Melanie Potock, MA, CCC-SLP is a mom who once had a picky eater.Ā Sheās experienced first-hand the stress that parents feel when they are worried about their childās nutritional health.Ā Fast forward to today, and youāll find Melanie blending her knowledge of feeding therapy with practical parenting strategies that help the entire family eat healthier.Ā Sheās an international speaker and author of six books, including co-authoring the award-winning Raising a Healthy Happy Eater.Ā Whether you’re raising a child who seems to be on the path to loving all kinds of healthy foods (and you want to keep it that way) or if your child is stuck in the chicken nugget rut, āCoach Melā is here to guide you.
Melanie Potock
Pediatric Feeding Expert and Author
Expert Feeding Help
for Professionals and Parents
Melanie Potockās keynotes, courses, books & articles focus on raising kids to be healthy, happy eaters. From babies to toddlers to teens, āCoach Melā is here to help.
Raising a Healthy Happy Eater Isnāt Always Easy
Get Expert Advice on Feeding Babies, Toddlers & School Age Kids,
Including Extreme Picky Eaters
Upcoming Events & Courses
Babies
This book is designed to answer the most common questions about feeding babies and toddlers up to age three. It also debunks myths while offering practical tips on making mealtimes joyful and less stressful. It teaches a no-nonsense, straightforward approach to responsive feeding thatās focused on nurturing trust and communication between parent and child. Read more about Responsive Feeding here.
Toddlers & Preschoolers
In her award-winning book, Raising a Healthy Happy Eater, Melanie and her co-author, pediatrician Dr. Yum, teach parents how to guide their children on the path to adventurous eating.Ā Parents report that toddlers are the most challenging to feed, thanks to active little bodies and fleeting attention spans.Ā Learn how to lay positive foundations for eating at 6 months of age, navigate the āterrific twosā and avoid picky eating in the preschool years!Ā Get the brand new, updated 2nd edition. Read more about feeding young children here.
School Age
Kids can cook right along with their parents from an early age, but itās especially important from preschool and into the elementary school years.Ā Whatās the number one food group that parents struggle with the most?Ā Vegetables!Ā The secret to helping kids love any kind of food is to follow Melanieās Three Eās: Expose, Explore, Expand.Ā Youāll learn how to use the Three Eās and create veggie-love in Melanieās book, Adventures in Veggieland: Help Your Kids Learn to Love Vegetables with 100 Easy Activities and Recipes.Ā Read more about feeding school-age kids here.
More fun!
As a speech language pathologist, Melanie combined her love for language, little kids and food by writing a childrenās book!Ā You are Not an Otter: The Story of How Kids Become Adventurous Eaters is available on Kindle, in paperback, and in both English and Spanish.Ā Donāt miss the parent tips in the back of the book!Ā Learn about all of Melās books here.
āØ The feedback from my recent courses has been incredibly meaningful,
especially when therapists tell me theyāre leaving with more confidence,
practical strategies & a better understanding of HOW to help children with ARFID.
After 25+ years in pediatric feeding therapy & helping more than 10,000
children, my goal is simple:
šš»Help therapists understand the anxiety behind food refusal & know what to
DO about it.
Thatās why my ARFID: The Anxious Eater Masterclass includes real client
videos, clinical examples, practical treatment strategies & resources you
can use with families.
šØ JUST 3 SEATS LEFT!
š Austin, Texas
š December 6, 2026
āØ My LAST live ARFID Masterclass of the year!
šš¼ Comment TEXAS & Iāll send you the registration information.
šThank you to every therapist who has trusted me with their continuing education this year. Your feedback means so much!
Melanie ā¤ļø
ARFID masterclass, pediatric feeding therapy, feeding therapists,
occupational therapy, speech language pathology, feeding anxiety, ARFID
treatment, continuing education
FEEDING THERAPISTS: Hereās ANOTHER SURPRISING FACT: The food isnāt always where the allergen is hidingā¦.
Imagine carefully choosing foods for a therapy session, only to overlook a potential allergen in your sensory materials, art supplies or therapy environment.
š³ Food allergy safety goes WAY beyond checking food labels. And some of these risks werenāt covered in our clinical training.
After 25+ years as a pediatric feeding therapist, I want every SLP, OT & feeding specialist to understand how allergens can show up in unexpected places.
šš¼ Would you have guessed these FOUR?
š„ PEANUTS in animal feed? Some birdseed mixes & animal feeds contain peanuts or peanut pieces.
