Oral Ties and Restrictions
Oral Ties and Restrictions
What is a tongue tie?
Why is this significant for my baby and I’s health?
What do the symptoms of a tongue tie look like?
Parents, have you recently found yourself asking these questions? Oral ties can be so hard to understand especially as a new parent. We are here to give you all the info to best answer these questions and know when to get help if you need it. Tongue ties can be scary, confusing, and all together frustrating for mom and baby so we want to reassure you this is a common issue for our littles, and that's why we are here to help you!
So… what is a tongue tie?
A tongue tie is a condition that will typically present at birth that will restrict the tongue’s range of motion. With this condition, the baby will have a short, thick, or tight band of tissue tethered to the bottom of the tongue’s tip to the floor of the mouth. Because of this, babies may have difficulty breastfeeding, eating, speaking, and swallowing.
Symptoms for mom
If breastfeeding, mom may be able to have some symptoms that can show that there is an oral tie happening. Mom may deal with a low breastmilk supply. This is due to poor latch and ineffective removal of the breast milk. They may deal with painful breastfeeding allowing emotional stress as frustration and lack of confidence may begin to occur. Lastly, early weaning. Coping with all the symptoms from the condition (aka a frustrated, hungry baby who is gaining weight too slowly) can lead to early weaning.
Symptoms for baby
Baby may show you some signs and symptoms of a tongue- tie but having a rough time lifting the tongue to the upper teeth or moving the tongue from side to side. They also can struggle with sticking out the tongue past the lower front teeth. This is because of that tight band of tissue I mentioned earlier! Another sign which is a fun, interesting one is the tongue may look heart shaped with it stuck out.
What does an oral tie effect?
I know what you're thinking… if this gets fixed is all that's going to change my baby latching better? The answer is no. There are so many other things that your baby may be struggling with due to the oral tie. We have breastfeeding problems which ultimately, can lead to inadequate nutrition. Inadequate nutrition unfortunately is not allowing your baby to thrive in the way they can! Your child may begin to suffer with speech difficulties where they have trouble making certain sounds like “t”, “s”, and “th”. If the child is older a tongue- tie is also allowing tooth decay and gingivitis to take place, which is ultimately not good for oral hygiene. If your baby is having a hard time breastfeeding allowing improper nutrition it is time to see a doctor and get that fixed so your baby can be the best they can!
A correctly working tongue on a baby should be able too:
Lick their lips
Touch tip of roof on mouth
Stick tongue out all the way
Have a normal shaped tongue
Ultimately, you know your baby best. If you feel your baby is unable to thrive and be the best they can then it could be time to look into some solutions to correct the tongue tie. While this is common and doesn’t always need to be fixed, your health and your baby’s health are the most important.
https://www.verywellfamily.com/breastfeeding-a-baby-with-a-tongue-tie-4113300
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/tongue-tie/symptoms-causes/syc-20378452