- Medical Stability
- Facilitating Safe Swallowing
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Nutrition Management to Improve Oral Nutritional Intake/Nutrition and Hydration
- Estimating Energy and Protein Requirements
- Supporting Adequate Growth
- Supporting Oral Nutrition for Exclusively Breastfed Infants
- Supporting Oral Nutrition for Formula Fed Infants
- Supporting Oral Nutrition for Infants Between 6 - 12 Months
- Supporting Oral Nutrition from 12 Months Onward
- Ensuring Adequate Fluid Intake
- Supporting a Healthy Eating Pattern
- When to Consider Enteral Nutrition
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Seating and Positioning
- Positioning of Infants and Young Children for Feeding
- Positioning for Breast and Bottle Feeding in Infants and Young Children
- Positioning When Introducing Solids
- Using Highchairs and Boosters
- Positioning for Infants, Children and Youth with Significant Postural Needs
- Using Specialized Seating Equipment
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Feeding Skill Development
- Facilitating First Tastes
- Facilitating Infant Feeding as a Neurodevelopmental Skill
- Facilitating Child Feeding as a Neurodevelopmental Skill and a Relational and Responsive Process
- Facilitating Oral Sensorimotor Function
- Considerations for Pacifier/Soother Use
- Considerations for Breastfeeding
- Considerations for Bottle Feeding
- Considerations for Solids
- Additional Resources
- Feeding Environments and Routines
- Sensory Processing/Regulation
- Oral Hygiene and Dental Health
- Surgical Management
Positioning for Breast and Bottle Feeding in Infants and Young Children
Midline positioning or alignment of head, trunk and limbs enhances safety and efficiency of feeding (Redstone & West, 2004). In order to ensure that the environment is conducive for learning positive cues for eating, the infant should ideally be held by a parent in a secure hold that allows for eye contact when being breast, bottle or tube feed, as this is the most natural environment to be fed in at this age.
There may be some situations however, where the infant requires more supportive positioning. Specialized equipment such as a Tumble Form may be considered.
It is also important to consider the ergonomics of the parent feeding the child. They also need to well stabilized at the hip, trunk, shoulders, and arms to prevent fatigue, pain, and injury.
Wrapping vs non-wrapping:
- wrapping provides midline support, however temperature needs to be considered, e.g. if the infant is too warm when wrapped, they may become sleepy, and wrapping becomes a strong cue for sleep time
- consider just wrapping the infant’s top or bottom half if level of alertness is a concern
- side-lying for bottle feeds may assist with midline organization, control of flow of fluid and control of potential pooling of fluid