š± SOY in crayons? Some crayons are made with soy-derived ingredients. Not all soy-derived materials contain allergenic proteins, but itās worth knowing whatās in your therapy supplies.
š¾ WHEAT in Play-Doh? Yes! Many commercial & some homemade play doughs contain wheat flour. Think about little hands moving from sensory play to snack time.
āØ SESAME in lotion? Sesame-derived ingredients can appear in lotions, soaps & creams, sometimes listed as Sesamum indicum.
ā¤ļø Hereās what I want you to remember:
A child doesnāt necessarily have to eat a new food to encounter an allergen. But exposure doesnāt automatically mean an allergic reaction, either. The type of contact, amount of allergenic protein & childās individual allergy all matter.
And when weāre introducing new foods in feeding therapy, understanding those details is part of thoughtful preparation.
š Feeding therapy isnāt just about the bite. Itās about understanding the whole child, including their medical history, allergies & individualized safety needs.
š² PLEASE SHARE THIS POST with an SLP, OT, feeding therapist, educator or parent who might learn something new!
š¾ SAVE it for the next time youāre planning a sensory activity or introducing new foods in therapy.
šš¼ Which one surprised you most? Peanuts, soy, wheat or sesame? Tell me in the comments!
Melanie ā¤ļø
Melanie Potock / feeding therapy / early intervention / allergens / SLP feeding
Since when does a child have to EARN the cookie their parent packed for lunch, or thatās handed out by a teacher?
š³ Some schools have a lunchtime rule: Eat your sandwich, fruit & veggies FIRST. Then you can have your dessert. Sounds reasonable, right? But hereās what we know from feeding therapy...
When dessert becomes a reward for eating other foods, we unintentionally put sweets on a pedestal.
And the foods children are required to eat? They can start to feel like chores.
ā¤ļø For children with ARFID, pediatric feeding disorder (PFD), feeding anxiety, or challenges eating enough during a busy school day, these rules can create even MORE pressure.
Hereās what I wish every school understood:
āļø A cookie doesnāt have to be earned.
āļø Eating dessert first doesnāt automatically mean a child wonāt eat lunch.
āļø Children benefit from opportunities to recognize & respond to their own hunger & fullness cues.
āļø Removing food-related rewards & contingencies can help reduce mealtime stress.
This isnāt about encouraging kids to eat cookies instead of lunch. Itās about taking the power struggle OUT of lunchtime.
ā¤ļøAfter 25+ years as a pediatric feeding therapist, I can tell you that helping children build a positive relationship with food requires more than deciding what goes into their lunchbox.
It also means considering the messages they receive when they open it.
šš¼ Does your childās school have a rule about when dessert can be eaten? Iād love to hear how schools are handling this!
āØ Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years helping parents & therapists help kids find joy in food.
ā¤ļø Melanie
Melanie Potock
school lunch rules
school dessert policy
dessert before lunch
responsive feeding
food neutrality
feeding therapy
pediatric feeding disorder
ARFID
feeding anxiety
school lunch pressure
And it has pockets.š
Happy Halloween!š
š§”Melanie
#melaniepotock #feedingtherapy #slpfeeding #pickyeaters #halloween2026
š¤Before you decide your toddler is a āpicky eaterāā¦ ask yourself these 5 questions.
Because three blueberries, one lick of a cracker & a hard NO to dinner can
make any parent wonder, āWaitā¦is this the start of picky eating?ā š³
But one rough meal, or even a few rough days, doesnāt tell us the whole story.
āØ Before you worry, zoom out & ask:
āļø Are they snacking or sipping calories frequently between meals?
āļø Are they teething or otherwise uncomfortable?
āļø Have mealtimes gotten into a pattern where refusing one food means another preferred option quickly appears?
āļø Could constipation be affecting their appetite?
āļø When you look at the whole week, are most days actually easier than today?
šš¼ That LAST question matters.
In 25+ years of feeding therapy, Iāve learned that we have to look for PATTERNS, not judge a childās eating by one frustrating meal.
Toddlers have fluctuating appetites. Growth isnāt linear. Teething, constipation, fatigue, frequent snacking & even a change in routine can
affect how much they eat.
ā¤ļø One difficult day doesnāt automatically mean you have a picky eater.
And to be very clear: Picky eating, Pediatric Feeding Disorder & ARFID are
real, and I take feeding concerns seriously. But toddlers can also go through SHORT phases of eating less, refusing familiar foods or seeming
suddenly āpicky.ā
āØ Save this reel for the next time dinner goes sideways. Then zoom out before you worry.
