Welcome back to The Talk with April Anderson—our monthly series designed to equip feeding therapy professionals with practical strategies, family-centered tools, and evidence-based insights. In this week’s edition, we’re diving into a concern many families bring up in therapy sessions: toddlers gagging or spitting out food.
While this behavior can feel alarming for caregivers, it’s often less about refusal and more about oral motor development. Understanding the underlying reasons helps therapists guide families with empathy, reassurance, and concrete strategies for moving forward.
Why Is My Toddler Gagging or Spitting Out Food?
If you’ve ever watched your toddler take a bite of food, only to immediately spit it out or start gagging, you’re not alone—and you’re not doing anything wrong. While this can be frustrating and concerning, it’s often a clue that your child’s chewing and oral motor skills are still developing. Let’s break down why this happens, what it means for feeding development, and how you can help your toddler move forward. It’s usually not about the taste of foods, but the ability to manipulate the different textures.
Understanding Chewing Development in Toddlers
Chewing is a skill—just like crawling, walking, or talking. Here’s a breakdown of typical oral motor development:
- 6–9 months: Babies begin to munch, moving their jaws up and down.
- 9–12 months: Lateral tongue movement (side-to-side) starts, helping with more complex chewing.
- 12–18 months: Rotary chewing emerges, where the jaw moves in circles to grind food effectively.
- 18–24+ months: Skills become more refined, allowing toddlers to handle a wide variety of textures and start to eat more of what the family is eating.
If your child didn’t get much practice with solids early on, had prolonged puree use, or experienced medical challenges (like reflux, tongue tie, or feeding aversion), chewing development may be delayed—and that can lead to gagging or spitting out food.
Why Is My Toddler Gagging or Spitting Out Food?
Gagging and spitting out food are often protective responses, not defiance. Some common reasons include:
- Delayed chewing skills – They haven’t mastered how to move food around and break it down.
- Texture aversions – Certain textures (e.g., wet, crumbly, stringy) can feel overwhelming or foreign.
- Tongue coordination issues – Difficulty moving food from one side of the mouth to the other, made more difficult if there is an undiagnosed oral tie.
- Sensory sensitivity – Some toddlers are more sensitive to taste, texture, temperature, or smell.
- Large bites or fast eating – Without chewing readiness, big bites trigger gagging as a safety mechanism.
How to Help: 3 Practical Strategies to Support Chewing and Reduce Gagging
1. Offer “Chewing Practice” Foods
Start with foods that are easy to manage and safe to chew. Think:
- Meltables (puffs, graham crackers, baby cookies)
- Toast strips with thin spreads (like peanut butter or hummus)
- Soft-cooked veggies or fruits in wedge shapes (sweet potatoes, ripe pear)
These help your toddler practice chewing without being overwhelmed by tough textures.
Tip: Offer only one or two pieces at a time to keep them from overstuffing their mouth.
2. Model and Teach Chewing
Show your toddler how to chew by exaggerating your own jaw movements and narrating:
“I’m taking a bite… chomp chomp… now I’m chewing on the side!”Encourage side chewing by placing the food a little off-center in their mouth or using a chew tool or teether to help build jaw strength and awareness.
You can also play games like:
- Pretending to be animals chewing (“Let’s chomp like dinosaurs!”)
- Using mirrors so they can watch themselves chew
3. Respect Their Pace—But Stay Consistent
Avoid pressure—but keep exposure consistent. Let your toddler explore food without the expectation to eat right away. Sometimes spitting out food is part of learning, not a rejection.
Try this: Serve a familiar food, a tolerated food, and a new food. Over time, your child learns it’s safe to explore, even if they aren’t ready to chew and swallow everything yet.
When to Seek Help
If gagging happens frequently, interferes with weight gain, or your toddler consistently avoids all textured or lumpy foods, a feeding evaluation may be helpful. A feeding therapist can assess chewing, oral motor skills, and sensory processing to create a tailored plan.
Gagging and spitting out food are often signs that your toddler is still learning how to chew and process new textures. With the right support, patience, and practice, most kids develop these skills over time. If you’re concerned, there’s help available!
Cited Sources
- Morris, S. E., & Klein, M. D. (2000). Pre-Feeding Skills: A Comprehensive Resource for Mealtime Development (2nd ed.). Therapy Skill Builders.
- Toomey, K. (2021). SOS Approach to Feeding: Theoretical Foundations and Clinical Implementation.
- Fraker, C., Fishbein, M., Cox, S., & Walbert, L. (2007). Food Chaining: The Proven 6-Step Plan to Stop Picky Eating, Solve Feeding Problems, and Expand Your Child’s Diet. Da Capo Lifelong Books.