The mouth muscles (lips, cheeks, tongue, upper and lower jaw) are the basis of baby’s speech, and speaking, chewing, and swallowing in daily life require the coordinated movement of the mouth muscles. The role of each phonological part is described below
1) Lips.
a. Assist in the establishment of air pressure in the mouth for articulation.
b. Close the lips when chewing to prevent food from flowing inside and outside the mouth.
c. Assist in making different facial expressions Dongfeng Huaguo Hospital Pediatrics Comprehensive Li Jiang
2) Cheek: prevent food from accumulating between the cheek and teeth when chewing
3)Tongue.
a.Assist in pronunciation ;
b.Taste the taste;
c.Move the food towards the teeth and chew with the lower jaw;
d. Push the food backward to the throat to cause swallowing action.
4) Upper jaw.
a.Assist in articulation ;
b. Prevent food from flowing backwards into the nasal cavity when swallowing.
5) Lower jaw.
a. The lower jaw moves downward to pronounce;
b. Chewing food requires the opening and closing of the upper and lower jaws.
Training methods
1. Normal eating and increasing nutrition
Chewing food: from liquid food → semi-liquid food, from not very easy to chew → eat some meat, swallowing food: teach the child to use the cup correctly to drink water, many times a small amount → reduce the number of times to increase the amount.
2・Bite gum stick
You can practice your child’s ability to bite, and adding a vibrator can strengthen the frequency of your child’s bite. Start practicing from chewing in your child’s daily life.
3・Puffing flute
The flute is designed to be flat and then rounded, with 1-6 being flat (good for blasting sounds) and 7-12 being rounded (good for rounded lip sounds). It is designed from easy to difficult, so you can choose a flute according to your child’s ability.
4・Straws
Straws are designed from short and thick to long and thin; from straight to curved.
5・Sponge stick
When using the sponge stick, you need to wet it first and then use it. The general procedure is mouth, gums, tongue, and palate. Vibrator can be used according to the child’s condition.