Feeding Therapy

Intensive Feeding Program

Our intensive, behavioral-based feeding program is designed for children with limited diets who cannot tolerate foods from a variety of food groups or novel foods.

Feeding therapy may be necessary when a child or infant refuses food, has difficulty swallowing, displays mealtime tantrums, reduces or limits his or her food intake or will only eat certain foods based on color, type or texture.

Addressing a feeding issue is key to preventing or eliminating unsafe swallowing or nutritional concerns, as well as determining any motor deficits. Therapists will begin with an initial feeding assessment with the parents to identify tolerated foods and the foods to be targeted during sessions. Therapists will also determine if the child has a physical concern or is lacking an oral motor skill as well as research the present feeding environment and schedule.

Programs are designed utilizing negative reinforcement where a particular behavior is strengthened by the consequence of the stopping or avoiding of a negative condition. The negative condition in this case, is the presentation of the non-preferred food item.

For example, a Behavioral Consulting of Tampa Bay therapist will place a small bite of the non-preferred food in front of the child with the repeated demand of “eat” or “take your bite.” The child can only escape the feeding therapy session once they have consumed the bite requested.

Our therapists have had a 100% success rate with children who began our intensive feeding program with a limited number of foods tolerable. Negative reinforcement strengthens a particular behavior because a negative condition is either stopped or avoided as a consequence of the behavior.

Depending on each client’s particular needs, our feeding program generally begins with 2-hour sessions, 1 to 2 days per week.