When Everything Ends Up in Their Mouth: A Parent’s Guide to Understanding and Managing Chewing

Is your child’s shirt collar perpetually soaked? Do you find tiny teeth marks on pencils, toys, and the remote control? Does it seem like everything, no matter what it is, ends up in their mouth? If you’re nodding along, please know this: you are not alone, and your child is not doing this to be “bad.” This common behavior is a powerful form of communication, and as parents, our first step is to learn its language.

Here at Bright Steps Parenting, we understand the worry and the questions that come with seeing your child chew on non-food items. Is it safe? What will people think? How do I make it stop? We’re here to cut through that noise, replace anxiety with understanding, and give you practical, actionable strategies to support your child.

Why Do They Chew? Decoding the Need

Before we can address the behavior, we have to understand the “why” behind it. Chewing on non-food items is rarely a meaningless habit. It’s a purposeful action that serves a very real need for our children, especially those with unique developmental paths.

  • Oral Sensory Seeking (The Most Common Reason): The mouth is a sensory powerhouse, packed with nerve endings. For many children, especially those with Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) or Autism, chewing provides a form of deep pressure input called proprioception. This input is incredibly calming and organizing for a nervous system that might be feeling overwhelmed or out of sync. Just as some of us jiggle a leg or tap a pen to focus, these children chew to self-regulate. It can help them feel grounded, filter out sensory overload from a noisy classroom, or improve focus on a task.
  • Self-Soothing and Emotional Regulation: Chewing is a primal, self-soothing mechanism that starts in infancy. For children navigating the big emotions that come with anxiety, frustration, or excitement, chewing can be a comforting and regulating tool. It’s a predictable, rhythmic action in a world that can sometimes feel unpredictable.
  • Developmental Exploration: It’s normal for babies and toddlers to explore the world with their mouths. For some children with developmental delays, they may simply be in this exploratory stage for a longer period, using their mouths to learn about the texture, size, and shape of objects around them.
  • A Word on Pica: In some cases, the persistent eating of non-nutritive substances can be a condition called pica. This is different from mouthing or chewing for sensory input because it involves the ingestion of items like dirt, paper, or hair. Pica can sometimes be linked to nutritional deficiencies, like low iron or zinc. If you suspect your child is ingesting non-food items, it is crucial to speak with your pediatrician to rule out any underlying medical concerns.

Actionable Strategies to Support Your Child Safely

Our goal isn’t to stop the chewing, but to redirect the need to chew onto safe and appropriate items. Punishing the behavior often increases a child’s anxiety, which in turn can increase the need to chew. Instead, let’s empower them with better solutions.

1. Provide Safe and Satisfying Alternatives

The most effective strategy is to have a toolbox of “yes” items your child can chew on. This validates their need while keeping them safe.

  • Chewable Jewelry: “Chewelry” is a game-changer. These necklaces and bracelets are made from food-grade silicone, are free of harmful chemicals, and come in various textures and toughness levels to satisfy different sensory needs. They are discreet and allow your child to have a safe chewing option with them at all times, especially at school.
  • Pencil Toppers: For children who tend to chew on the ends of their pencils or pens, these silicone toppers provide a safe alternative that can help improve focus during schoolwork.
  • Handheld Chew Tools: For home or therapy, there are a variety of durable, textured chew tools that can provide excellent sensory input.

2. Fuel the Need with Food

Integrate “oral motor workouts” into snack and meal times. This can help satisfy their sensory needs in a natural and nutritious way.

  • Crunchy Foods: Offer snacks like carrots, apple slices, celery sticks, pretzels, and crisp crackers.
  • Chewy Foods: Beef jerky, dried fruit, fruit leather, and bagels require more intensive chewing.
  • Sucking Activities: Drinking a thick smoothie or applesauce through a straw requires significant oral motor work and can be very organizing for the nervous system.

3. Create a “Sensory Diet”

An Occupational Therapist (OT) can help you create a personalized “sensory diet” for your child. This is a plan of activities that provides the sensory input they need throughout the day, which can decrease the need to seek it through chewing. This might include:

  • Heavy Work: Activities that involve pushing or pulling, like carrying groceries, pushing a toy lawnmower, or jumping on a trampoline.
  • Deep Pressure: Big bear hugs or rolling a therapy ball over their legs and back.

4. Observe and Redirect

Become a detective. When does your child chew the most? Is it during transitions, when they’re watching TV, or while doing homework? Understanding the trigger helps you anticipate the need. If you see them starting to chew on their shirt, calmly and neutrally say, “That’s for wearing. Here’s your chewy,” and offer them one of their safe alternatives.

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A Final Thought from The Empowered Parent

Seeing your child chew on things can be unsettling, but it is a solvable puzzle. By understanding the need behind the action, you can shift your perspective from one of worry to one of empowerment. You are providing your child with the tools they need to regulate their bodies and navigate their world successfully. Every time you offer a safe alternative, you are teaching them a valuable self-advocacy skill that will serve them for a lifetime.

Be patient with your child, and with yourself. Finding the right tool and strategy may take some trial and error. But you are their expert, their advocate, and their safe place to land.

You are doing an amazing job.

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