THEÂ SENSORY MADE SIMPLE PODCAST
with Dr. Samantha Goldman
Ep. 20. The Surprising Reason Children with Feeding Challenges Prefer Food from Fast Food Restaurants
Why do kids happily eat fast food like McDonald's chicken nuggets but refuse similar foods at home? In this episode, I explore why fast food is so appealing to children with feeding challenges, breaking it down from a sensory and oral motor perspective. Plus, I share simple tips to help you transition from fast food favorites to homemade meals without the battle.

"When you go to a fast food restaurant, you know that every single time you order, you are going to get the exact same food."
Ep. 20. The Surprising Reason Children with Feeding Challenges Prefer Fast Food Restaurants
The Sensory Made Simple Podcast
with Dr. Samantha Goldman
Ever wonder why your child will eat a McDonald’s chicken nugget but not the one you made? In this episode, we’ll break down why fast food feels comforting and easy for kids with feeding challenges—and how you can make small changes at home to help them try new foods.
Highlights from this episode:
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🎙️ Why fast food feels more “safe” and predictable for kids.
🎙️ How the texture and consistency of fast food makes it easier for kids to eat.
🎙️ 3 simple steps to help your child move from fast food to homemade meals without the mealtime battles.
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Links mentioned in this episode & References:
Making Sense of Eating (NOW CLOSED)
Sam's Instagram
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About the Host:
Being a parent of a child with sensory challenges isn’t easy. Some days, it feels like you’re walking on eggshells, unsure of what will set off the next meltdown. You’re doing everything you can, but you can’t help wondering if there’s more you could do—or if you’re missing something important.
I’m Sam Goldman, a pediatric occupational therapist and your guide in this sensory journey. I’ve spent over a decade helping parents like you understand their child’s sensory needs and find real-life strategies that actually work. My goal? To help you feel less overwhelmed, more confident, and ready to support your child in a way that feels manageable for your family.
You’re already an amazing parent, and you know your child better than anyone. This podcast is here to give you the tools to make life just a little easier—for both of you.
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Transcript
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Welcome back to the Food Explorers Podcast, episode 20.
I just want to say, I am so grateful you are here.
Sometimes it's so wild to still hear my own voice on here.
And so it seems even more wild that other people tune in to listen to me share about how to make mealtime more magical.
But I am so happy you're here and so grateful to you for tuning in.
Okay, today's topic is fast food restaurants.
Particularly, why do many children with feeding challenges prefer to eat at fast food restaurants, but refuse these same food items at home?
So for example, why will they happily eat a Burger King burger, but absolutely refuse to eat the one you made at home?
I love this topic and honestly find it so fascinating.
We've all seen the documentaries and commentary on what makes fast food so tasty and addictive.
Because of that, I'm not gonna go into that side too much.
Instead, I do wanna talk about this from an oral motor and sensory perspective.
When you go to a fast food restaurant, you know that every single time you order, you are going to get the exact same food.
For example, I can pretty much picture in my head exactly what my chicken nuggets from McDonald's would look like.
That's what makes restaurants successful.
You go back time and time again and expect to get the same great food you had in the past.
They spend tons of time, money, and research making sure that no matter what time of day you go or which specific chain of restaurant you visit, that chicken nugget is exactly the same every single time.
This is also why children can be a little more open to some of the frozen chicken nuggets.
Overall, they are relatively similar each time you present them.
However, less so than a fast food restaurant.
You may cook it a little more or a little less each time.
And often chicken nuggets from the freezer section or other frozen products may look a little different or be a different shape than the time before.
Children with feeding challenges and sensory needs love consistency because they know exactly what to expect.
It's comforting to know that they are going to have the same exact food they already know and like.
This is definitely not the case with homemade food.
When food is made from scratch, it is entirely different every time.
For example, if you are forming burger patties by hand, it's never going to be exactly the same versus Burger King where they have equipment and molds that make exact replicas.
Again, this isn't the case at home.
For example, every single time you make chicken nuggets, you may bread it a little more, a little less, the sizing of them might be different.
This is not comforting for children.
They never know what they're gonna get each day.
Maybe one day it's too cooked, another day not enough, one day just right, and yet another day it may have a weird bite.
The brain does not enjoy sensory surprises.
We like to know what we're going to get and know that it feels safe and good for our body.
This is also part of the reason children love snacky foods like Pop Tarts, chips, and cookies.
The food that comes from a package is very predictable and reliable.
Okay, so that's reason number one.
Reason number two, depending on the fast food restaurant and what you order, it can be easier for oral motor skills.
So one of the reason so many kids love those chicken nuggets is because they are made up of ground meat as opposed to chicken tenders.
When a meat is ground, your oral motor skills don't need to work as hard.
Oral motor skills are the strength, coordination, and endurance of the muscles in the lips, tongue, cheeks, jaw, and oral cavity.
So a good example of this is to think of a whole piece of chicken breast.
Imagine how much force and chewing you would need to eat one.
Now think of a meatball.
How much force and chewing would you need with that?
Usually it's less because it's already ground up.
So many of the fibers in the meat are broken down for you.
Many of the fast food restaurants tend to have options with softer and easier forms of meat.
For example, the Burger King burgers are relatively thin.
The McDonald's chicken nuggets are more ground up than the ones from a package.
And the bacon from Dunkin Donuts is thinner and crispier.
So many children with feeding challenges prefer this simply because it's easier for them to eat.
So how can you start to move away from only eating at fast food restaurants?
I like to break this into several steps.
Number one, eat at a variety of fast food restaurants.
If you only ever eat at one fast food restaurant and your child only eats one food item from there, they begin to get very brand specific.
We want to promote flexibility and variety with food.
So even eating chicken nuggets at all the different restaurants can help.
Number two, from there, try frozen varieties of these food or packaged varieties.
Remember, packaged brands work really hard to make their food consistent.
So it will be kind of similar to those fast food restaurants.
Number three, when you start to try and make your own at home, try to replicate how these look and feel at their favorite restaurants.
For example, if you notice the burger is thin and crispy at Burger King, work to make yours thinner than you normally would.
At home, try using ground chicken to make chicken nuggets instead of whole pieces of chicken breast.
Keep at it.
It's really tempting to give up when you try and your child refuses or doesn't like what you offered them.
But remember, learning to eat is a lifelong process.
It doesn't usually happen overnight or only offering a couple times.
Your child needs time to become comfortable with the new options.
Which fast food restaurant is your child's favorite?
Head over to at DrSamGoldman on Instagram and let me know.
If you are having a difficult time encouraging your child to eat proteins at home, you may want to check out my membership community for parents, the Food Explorers membership.
This month, we are talking all about proteins and exploring them together.
Head over to drsamgoldman.com/fooddashexplorers dash membership to check it out.