šš¼ Which of these 5 questions surprised you? What would you add?
Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years helping parents & therapists help kids find joy in food.
ā¤ļøMelanie
Melanie Potock ā¢ Toddler eating ā¢ Picky eating ā¢ Pediatric Feeding Disorder
ā¢ ARFID ā¢ Feeding therapy ā¢ Responsive feeding ā¢ Toddler appetite ā¢ Child
development ā¢ Family meals
š We get distracted by how much candy our kids might eat on Halloweenā¦but the most important thing to put away on Halloween isnāt the candyā¦itās your PHONE. š±
Halloween night is busy. Costumes, candy, excited kids, dark streets & cars moving through neighborhoods. It only takes a few seconds of distraction for something to go terribly wrong.
š¢One statistic I wish I didnāt have to share: Children are more than twice as likely to be struck & killed by a vehicle on Halloween than on other days of the year, according to the CDC.*
So this Halloween, letās ALL keep our eyes up & our phones down.
š± Walking with kids? Put the phone away & stay alert.
š Driving? No texting, scrolling, checking directions or ājust one quick thing.ā
āØ Slow down & expect kids to move unpredictably.
ā¤ļø Make kids easier to see with glow sticks, lights or reflective tape.
(And yes, candy buckets need to be checked for chokable, opened or otherwise unsafe items. )
šš¼ Please SHARE THIS POST before Halloween. A simple reminder to put our phones down could help keep a child safe.
Melanie ā¤ļø
*CDC, Halloween safety guidance
Melanie Potock | Halloween safety | distracted driving | trick or treat safety | pedestrian safety | child safety | toddler Halloween | Halloween with kids
š Halloween doesnāt have to be BIG to be magical. Your child does not need to trick-or-treat for hours, fill an entire bucket, wear the costume all night, make the crafts, attend the party AND pose for the perfect picture to have a wonderful Halloween. ā¤ļø
For some kids, Halloween is exciting.
For others, itās a LOT.
š» Costumes that feel strange
š Doorbells & unfamiliar houses
š Crowds, decorations & flashing lights
š¬ So. Much. Candy.
š³ A routine that suddenly looks completely different
So if your child is happiest visiting three houses and heading home...that counts.
If they want to hand out in your pajamas instead of a donning a costume...that counts.
If theyād rather hand out candy, watch the action from the porch or skip trick-or-treating altogether...that counts too.
āØ Halloween isnāt measured by how much you squeeze into one night.
š§”Itās about connection, comfort & finding the amount of fun that feels right for YOUR child.
And if your family LOVES going all-in on Halloween? Go for it!
But thereās something pretty wonderful about knowing when ājust enoughā really is enough. š„°
š¾ Save this reminder for October 31st & share it with a parent who might need permission to make Halloween a little smaller this year.
š§”Melanie
Melanie Potock | Halloween with kids | toddler Halloween | sensory-friendly Halloween | parenting toddlers | child development | Halloween tips | feeding therapist | SLP
šš Got a teal pumpkin & non-food treats ready for ALL kids on Halloween? Iām cheering you on! Youāre helping make Halloween more inclusive for kids with food allergies. ā¤ļø
But thereās ONE mistake to avoid:
šš¼ Donāt let kids reach for non-food treats. YOU pick up the toy & place it in their trick-or-treat bucket. HEREās WHY:
š«š„Kids often snack on candy as they go house to house, which means peanut, dairy & other allergen residue may be on their hands.
If they reach into your teal pumpkin or treat bowl, that residue can transfer to the non-food treats inside, creating a risk of allergen cross-contact for the next child.
āØ Keep bubbles, glow bracelets, large stickers & other non-food goodies separate from the candy. Whenever possible, hand the child their choice or place it directly into their bucket.
Such a small step. Such a thoughtful way to help more kids enjoy Halloween. šā¤ļø
šš¼ SHARE this before trick-or-treating begins!
Melanie ā¤ļø
Melanie Potock | food allergies | teal pumpkin | Halloween safety | allergen cross-contact | inclusive Halloween
š What do you do when a child is so anxious, they refuse to even ENTER the building for feeding therapy?
š³A young patient with ARFID, pediatric feeding disorder (PFD), or significant feeding anxiety arrives for therapyā¦and wonāt get out of the car.
