awesome in that it has multi-range: up and down, and back and forth. It allows you to move your jaw in any direction, and is a critical function for speech and chewing food. This is one of the fun facts you learn when you kid gets feeding therapy!

Photo credit: The Head and Neck Centers of Excellence

Another component of eating is being able to move the food in your mouth from side to side, chewing it effectively with the back molars, and then swallowing. The flexibility and strength of the TMJ allows you do do this. In any therapy involving body movement, this skill is referred to as "motor planning," which you can read more about here.

My son had poor motor planning in his mouth due to his weak jaw, so one of the first things the feeding therapist did was work on strengthening Kieran's TMJ using a series of two chewy T-shaped tubes: first the yellow tube, then the red tube. The yellow tube is more narrow and softer, so once my son was biting down competently on the yellow tube, the therapist progressed to the red tube. The tube system uses a hierarchy from easy/soft to hard/firm, so be sure to follow your therapist's instructions for the correct sequence.

Chewy tubes are ideal for stimulating and strengthening your child's jaw muscle and functionality to improve chewing skills and clarity of speech.

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My son using the yellow chewy tube during a feeding therapy session.

My son's therapist used these yellow and red tubes by TalkTools, available on Amazon. This comes in a set of four tubes, but the tubes can also be purchased separately depending on your child's needs.

The T-shaped tubes have a dual purpose:

The first use is for the child to bite down on the long, smooth stem of the "T" shape to strengthen the TMJ.

The second use is for sensory "crumb" therapy, as my son's therapist called it. The stem is hollow and can be stuffed with crumbs so the child experiences a crunching sensation when biting.

The circular tubes with extensions can also be used for biting and sensory therapy. Some models have textured stems so the child's mouth becomes de-sensitized to textures.

TalkTools' chewy tubes are made of FDA-approved, non-toxic rubber, and do not contain latex, lead, PVC and phthalates. They can be handwashed or go in the dishwasher.

Another option is ARK's Grabber & Grabber XT 2 Level Combo. This style of chewy tube has a curved handle that makes it easy for a toddle to grip and hold it. Like the TalkTools brand, these chewy tubes differ in thickness and firmness to use in progression as your child develops better chewing skills.

Made in the USA, these tubes are FDA compliant with no lead, phthalates, PVC, BPA, or latex.

If your child needs more sensory stimulation, these chewy tubes by CoolChumps have that covered! And you get lots of color choices, too!

Whichever tube you use, make sure it is used with supervision since the long tube can be a choking hazard. These are therapy tools ― not toys ― and can help your child continue his or her therapy chewing exercises at home or on the go!

** This post is not intended to provide medical or therapeutic information. I am only sharing what I have learned from my son’s therapies for his developmental delays. Please consult with your child’s pediatrician or therapist to learn what is best for your own child’s developmental and medical needs. **

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