Why Does My Child Chew on Shirts, Toys, or Pencils? Understanding Oral Sensory Seeking, Anxiety, and Self-Regulation

Many parents and teachers notice children chewing on shirts, sleeves, collars, pencils, toys, erasers, hair, cords, blankets, or other objects. Sometimes the chewing happens during schoolwork. Sometimes it happens when the child is anxious, bored, tired, overstimulated, or trying to focus. In some children, the chewing is occasional and mild. In others, it becomes frequent, intense, unsafe, or disruptive.

Chewing is a visible behaviour, but the reason behind it may not be obvious. It may be related to oral sensory seeking, self-regulation, anxiety, attention, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, oral-motor needs, habit, development, or medical and safety concerns. Some children chew because it helps them feel calm. Others chew because it helps them stay alert. Some chew when they are overwhelmed, while others chew when they are under-stimulated or bored.

This article connects to the broader sensory foundation article: Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children: How the Eight Senses Affect Learning, Behaviour, and Regulation.

Why Children May Chew on Objects

Chewing gives strong sensory input to the mouth, jaw, muscles, and joints. The mouth is a highly sensitive area with many sensory receptors. For some children, chewing provides organizing input that helps the nervous system feel more regulated.

Chewing may serve different purposes depending on the child and the situation. A child may chew to calm down, wake up, concentrate, manage anxiety, cope with sensory overload, release frustration, or fill a need for oral input. The same child may chew for different reasons at different times of the day.

The important question is not simply, “How do we stop the chewing?” A better question is: What is the chewing doing for the child, and is it safe?

Oral Sensory Seeking

One common reason children chew on shirts, toys, pencils, or objects is oral sensory seeking. Sensory seeking means the child actively looks for more sensory input. In oral sensory seeking, the child seeks input through the mouth, jaw, lips, tongue, and teeth.

A child who seeks oral sensory input may chew clothing, pencils, toys, erasers, paper, hair, or other objects. They may prefer crunchy, chewy, cold, sour, or strong-flavoured foods. They may bite on objects during concentration, transitions, waiting, or emotional moments.

Oral sensory input can be calming for some children and alerting for others. This is why chewing may appear during both stressful and low-energy situations. A child may chew when anxious before a presentation, but also chew when bored during independent work.

Chewing and Proprioceptive Input

Chewing also provides proprioceptive input. Proprioception is the sense that helps the brain understand body position and force through the muscles, joints, and tendons. When a child chews, the jaw muscles and joints receive strong feedback.

For many children, proprioceptive input can feel organizing. This may be one reason a child chews more when they are trying to stay focused, sit still, or manage a demanding task. The child may not be consciously thinking, “I need proprioceptive input.” Their body may simply be using chewing as a way to organize itself.

This connects closely to the broader sensory foundation article: Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children: How the Eight Senses Affect Learning, Behaviour, and Regulation.

Chewing as Self-Regulation

Chewing can also be a self-regulation behaviour. Self-regulation refers to the child’s ability to manage their body state, emotions, attention, and behaviour in response to internal and external demands.

Some children chew when they feel overwhelmed. Others chew when they feel anxious, frustrated, excited, tired, or emotionally uncomfortable. The chewing may help them block out stress, reduce tension, or create a predictable sensation they can control.

For example, a child may chew on their shirt during a difficult worksheet, before speaking in front of the class, after being corrected, during a conflict with peers, or when waiting for something uncertain. In these cases, chewing may be less about the object itself and more about the child trying to regulate an internal feeling.

This topic connects closely to the foundation article: Emotional Regulation in Children: How Children Learn to Understand, Tolerate, and Manage Big Feelings.

Chewing and Anxiety

Anxiety can be a major reason for chewing. Some children chew when they are worried, uncertain, rushed, embarrassed, or afraid of making a mistake. The chewing may provide comfort, predictability, or a physical outlet for nervous energy.

An anxious child may chew more during transitions, tests, social situations, separation, performance tasks, new environments, conflict, or correction. They may not be able to explain that they are anxious. Instead, adults may notice body-based signs such as chewing, fidgeting, stomachaches, avoidance, irritability, or restlessness.

In these cases, chewing should not automatically be viewed as a bad habit. It may be a sign that the child is trying to manage anxiety in the only way they currently know.

Chewing and Attention

Some children chew because it helps them pay attention. This may happen during listening, reading, writing, homework, table tasks, or long periods of sitting.

Attention depends on the child’s body state, arousal level, motivation, sensory processing, emotional state, and environment. If a child’s body is under-alert, chewing may help increase alertness. If the child is overstimulated, chewing may help provide a steady, predictable sensation.

This does not mean chewing is always helpful. If the child is damaging clothing, chewing unsafe items, distracting peers, or relying on chewing in a way that interferes with participation, support may be needed. But the chewing may still be communicating something important about the child’s regulation and attention needs.

