Today's post is a Down syndrome myth.
Myth: Down syndrome causes the tongue to be larger than average.
Reality: the tongue size of people with DS is the same as everyone else. However, in actually it is the palate which is smaller and low muscle tone means they can't always keep their tongue in their mouths easily.
I used to worry about Phoenix sticking her tongue out as a baby because I didn't want her to have that stereotypical "look" of DS. It turns out, babies just like like to stick their tongues out, as I found out after Phoenix's sisters came along.
Phoenix doesn't have any issues keeping her tongue in her mouth, but the low muscle tone in her tongue and mouth does affect her in a fairly significant way. Low tone is the cause of speech delay and articulation issues as well as eating and chewing concerns. You can read more about her picky eating HERE
I once even had a nurse refer to my son's "large tongue". I had to pick my older son up from school and the school nurse made that comment to me. I had to set her straight. Just couldn't help myself.
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