Not all rejections are the same
When a parent says "my child doesn't eat", what they experience as a single problem can technically be three different things:
1. **Food selectivity** — eats a limited variety, but adequate quantity 2. **Sensory rejection** — specific textures, flavors, temperatures, or presentations trigger rejection 3. **Functional difficulty** — the oral motor system (chewing, sucking, swallowing) can't manage certain foods
Each has a different approach. Treating a functional problem as if it were selectivity can make things worse. Treating selectivity as sensory rejection can generate unnecessary anxiety.
How to distinguish
- If they reject BEFORE tasting (visually, by smell): probable sensory component
- If they taste but choke or cough: probable functional component
- If they eat but only 5-6 specific foods: selectivity
- If they reject from early infancy with history of breastfeeding difficulty: possible long-standing oral-motor component
What we do in evaluation
We observe a real meal. It isn't a test in an isolated office — it's understanding how your child eats day to day, with the posture, utensils, and habitual sensory environment. That observation + clinical interview + standardized scales lets us distinguish which of the three categories (or which combination) is at play.
We're here to help you sort it out.