For a broader explanation, this connects to the foundation article: Attention in Children Explained: How Regulation, Motivation, and Development Affect Focus.

Chewing and ADHD

Chewing can also appear in children with ADHD. ADHD commonly involves patterns of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interfere with functioning or development. Children with ADHD may fidget, have difficulty staying seated, act impulsively, or seek stimulation to stay engaged.

For some children with ADHD, chewing may be part of a broader pattern of movement, fidgeting, stimulation-seeking, or difficulty inhibiting impulses. The child may chew pencils, clothing, or objects without fully noticing it. They may also chew more during tasks that are boring, repetitive, difficult, or require sustained effort.

Chewing in ADHD is not always the same as oral sensory seeking, although the two can overlap. A child may chew because they need stimulation, because they are impulsive, because they are trying to focus, or because oral input helps their body stay organized.

Chewing and Autism Spectrum Disorder

Chewing objects can also be seen in autistic children, especially when sensory processing differences are part of the child’s profile. Autism diagnostic criteria include hyper- or hypo-reactivity to sensory input or unusual interest in sensory aspects of the environment, such as excessive touching or smelling of objects or adverse responses to certain sensory experiences.

An autistic child may chew objects because oral input is regulating, interesting, predictable, or comforting. Chewing may also increase during stress, transitions, sensory overload, waiting, or changes in routine.

It is important not to assume that chewing automatically means autism. Chewing can occur in children with ADHD, anxiety, sensory processing differences, developmental delays, oral-motor needs, or no formal diagnosis. ASD is diagnosed based on a broader developmental pattern, not one behaviour alone.

Chewing, Habit, and Development

Some chewing is developmental. Babies and toddlers explore the world with their mouths, especially during early development. As children get older, mouthing and chewing non-food objects usually decreases.

However, if an older child continues to chew frequently on clothing, pencils, toys, furniture, or unsafe objects, it may be worth looking more closely. Persistent chewing may reflect sensory seeking, anxiety, attention needs, habit, oral-motor factors, or another underlying issue.

Habits can also develop over time. A child may begin chewing because it helps them regulate, and then the behaviour becomes automatic. They may chew without noticing, especially during concentration, screen time, homework, waiting, or stress.

Oral-Motor and Dental Factors

Some children may chew because of oral-motor needs. Oral-motor skills involve the movement, strength, coordination, and control of the lips, tongue, jaw, and cheeks. If a child has difficulty with oral awareness or jaw stability, they may seek extra input through chewing.

Dental factors may also play a role. Tooth pain, jaw discomfort, orthodontic issues, loose teeth, teething in younger children, or discomfort in the mouth can increase chewing or biting behaviours.

If chewing begins suddenly, appears related to pain, affects eating, causes tooth damage, or is associated with drooling, gagging, choking, or oral discomfort, medical or dental input may be appropriate.

Chewing and Pica

Chewing is different from eating. Some children chew on non-food objects but do not swallow them. Others may bite off and swallow pieces of paper, fabric, erasers, dirt, paint, wood, plastic, or other non-food materials.

Eating non-food items may be related to pica. MedlinePlus describes pica as a pattern of eating non-food materials such as dirt or paper and recommends contacting a healthcare provider if a child is eating non-food materials.

This distinction matters for safety. Chewing a shirt collar is different from swallowing pieces of clothing or eating non-food items. If a child is ingesting non-food materials, professional guidance is important because of choking, poisoning, digestive, dental, nutritional, or medical risks.

This article is not meant to fully address feeding disorders or pica treatment. Those concerns require more specific professional assessment and should not be treated as simple sensory behaviours.

Chewing and Emotional Avoidance

Chewing can also be a way of avoiding or reducing uncomfortable emotions. Some children chew when they feel criticized, rejected, embarrassed, pressured, or unsure. The chewing may help them avoid the full intensity of the feeling.

For example, a child may chew on a sleeve when the teacher corrects their work, when a parent asks a difficult question, when peers are watching, or when they are asked to try something new. The child may not have the words to say, “I feel nervous,” “I feel embarrassed,” or “I am scared I will fail.” The chewing becomes a body-based coping response.

This is similar to other self-protective behaviours, such as covering ears, hiding, avoiding eye contact, fidgeting, shutting down, or becoming silly. The child may be using the body to manage an emotion that feels too big or too uncomfortable.

What Parents and Teachers May Notice

Parents and teachers may notice that the child chews on shirt collars, sleeves, hair, pencils, toys, erasers, paper, blankets, cords, or classroom materials. The chewing may happen during schoolwork, transitions, waiting, screen time, group lessons, car rides, or emotional situations.

