Melanie Potock

Eating is NOT just about taste… and this is where so many of us get stuck.
Eating is a FULL sensory experience.

✔ How it looks
✔ How it smells
✔ How it feels in their hands
✔ How it feels in their mouth
✔ Even how their body feels sitting at the table

If even ONE of those feels overwhelming…your child may say “no thanks” the only way they know how.👎🏼

Let’s break down taste vs smell vs flavor, because this is where it gets
really interesting 👇

👅 Taste is only part of the story
Sweet, salty, sour, bitter, umami

👃 Smell is what gives food its complexity

And here’s the key 👇

🌸Smell isn’t just what we notice with our nose (like smelling a flower)
It ALSO happens in the back of the mouth and throat while we’re eating.

As food breaks down, those smells travel up to the nose internally and combine with taste…

✨ That’s what creates flavor

And flavor is incredibly complex.

It can even change based on:
✔ what’s already in your mouth
✔ bacteria
✔ something like morning coffee

Which means there are almost infinite flavor experiences.

Now layer this in 👇

😊Smell is directly linked to the brain’s emotional center. Olfactory signals bypass the usual relay station and travel straight to areas that process emotion and memory.

✨So a smell can trigger an immediate, intense reaction… before your child
has time to think about it.

✨ So when your child says “that smells yucky”? That’s not defiance.
That’s likely the brain + body working exactly as designed.

And one more that often gets missed 👇

💛 Interoception: This is your child’s ability to feel hunger & fullness.

When this system is still developing or harder to read…kids may not come to the table hungry or may struggle to know when they’re full.

We build comfort first.
We support curiosity.
We let kids learn through their senses.

Because adventurous eating is a journey… not a demand.

👇 Tell me this
Which sense seems to bother your child the most?

🥰Melanie

✨ Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+
years of feeding therapy, helping parents and therapists help kids find joy
in food.

You don’t need 🎩fancy meals👨🏼‍🍳to raise healthy eaters…
you need connection. 💛
Family meals / picky eating / feeding therapy / child development

And I get it… evenings are busy.🤦🏼‍♀️
Schedules are full. Kids are tired. You’re tired.

But here’s the gentle truth:
✨ Family meals build language
✨ They boost reading skills
✨ They improve school success
✨ They help kids make safer choices
✨ They reduce stress for everyone at the table

💕And most importantly?
They give your child a daily moment to feel seen, heard & connected.

✨It’s ok to start small✨
Even a few meals a week can make a meaningful difference.
You’re not just feeding your child
You’re raising a compassionate human, a better reader, and a smarter kid – and so much more.🤍

Melanie
✨ Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years of feeding therapy, helping parents and therapists help kids find joy in food. The content above is from my latest book, Responsive Feeding.

Starting Solids and maybe a bit confused on how this is supposed to happen?🤔
Starting solids / baby feeding / feeding development

I get why this exciting phase in feeding development can be confusing!
Your baby goes from feeding “easily”… to suddenly pushing food out, gagging, or barely eating
🤦🏼‍♀️And it feels like something
went wrong

But nothing went wrong ❤️
In the early months, feeding is reflexive
Then those reflexes fade
Because your baby is learning a new skill – those reflexes TEACH them how to eat.
✨ Moving food
✨ Managing textures
✨ Coordinating chewing & swallowing

📖And learning looks messy!
This is the exact transition I guide you through in my book, Responsive Feeding so you know what’s normal and how to support it with confidence. But if you don’t have that book (hello Amazon!) you can…

✨ Comment HANDOUTS for a free guide and much more!
(available in Spanish too!)
✨ Be sure you’re following me first,
and yep, they’re all free!

Melanie
✨ Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years of feeding therapy, helping parents and therapists help kids find joy in food.❤️
starting solids / baby led weaning / purees / gagging vs choking / feeding development / infant feeding / baby first foods / starting solids tips

“My kid is never truly hungry” - as a parent, do you ever feel that way?❤️
picky eating / feeding therapy / toddler behavior / appetite / low appetite kids

✨I want you to hear this first:
You’re not doing anything wrong.
Some kids truly don’t feel hunger the way we expect.

But here’s what I’ve learned after 25+ years as a pediatric feeding therapist👇
There is almost always a reason behind low appetite.

Sometimes it’s environmental:
👉 grazing all day
👉 milk, snacks, pouches filling them up

And sometimes it’s physical:
👉 constipation
👉 reflux
👉 nutrient deficiencies
👉 medications

And often?
It’s a combination.

And here’s something I failed to mention in the slides above - ✨ One thing that plays a BIG role? Anxiety.

What questions do YOU have about appetite vs hunger and how important they are to becoming an adventurous eater (and overcoming picky eating too)? DROP THEM IN THE COMMENTS.

🥰Melanie

✨ Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years of feeding therapy, helping parents and therapists help kids find joy in food.

It’s when you’re acting like everything is totally fine while also acting like you’re not acting.😂

🥰Melanie
✨ Thank you for following me for weekly feeding guidance grounded in 25+ years of feeding therapy, helping parents and therapists help kids find joy in food.