Having a baby, child, or adolescent who does not feed or eat well is a worrisome, frustrating, confusing and at times, medically concerning problem. We at The Feeding Clinic at STAR Institute understand how hard it is to live with a child who doesn’t eat well. We specialize in assessing and treating all of the reasons why infants and children won’t eat. Our focus is on helping you as Parents teach your child to eat a wide variety of nutritious foods in order to support their best growth. 

The Feeding Clinic at STAR Institute uses the SOS Approach to Feeding program, a nationally and internationally recognized approach for assessing and treating children with feeding difficulties. 

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How to Know if Your Child Has a Feeding Problem:

Many times, we as parents know that our baby, child, or adolescent is struggling to eat. However, we oftentimes hear the message that we should wait until our children are older because “all kids are picky”, and “all kids outgrow their pickiness”.  In reality, neither of these statements are true. The research shows that about 20% of all children will struggle with some type of feeding challenge at one point or another from Birth to 5/7 years of age. The research also shows that only about ½ of these children will completely “outgrow” their feeding difficulties. If you already know your infant, child or adolescent needs an assessment, click here to complete the new client inquiry form.

If you are not sure if your infant or child needs to be seen at The Feeding Clinic at STAR Institute, download one or both of the following checklists and circle the issues your child has. If you circle 3 or more Problem Feeder challenges or Red Flags on either flyer, your infant/child/adolescent may benefit from an assessment of their feeding/eating issues.

Free Downloads:    

Picky Eaters Versus Problem Feeders

Feeding Red Flags

Infant Feeding Development & Red Flags

Top 10 Myths of Mealtime in America

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Treatment Options:

Feeding Therapy at The Feeding Clinic at STAR Institute is referred to as coming to “Food School.” The Feeding Therapists are Food School Teachers and our job is to help infants and children learn how to eat better. But it is not just children who are in Food School. Parents in our program are an active part of every Food School Meal/Session. 

The SOS Approach to Feeding is a Play-Based program that teaches children to eat at a pace that respects their readiness to progress through learning the 32 different steps involved in the task of eating. We teach the children the skills they need in order to eat a wide variety of food types and textures using the natural, social reinforcement of playing with the food and interacting with adults.  

For infants and toddlers, the SOS Approach to Feeding also uses developmental strategies and social engagement with parents to help the baby eat and grow better.
 

Infant Feeding Therapy
You and your Feeding Therapist will feed your baby together. The therapist will help with any breast or bottle feeding concerns, as well as the introduction to spoon feeding, and the transition to solid foods and cup drinking. Feeding is a developmental skill that develops between birth and three years of age, which is why early intervention to address feeding challenges is so important. STAR will schedule infants under 12 months of age within two weeks (NO waitlist).

Child Feeding Therapy
You and your child will have Therapy Meals with your Feeding Therapist, who will choose and prepare foods, as well as provide plates, cups, utensils, etc. Sessions are play-based and designed to meet sensory, sensory motor, oral motor, and medical needs. You will learn how to best support your child in reaching their feeding goals.

Adolescent and Adult Feeding Therapy
You and your Feeding Therapist will work together to uncover the reasons why feeding can be challenging for each individual. Feeding starts as a developmental milestone (0 – 3 years) and then continues to be impacted by skill, our learning around food, and then any other confounding factors. Even as an adult, eating is not as simple as people think!

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Assessment/Evaluation:

Figuring out why a child isn’t eating or growing well is a bit like putting together the pieces of a very complicated puzzle.  Because there are actually 7 different systems humans use when eating and feeding, we need to begin with an assessment that looks at your child as a whole person and not just their mouth or their gut or their behavior. We use a Multidisciplinary/Transdisciplinary Evaluation Team to make sure we are not missing a piece of the puzzle. Our Team is made up of a Developmental Pediatrician, a Dietitian, a Pediatric/Behavioral Psychologist, an Occupational Therapist, and a Speech Pathologist. We are all committed to helping you and your child identify what is interfering with your child’s eating and how to best improve their growth and interactions with food.

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Assessment Process:

STEP 1 = arrange for an Intake Phone Call with one of the STAR Institute team members by calling directly at 303-221-7827 and asking for a Feeding Intake OR complete the new client inquiry form. One of the STAR Institute staff will call you to schedule your one hour, no-cost Intake Phone Call. 

STEP 2 = during your Intake Phone Call, you and the STAR Institute team member will discuss the type of evaluation that will be best for your child and your family.

STEP 3 = you will be sent history forms, rights, and release forms to complete prior to your child’s assessment day.

Feeding Assessment Options at STAR Institute

1.  A Whole Team Feeding Assessment begins with all 5 members of the Team spending two hours with you and your child, watching a meal, and working with you both in our gym. This time is used to look at all the physical and developmental reasons for why your child may not be feeding, eating, or growing well. 

The assessment time is then followed by a three-hour Feedback session with just parents and one of our Team Members. This is an opportunity to talk about in detail, the Team’s findings and recommendations for treatment and to tailor them to you and your child’s needs.

2.  A Mini Evaluation consists of two hours of assessment time with 2 members of the evaluation team. The evaluation includes 1 hour of face-to-face feeding and gym time, a 30-minute write-up and a 30-minute discussion with parents outlining the major findings and next steps.

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Explanation of the SOS Approach to Feeding:

The SOS Approach to Feeding program used at The Feeding Clinic at STAR Institute is a trans-disciplinary program for assessing and treating children with feeding and weight/growth difficulties. The program uses principles and practices from multiple disciplines including psychology, pediatrics, occupational therapy, dietetics, and speech-language pathology.  The approach combines sensory, motor, oral, behavioral/learning, medical, and nutritional factors and approaches in order to fully evaluate and manage children with feeding/growth problems. The approach is grounded philosophically in the stages and skills of feeding/eating found in typically developing children.

The theory and methods used at The Feeding Clinic at STAR Institute have been developed by Dr. Kay Toomey based on over 30 years of work with children who have difficulty with feeding and eating. The program, called the SOS (Sequential-Oral-Sensory) Approach to Feeding, is taught by Dr. Toomey and her team worldwide.

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Experiences

 

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