They may notice that chewing increases when the child is anxious, tired, bored, overstimulated, under-stimulated, frustrated, or trying to focus. The child may chew more during difficult tasks, noisy environments, social pressure, or unpredictable routines.

Some children are aware of the chewing and feel embarrassed when adults point it out. Others do it automatically and may not notice until their shirt is wet, the pencil is damaged, or someone comments.

The pattern matters. Adults should look at when the chewing happens, what type of objects the child chooses, whether the child swallows pieces, whether the behaviour is increasing, and whether it affects safety, learning, hygiene, social participation, or daily routines.

Sensory Seeking, Anxiety, ADHD, or Something Else?

It is not always easy to know why a child chews. Oral sensory seeking may be more likely when the child consistently seeks mouth input, enjoys chewy or crunchy textures, and appears more regulated after chewing.

Anxiety may be more likely when chewing increases during uncertainty, correction, transitions, social stress, performance tasks, or emotional discomfort.

ADHD may be involved when chewing appears with broader patterns of fidgeting, impulsivity, difficulty sustaining attention, restlessness, or stimulation-seeking. The CDC notes that ADHD symptoms may include inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity, and that other concerns such as sleep difficulties, anxiety, depression, and learning disabilities can have similar symptoms.

Autism may be considered when chewing is part of a broader developmental profile involving sensory differences, repetitive behaviours, restricted interests, social communication differences, or difficulty with transitions and flexibility.

Medical, dental, or oral-motor factors may be involved when chewing is new, painful, associated with mouth discomfort, or connected to swallowing, gagging, drooling, or eating concerns.

In many children, more than one factor is involved. A child may have sensory seeking and anxiety. Another child may have ADHD and oral sensory needs. Another may chew as a habit that began during a stressful period.

When Should Parents or Teachers Seek Support?

Parents and teachers may consider seeking support when chewing is frequent, intense, persistent, unsafe, or interfering with participation.

Support may be helpful when a child regularly damages clothing, school materials, toys, furniture, or personal items through chewing. It may also be important when chewing affects classroom participation, hygiene, peer relationships, self-esteem, or family stress.

Professional input is especially important if the child is swallowing non-food materials, chewing dangerous objects, choking, gagging, damaging teeth, complaining of pain, or showing signs of nutritional, dental, gastrointestinal, or medical concern.

Support may also be helpful when chewing appears strongly connected to anxiety, emotional distress, transitions, attention difficulties, sensory overload, ASD, ADHD, or difficulty participating in age-expected routines.

A sudden increase in chewing should also be taken seriously. Adults should consider whether something changed in the child’s environment, stress level, sleep, health, school demands, emotional state, dental comfort, or daily routine.

Which Professionals Can Help?

An occupational therapist can assess how oral sensory seeking, sensory processing, body regulation, arousal, attention, self-regulation, and daily routines affect the child’s chewing behaviour and participation. Occupational therapy may be especially helpful when chewing is connected to sensory seeking, regulation, attention, school participation, or self-care routines.

A pediatrician or family doctor can help rule out medical concerns, including nutritional issues, pain, gastrointestinal concerns, or pica-related risks. Medical input is especially important if the child is eating or swallowing non-food materials.

A dentist may be helpful when chewing affects teeth, jaw comfort, oral pain, orthodontic appliances, or dental health.

A psychologist, psychotherapist, or mental health professional may be helpful when chewing is strongly connected to anxiety, emotional distress, trauma-related responses, compulsive patterns, or difficulty tolerating uncomfortable emotions.

A speech-language pathologist with oral-motor or feeding experience may be involved when chewing is connected to oral-motor control, swallowing, gagging, drooling, or broader feeding concerns.

Teachers and school teams can provide important observations about when chewing happens during the school day, which tasks increase it, and whether it affects learning, peer interaction, or classroom participation.

Final Thoughts

When a child chews on shirts, toys, pencils, or other objects, the behaviour may be serving a purpose. It may help the child regulate, focus, manage anxiety, seek oral sensory input, release tension, or cope with emotional discomfort. It may also be connected to ADHD, autism, habit, oral-motor factors, dental discomfort, or medical concerns.

The goal is not simply to stop the chewing without understanding it. The goal is to ask what the chewing is doing for the child and whether it is safe.

Adults should look at the pattern. When does the chewing happen? What objects does the child choose? Does it increase during stress, boredom, or concentration? Does the child swallow pieces? Is there pain, dental concern, gagging, choking, or sudden change? Is the behaviour affecting learning, hygiene, self-esteem, or participation?

When chewing is frequent, unsafe, distressing, or interfering with daily life, professional assessment can help clarify the underlying reasons and guide the right type of support.

For more information about the broader sensory systems, see: Sensory Processing Difficulties in Children: How the Eight Senses Affect Learning, Behaviour, and Regulation.