Medical Concerns

Blogs on Medical Concerns

Medical Concerns

Study Up on PANDAS: A Little-Known Disorder With Big Effects

By Melanie Potock Tomorrow—October 9—is PANDAS/PANS Awareness Day. Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated With Streptococcal Infections (PANDAS) includes a little-known set of symptoms that occur when strep creates inflammation in...

Medical Concerns

What Is Tongue-Tie?

By Rebecca Desfosse Could tongue-tie be affecting your baby’s ability to breastfeed? Here’s everything you need to know about this common but often overlooked condition. Read More on Care.com >>...

Medical Concerns

Tip Back That Tongue! The Posterior Tongue Tie and Feeding Challenges

By Melanie Potock In a March 2015 post titled Just Flip the Lip, we explored how the band of tissue or “frenum” that attaches the upper lip to gum tissue...

Medical Concerns

Just Flip the Lip! The Upper Lip-tie and Feeding Challenges

By Melanie Potock While many pediatric professionals are familiar with a tongue-tie, the elusive lip-tie hides in plain sight beneath the upper lip. Because I focus on feeding difficulties in...

Feeding Therapy, Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater

5 Common Mistakes (and Solutions) When Dealing with Kids’ Chronic Constipation

By Melanie Potock As a pediatric feeding specialist, my job includes helping kids become more adventurous eaters by working with registered dietitians, physicians and other team members to ensure a...

Medical Concerns

To Brock Osweiler, Who Gave a Tiny Fan a Wonderful Christmas Surprise

By Melanie Potock Let me introduce myself — my name is Melanie and I’m a coach. Not the kind of coach you’re used to — I’m one you’ll never need....

Feeding Toddlers to School Age, Medical Concerns, Parenting a Picky Eater

5 Fun Ways to Get Kids Drinking More Water

By Melanie Potock MA As an SLP specializing in pediatric feeding, I often get parents and physicians asking me how to encourage toddlers and preschoolers to drink more water. Many young...

Feeding Babies, Feeding Therapy, Medical Concerns

What Is Tongue-Tie?

Could tongue-tie be affecting your baby’s ability to breastfeed? Here’s everything you need to know about this common but often overlooked condition. Tongue-tied doesn’t just mean being too embarrassed or...

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Apr 24

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✨When @usnews asked me to comment on BEST SIPPY CUPS, my first response was…”Let’s be sure to define the term ‘SIPPY’” 😉

👉🏼DM me for the direct link to the article and for my Amazon shop with with all my tried and true best cups for Littles!

🥰Thank you to Dahlia Rimmon, MS, RDN and Megan Wood for this piece that supports parents’ individual circumstances, yet also provides education and up-to-date information for their readers.

💕👋🏼💕Thanks for sharing this with your friends! I hope it’s helpful!

Melanie 🙂
#melaniepotock #sippycups #cupsforbabies #cupsfortoddlers #ashaigers ...

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Apr 22

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💦🥑💦Storing avocados in water – have you tried that hack? WELL, I did too and here’s why I want you to STOP IT.

🛑The U.S. Food and Drug Administration(FDA) wants you to know that you’re family is at risk for FOOD POISONING using this avocado storage hack. 🦠That’s because Salmonella (EW!) and Listeria monocytogenes (double EW!) hang out on that dark outer skin of the avocado. When we store it in water in the fridge, YES, the avocado does last longer, but you know what else lives, thrives and MULTIPLIES? Listeria moncytogenes and they ooze into the yummy, fleshy parts you intend to eat.🤢

⚠️NOPE. You can’t wash it at that point…it’s now INSIDE your avocado.

👉🏼🥑👉🏼According to the Cleveland Clinic, who highlighted this info on their website, the best way to store avocados is to leave them on your kitchen counter and..

🥑Check them daily for changes in skin color and softening – both indicators that they are ready to eat.

🥑Also – do you know how to check the “stem cap” or that little brown button on the top of the fruit? It should pop off easily and wah-lah! Your avocado is ready to be washed, sliced and enjoyed!

✋🏼💦✋🏼That’s right, don’t wash it till your ready to eat it. Washing before that only softens the skin and allows bacteria to seep inside.

🥑They also recommend storing sliced avocado by adding a little lemon or lime juice, or try olive oil. Wrap it tightly! Then, keep it cold to “combat oxidation” – you can even freeze it!

❓Tell me, did you know this? Cause I didn’t…learning new things every day!
🥰Melanie
#melaniepotock
#avocadohack
#foodpoisoning
#babyledweaningideas

Source: https://health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-store-avocados-safely ...

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Apr 19

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❓Wait - Babies can have raw celery and raw carrots even before starting solids? BE SURE TO KEEP READING so you know how to do this safely.

🥕Teethers for 5-month-old babies can include hard, resistive food such as a fat carrot stick, or a wide stalk of celery. Here’s what you need to know:

1. Always supervise baby with food teethers.
2. Make sure their back/trunk is well supported so that their little hands can easily bring the food teether to their mouth ( just like a non-food teether).
3. Wash food teethers thoroughly before offering to baby.
4. Safety Test: Can you snap it in half with your thumb and forefinger on the same hand? Yes – don’t offer it. No – offer with supervision!

🥰Benefits?
Even before baby is ready for solids (closer to 6 months of age) they can get small tastes as they mouth these resistive foods, just like you can taste carrot if you lick a carrot! Babies are open to trying new tastes and programmed to explore with their littles hands to mouth, so this is the perfect time to introduce veggies in this manner.
👉🏼Like any teether, the munching (up and down repeated chomps) will strengthen their jaw and facial muscles. It will also offer sensory input in terms of different textures, cooler temperatures and because it’s food – flavor!
👉🏼All teethers help babies learn to manage their gag reflex, but in my professional experience, I notice that babies like to suck on food teethers as well as try to chew them. 👉🏼Both are great experiences for the mouth, and both “work” areas of the tongue that play a part in developing tongue lateralization skills, tongue protrusion skills (for spitting out food) and learning to manage the sensation of a gentle gag with no other food in the mouth.

🪥Think of it this way – if you experience a gagging sensation, do you find it easier to manage if you accidently did that with you toothbrush or if you accidently start gagging while eating? The toothbrush of course! Neither is comfortable at first, but the toothbrush is quickly removed and we can swallow to relieve the sensation.

❓Questions? Drop them in the comments!
❤️Melanie
#melaniepotock #foodteethers #ashaigers #babyfood #feedingtherapy ...

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Posts filed under: Medical Concerns

Medical Concerns