The parent asks:
āCan we just do feeding therapy in the car today?ā
My answer? NAY. š š¼āāļø
ā¤ļø Not because the parent is wrong for wanting to reduce their childās distress.
But because that refusal is giving us really important information.
āØ Before we can work on food, we may need to work on feeling safe enough to participate in therapy.
Think about the hierarchy.
Trying an unfamiliar food is WAY up there.
Walking through the front door is much lower.
If a child canāt comfortably take that first step yet, moving therapy to the parking lot may unintentionally teach them:
š I donāt have to go inside because inside really IS too scary.
Instead, Iād lower the demand and build confidence one tiny step at a time.
āļø Walk toward the building, thenā¦
āļø Practice going through the doors and right back out.
āļø Make the hallway part of a game.
āļø Explore the therapy room with NO expectation to eat.
āļø Sit at the table without food being part of the plan.
ā¤ļøThe goal isnāt to force bravery. Itās to scaffold it. And sometimes, THAT is feeding therapy.
šSLPs & OTs in COLORADO & TEXAS: Iām bringing my 4-hour ARFID Masterclass to you, and there are only 6 SEATS LEFT at EACH location!
šļø COLORADO: November 6, 2026 | ONLY 6 SEATS LEFT
š¤ AUSTIN, TEXAS: December 6, 2026 | ONLY 6 SEATS LEFT
š¬ Comment COLORADO or TEXAS and Iāll send you the details for that Masterclass.
Melanie ā¤ļø
āØ Follow me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years of helping parents & therapists help kids find joy in food.
Melanie Potock / ARFID / pediatric feeding disorder / feeding therapy / feeding anxiety / feeding therapy strategies / ARFID treatment / pediatric feeding therapist
š» Before you fill that Halloween candy bowl, there are a few things Iād
leave OFF the shopping list.
Because some treats & trinkets that seem perfectly innocent can be a real
hazard for young children. And a couple on my list may surprise you. š
š Hereās what I would NOT hand out:
š LATEX BALLOONS
This is a big one. Latex balloons are a serious choking hazard, especially
for children age 8 and younger. If you want balloons, choose shiny
foil/Mylar instead.*
š TINY STICKERS
They stick to little fingers, and young kids often use their mouths to try
to get them off. Small stickers can become a choking or aspiration hazard.
šæ POPCORN & POPCORN BALLS
Popcorn is a choking hazard for young children, so save this treat for the
bigger kids.
š¬ HARD, ROUND OR VERY CHEWY CANDY
Think jawbreakers, hard candies, gum, caramels and similar treats that can
be difficult for little mouths to manage safely.
š« VERY HARD CHOCOLATE TREATS
For little ones, Iād choose chocolate that melts readily in the mouth and
skip varieties with hard nuts, candy pieces or other difficult-to-manage
add-ins.
And what about āallergy-safeā treats? š©µ
With so many possible food allergens beyond the Top 9, there isnāt one food
treat thatās guaranteed to be safe for every child.
So consider putting some NON-FOOD TREATS in that bowl too!
One year I handed out colorful little sticky-note pads with a pumpkin
sticker on top. ššļø
Guess what disappeared BEFORE the candy?
THE STICKY NOTES. š
Even the teenagers grabbed them!
Want some fun non-food Halloween treats that can still arrive before
Halloween?
š Comment HALLOWEEN and Iāll send you my ideas!
And SHARE this with the person buying the Halloween treats this year. š»
*Source: Nationwide Childrenās Hospital, Choking Hazard Safety
Melanie ā¤ļø
Melanie Potock, Halloween safety, Halloween treats for kids,
toddler choking hazards, safe Halloween treats, non-food Halloween treats,
Halloween candy safety, pediatric feeding specialist
š What if one of the BEST things in your childās Halloween bucket is
something that happened years before Trick-or-Treat night?
š„ EARLY peanut introduction.
Research published last year in Pediatrics gave us something pretty
exciting to celebrate: Researchers found that diagnoses of peanut allergy in
young children declined significantly following the shift toward early
introduction of peanut.
In fact, when researchers compared children from before the guidelines with
those after the 2017 updated guidelines, the cumulative incidence of peanut
allergy dropped from 0.79% to 0.45%. Thatās about a 43% decrease! šš¼
And it wasnāt only peanut allergy. Diagnoses of IgE-mediated food allergies overall declined too.
That doesnāt mean every food allergy can be prevented, and early allergen
introduction should always be individualized, especially for babies at
higher risk. Talk with your childās healthcare provider about whatās
appropriate for your baby.
