Breastfeeding and the oral function connection.

Let’s talk about Breastfeeding, Tongue Ties, and Your Baby’s Oral Health.

First and foremost Mama, I want to say you are killing it.

Seriously, motherhood is hard. 

There is so much to know, do, see, plan. It’s a lot. ALL. OF. The. Time. So frankly, however your child gets their nutrients to grow is great!

This is not an article to judge or to bring shame to any mama out there; I’m definitely in the “fed is best” camp.  I do want to educate you on the oral function connection with breastfeeding because it is interesting and may shed some light on why you and your little one struggled so hard, or why you didn’t. 

First, our babies are not given the best hand.  What I mean by that is our soils are depleted, our pregnant mamas are not always able to obtain, afford, or cook the highest quality and most diverse diets nor were are grandmothers because remember, your mother’s eggs were forming while she was being formed in her mother’s womb. Compound that with environmental toxins, stress, etc and it kinda feels like we are fighting an uphill battle.  

Sometimes motherhood feels like a hard hike, directly up a steep mountain. In the snow. Without the proper footwear.

First, our babies are not given the best hand.  What I mean by that is our soils are depleted, our pregnant mamas are not always able to obtain, afford, or cook the highest quality and most diverse diets nor were are grandmothers because remember, your mother’s eggs were forming while she was being formed in her mother’s womb. Compound that with environmental toxins, stress, etc and it kinda feels like we are fighting an uphill battle.  

Many babies born today are born with a tongue tie.  This means that the tiny pinkish white string that connects their little tongues to the floor of their mouths is restricted.  It may not be at the tip, but if it is likely to get caught.  If it is further back on the tongue it can really restrict the way the tongue functions–which is vital for breastfeeding but unfortunately gets missed sometimes with lactation, ENTs and even pediatricians. 

The tongue’s main job during infancy is to press the nipple against the palate and create a suction that stimulates milk from the mother.  If the baby is unable to elevate their tongue, that stimulation is unable to take place.  It may feel pinchy or just downright hurt (that was my experience.) This also doesn’t stimulate the mother’s breast to produce the quantity of milk that the baby requires, and often mothers feel discouraged that they are not providing for their babies. 

I’m here to tell you it is not your fault! I truly hope if you are relating to this story and were told that you had a ‘lazy nurser,’ or that you are ‘just not a producer’ that you throw those memories out of your mind because neither are accurate.

Your body was not given the signals that it needed because your baby’s body was not able to give those signals.  

Another function of the tongue is to shape the palate or the roof of the mouth.  This is an import job especially when you consider that the roof of the mouth is also the floor of the sinus.  If a baby is unable to keep it’s tongue pressed up against it’s palate 24/7 unless it is cooing then the forces of the baby’s strong cheek muscles are pressing that palate inward and the child will grow with a “V” shaped palate instead of a “U” shaped palate.  This doesn’t allow for ample room for teeth to erupt but it also doesn’t allow for mucus from our sinus to move as well as it should and children with a more V shaped palate tend to have more sinus infections.

Ear infections can be another problem for infants and children with tongue ties as the tongue isn’t able to press against the palate as it should with each swallow so fluid in the eustachian tubes are left stagnant creating infection.  Ideally, the base of the tongue lifts to meet the tip of the tongue that is already resting on the palate with each swallow and that force pushes whatever is in the child’s mouth down the throat.  When that motion is hindered because of a tight frenum (tongue tie) the body compensates by using the lip and cheek muscles to swallow but the ear suffers with stagnant fluid in them.  

These are just a few symptoms of tongue tie, but the affects are life long.  If you are concerned that you or someone you know may have a tongue tie, visiting a myofunctional therapist is a great way to start. 

Other providers are speech language pathologists that are trained in TOTS, and IBCLC also with TOTS training, a holistic dentist, an ENT or pediatric dentist that does tongue tie releases often.  A myofunctional therapist however is a great place to start as they can evaluate the tongue tie and point you in the direction of other providers in your area that can help with the release process. 

If you’re wondering why tongue ties often go unnoticed—even by experienced providers—I share my own surprising story of discovering my tongue tie after years in dentistry here.

Want to know whether myofunctional therapy is right for you or your family? I’m here to help. Let’s connect today!