Tongue Tie - What’s Got Your Tongue?

How To Identify Tongue Tie, The Technical Name For It Is Ankyloglossia (Ank-yl-glo-ssia)

Have you heard the term Tongue Tie before? It is a term that is commonly used, the technical name for it is Ankyloglossia (Ank-yl-glo-ssia) you have probably heard of it, but do you know what it is tied up about?

In this blog, I wanted to share with you a little more about what tongue tie is, why it is so important and how you can help.

A good place to start is by answering the following questions.....

As a mother have you experienced the following?

Sore and cracked nipples?
Flattened nipples after feeding?
White compression marks on nipples?
Low Milk Supply and
Mastsitis and recurrent mastitis?

Have you also noticed the following signs when your baby is breastfeeding?

Unsettled and always hungry?
Feeding for extended periods of time?
Difficulty attaching or staying on the breast?
Clicking on feeding?
Not gaining weight as appropriate?
Chewing more than sucking?
Fussy during feeds?
Milk pooling around mouth? And
Do they get tired quickly during feeds?

How many did you score?

If you have experienced any one of the above it may be likely that your child has a tongue tie.

Ok so I think my baby has a tongue tie, what now?

Firstly, symptoms are an indicator for the presence of a tongue tie, but it is absolutely essential that you have the tongue’s function assessed.

One of the most reliable ways to have this assessed is by using a tool called the Hazelbaker Assessment (HATLFF). The HATLFF is a reliable tool that our Paediatric trained Chiropractors are skilled to use.

It looks something like this:

So, it is important to bring your child in for an assessment with one of our Paediatric trained Chiropractors, from this initial assessment our Chiropractors can put together a plan to best help you and your child.

It is also important to understand that the diagnosis of tongue tie is based on three important things:

Mothers Symptoms (as above)
Baby's Symptoms (as above) and
Tongue Function and Appearance (Hazelbaker Assessment)

One of the most important aspects of tongue tie is understanding what the function of the tongue is and that is to help your baby feed.

Tongue tie does not just affect the tongue!

(See the image below of the Deep frontal line of fascia)

Yes, this picture looks a bit scary!

But it is an important picture as it helps to demonstrate the key concept, that everything in our body is connected!!

This is especially the case for our tongue.
What we can see in this picture is a structure called the fascia.

You can think of the fascia as a piece of glad wrap that covers muscles, ligaments, and organs in our body.

You can see how this picture demonstrates the connection of the tongue all the way down to the feet.

This picture demonstrates just how connected the tongue is to the rest of the body!

So, although the issue of tongue tie is isolated to the tongue, you can see how important it is to look further beyond the tongue.

So how can Chiropractic treatment help with tongue tie?

As Chiropractors we view the body holistically and understand that although the symptoms are at the tongue there could be tightness somewhere else in the body, commonly seen at mouth/ jaw, diaphragm, and pelvis.

Chiropractic treatment will focus on gentle adjustments to help release any tension along the body and often at home exercises are prescribed to help with the release of tension.

It is important to continue gentle chiropractic treatment after a tongue tie release is critical to help the continuation of tissue release as often the tissue has been so tight for so long, that gentle release work is enough to help continue the tissue to release.

So, what can you do to help?

You can bring your child in to have them assessed by our paediatric trained Chiropractors, who can either rule in or rule out a tongue tie, from their Chiropractic treatment can be provided to help release tension.

Certain exercises can be prescribed to help including:

Tummy time (WHO recommends up to 30 minutes a day in small, short bursts)
Gentle foot pumping &
Gentle neck stretching

Why not follow our Instagram page https://www.instagram.com/chiro_on_winston/?hl=en

& YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/@ChiropracticOnWinston to see these stretches and follow along.

You can also see our Breast Feeding Difficulties Page https://www.chiropracticonwinston.com.au/breast-feeding-difficulties-chiropractic-support-for-adelaide for more information

So if you are looking for caring support and guidance and to achieve peace of mind with your baby, we can help you identify the signs of Tongue Tie and recommend a suitable treatment plan to manage the condition.

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