š©µAnd on Halloween, we still need to remember the kids who CANāT safely
reach into that candy bowl.
šš©µThatās why I love the Teal Pumpkin Project. A teal pumpkin lets families
know you have a non-food option available for trick-or-treaters with food
allergies or other reasons they may not be able to enjoy traditional candy.
Think:
āØ Stickers (large, small stickers are chokable)
āØ Glow sticks
āØ Bubbles
āØ Little toys (but not too little ā be aware of choking hazards)
And nope, you donāt have to skip the candy! You can simply offer a separate
non-food choice too. š
š Comment HALLOWEEN and Iāll send you my Amazon list of non-food Halloween treats that can still arrive before Halloween!
Because every kid deserves some Halloween fun. š»
Melanie ā¤ļø
Melanie Potock, peanut allergy, food allergy prevention, early allergen
introduction, Halloween food allergies, Teal Pumpkin Project, non-food
Halloween treats, trick or treating, feeding kids
š Iāll handle the wallpaper. You grab your seat for ARFID: The Anxious Eater.
HEY COLORADO & TEXAS SLPs + OTs! šš¼
My most popular 4-hour ARFID Masterclass is coming your way, and weāre down to the LAST 6 SEATS in each location:
š CASTLE ROCK, CO | November 6
š AUSTIN, TX | December 6 (EARLY BIRD PRICING ENDS VERY SOON!)
If you work with kids with extreme picky eating, anxiety around food, PFD
and/or ARFID, Iād love to have you join me IN PERSON.
This is four interactive hours designed to help you better understand these
complex kids and your role in supporting them as part of the
interprofessional team.
šš¼ Comment either TEXAS or COLORADO and Iāll send you all the details.
Also, how do you feel about the new wallpaper in the coffee nook?
Melanie ā¤ļø
Melanie Potock, ARFID, ARFID Masterclass, ARFID training, SLP continuing
education, OT continuing education, pediatric feeding therapy, pediatric
feeding disorder, PFD, extreme picky eating, feeding therapist, Castle Rock
Colorado, Austin Texas
Pediatric Feeding Expert and Author
Melanie's Advice Shared In...
Courses for Parents & Professionals
Melanie offers both on-demand courses and live-streaming Masterclasses.Ā CEUs are optional for both OTs and SLPs, yet audience members include parents, RDs, pediatricians & other health care professionals.
Need help with a picky eater, or just want to prevent kids from falling into the chicken-nugget rut?Ā As a parent, SLP or OT, what do you need to know about child nutrition?Ā What about the anxious eater ā Could this be more than just picky eating?Ā Melanieās on-demand course subscriptions provide the answers!
Want more in-depth instruction in a small group, virtual setting?Ā Register for one of Melanieās Masterclass!
Explore course options here.
Parenting Advice
Melanieās advice has been shared in The New York Times, Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Parents Magazine and more. Over 150 articles for both parents and professionals are found here or contact Melanie for a personal one-hour coaching session via video chat.
Masterclass participants get a 25% discount on coaching.
Learn more about professional and parent coaching here.
Keynote Speaking
An international speaker, award-winning author and pediatric feeding specialist, audiences find Melanieās advice to be practical and possible, even in the most challenging cases.Ā Thatās because Melanie is in the trenches, working closely with the most extreme picky eaters and supporting families and health professionals around the world. Melanie has been invited to speak at over 100 different events, including the American Speech Language Hearing Associationās National Conference and the Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo.
Audiences say it best: If you are looking for a professional speaker who can āprovide practical solutionsā for parents, caregivers and therapists and your company needs a āhighly knowledgeable, organized presenterā with āenergy and enthusiasmā who can deliver a ādynamic courseā, then your best choice is Melanie Potock. Contact Melanie here.
Product Consulting
Need expert input on your new parenting product?Ā Melanie has provided expert advice for Orgain, Inc., Holland Health Care, Inc., Healthy Height, Inc., NumNum, LLC and numerous health care and parent product companies.
Looking for an expert to educate your team on how children learn to become adventurous eaters, baby-self feeding or the importance of purees?Ā Feeding is developmental, just like learning to crawl, walk, run. At least 1 in 4 typically developing children have trouble learning to eat! Ā Raising a healthy, happy eater requires the right tools and the right advice. Ā Melanie provides company education and collaboration via webinars, social media and creating educational videos for your audience.
Contact Melanie here.
