
Have you taken a look at your baby’s tongue lately?
What do you see?
Do you know how to assess if the tongue is speaking to you?
If you’re looking at me like I have 6 eyes right about now, keep reading. There is a lot you can assess by looking at the tongue!
But first, to dispel a rumor going around in some professional circles… Parents often come in for an evaluation and during the intake express that a professional along the way has told them that their baby does not have a tongue tie “because he/she can stick out their tongue.”
Sticking out the tongue IS NOT a diagnostic tool for a tongue tie!
You can have a tongue tie and still be able to stick your tongue out.
BUT, there is a sign that you can look for on the tongue.
When your child sticks out their tongue, what do you see at the tip of the tongue? Is it smooth? Round?
Notice anything else? Do you notice a small notch at the tip of the tongue causing the tongue to look a bit heart shaped?
While a heart shaped tongue is not a diagnostic tool for tongue tie, it does raise some concerns about what is happening under the tongue. We can be pretty sure there is tight tissue under the tongue and further evaluation is warranted!
Other indications to look for if you are concerned about a possible tongue tie are: milk residue on the back of the tongue, difficulty lateralizing the tongue from side to side, limited range of motion of the tongue, to name a few.
The big picture here is that we can not diagnose a tongue tie with a single symptom. We must have a thorough functional evaluation by someone who has additional training in tongue ties.
If you’re a professional and itching to get into training that will help you assess tongue and lip ties and all aspects of feeding, be sure to sign up for our FREE training, Screen The Peds to Feed The Peds® coming up on February 3-7, 2025!