22-Month Son Won't Swallow Food

I would try to find a chiropractor in your area that specializes in children. www.ICPA4kids.org is a great place to do that. It could be some sort of neurological component that he doesn't know what to do with it. A chiropractor and check to make sure the nerves from the brain to the mouth and throat are working and correct any interference. Also - having him crawl can help remind the brain how to function properly. It's call the "cross-crawl" technique.
Hope this helps!
I forgot to mention! Pay attention to your sons bowel movements. Frequently if there is a constipation problem children will not want to eat. They should have a bowel movement at least once a day at his age if he is off of breastmilk.

Ask your pediatrician about Sensory Integration Disorder. We had a similiar issue with eating with our foster child. We thought she was a wonderful eater until we realized she was holding the food in her cheek and would spit it out once they were too full. We tried the same things you did to get her to swallow. We did eating therapy until we realized she would eat some foods, but not others and they said it was a behavior issue. Our pediatrician recognized the Sensory Integration and sent us to the Abilities Center.

Our just turned 2 yo does this. I have always thought it was just a him thing. He is a BIG eater and usually does eat it all but he just puts a ton in at a time and mashes it into the top of his mouth. We just limit what we put in front of him and make us show his mouth before he gets more. If we tell him he can't have more until it's done, he will chew and swallow. If it's something he REALLY wants he will take it out himself. We can get him to get rid of it pretty easily.

For us, it has been more annoying than anything else. I NEVER suspected any sensory issues. He is extremely verbal and physical.

We found that he does it most when he is done eating but there is still food on his plate. He just puts it all in his mouth but he's full so he doesn't always finish it.

He does seem to getting better about it but he still does it at times.

sometimes kids do weird things when they have too much food on their plates....they get overwhelmed. Some kids will throw it on the floor, some kids will refuse to eat, some will stick it up their nose down their diaper, and some kids won't swallow it.

I would reccomend trying to give him just one or two bites of food at a time. The minute you notice him stuffing his cheeks meal time is over.

Don't worry if he isn't eating much. Toddler live on amazingly little food. I read a magazine article once that gave approximate amounts of food our children actually need. It was like 3-5 green beans, or ping pong ball sized portion of mashed potatos, protien was like 1/8 of a deck of cards in size (2 chicken nuggets) Anything they eat above and beyond that is bonus, but that's all they really need.

nikko; a few things control is things that go in and when to make things come out, ahhaha if your sure its not medical, then im sure its a phase, i would offer him a little on his plate and let him put it in, if he is ready to eat, i would not offer snacks until he has eaten good food, if my kids wanted dessert they had to eat the little bit on their plate first, you can do this without confrontation, while you are all at the dinner table, or all eating together, simply have the dessert placed in kitchen so all knows its there, put a very little on his place and have him put it in his mouth, and when he is done he can have dessert and when you are done serve yourself some too, let him see you eating, when you are all done eating get down, sometimes my kids would not eat either, when you know they are hungry sometimes they had to stay there till they were done, it did not take long, dont let him get up and walk around with food in their mouths, if he has horded it have him sit, it should be ok on his teeth he cant keep it in there forevre, maybe he likes to savor the awesome flavor you have in it, but definitely for choking reasons, if he is talking or walking tell him if you have food in your mouth finish the food then speak or walk, be consistant , and enjoy his quirky moments soon they will be gone, and he will graduate hahaha maybe he is learning to be a hampster, ahahah just enjoy life, and have fun D. s

my foster son had the same problem. it was do to a narrow esophagaus they found that out by doing a catscan. he eventually out grew it when he was about 7

Try giving jello made with juice or Popsicle or other foods that dissolve! Will he swallow then? This might encourage better eating and swallowing habits. P.S. I AM NOT A DOCTOR This is just my opinion.

They do occupational therapy for things like this at Children's Hospital outpatient rehab. My granddaughter did this then later also had some speech issues, mostly trouble saying her R's. My daughter just dealt with it the best she could then the school gave her a little speech help in the lower grades. We never really figured it out. She's 18 now, in community college, driving, working, has a boyfriend. No lasting effects from it. Her parents were in a tense marriage and later divorced. I always thought it was some kind of way of feeling in control. She's the oldest and a very loving child. She takes things pretty seriously.