- Overall, non-nutritive suckling often serves a TMJ stimulation function — not just self-soothing — driven by weak jaw musculature.
- To begin, assess jaw skill levels using the Assessment and Treatment of the Jaw program to determine if jaw weakness is the underlying cause.
- Additionally, the TalkTools Straw Hierarchy helps replace the suckle pattern by teaching true retraction-based sucking, which supports speech clarity.
- Unlike a suckle, which is a two-directional movement, true sucking uses only retraction — the pattern needed for standard speech production.
Reader Question
From the Community
“I have a client that has a non-nutritive suck that he uses often during therapy activities. Not always for calming purposes. How do I eliminate this?”
Therapist Answer
Answered by Sara Rosenfeld-Johnson, MS, CCC-SLP
While suckling is commonly used for calming, it also organizes the body by providing stimulation to the temporomandibular joint (TMJ). Because there are more nerves going through the TMJ than any other joint in the human body, when the jaw muscles are weak and the jaw is not moving in a normal pattern for feeding and/or speech, children may develop or rely on non-nutritive suckling to provide the desired feedback. In fact, we often think children use the suckle for the way it feels on the tongue, but it is generally used for how it feels in the TMJ.
First, determine if weak jaw muscles are the causative factor in the habitual suckling pattern. For example, in the TalkTools Assessment and Treatment of the Jaw book and DVD, I teach how to assess jaw skill levels and offer numerous activities to improve those skills. Moreover, each activity in the book or DVD can be used as an alternative to the non-nutritive suckle.
Second, the TalkTools Straw Hierarchy would be helpful in replacing the suckle by teaching the child how to suck. Unlike a suckle — which is a two-directional movement — a suck is used only in retraction, and retraction is precisely what is needed for standard speech clarity.
Why Non-Nutritive Suckling Happens
Notably, non-nutritive suckling is often misunderstood as purely a self-soothing behavior. While calming is one function, the primary driver in many children is the need for TMJ input. Indeed, the temporomandibular joint is one of the most nerve-rich joints in the body, and when the jaw muscles (particularly the masseters) are weak, children seek stimulation through repetitive suckling, teeth grinding, or chewing on non-food items.
As a result, understanding this connection is key — the suckle is a symptom of jaw weakness, not merely a behavioral habit to be extinguished. Furthermore, see our Bite Tubes 101 overview for how TMJ stimulation supports jaw stability and speech clarity.