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Holistic Approach in Medicine
Earth's holistic medicine works wonders with children and adults who
have moved away from orthodox dangers that have shown not to work as
well when it comes to healing the body.
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More parents are exploring, using holistic therapies
26 March 2007 - By Heather Haddon -
northjersey.com
From birth to 2, little Joey Arnold screamed more than
he smiled.
Joey's constant earaches made him cry despite the antibiotics and
vaccines given by his frightened mother, Sherri Arnold. Finally --
desperate for sleep and a lasting cure -- she did one of the most
harrowing things in her life: Arnold held down her son's flailing arms
as he underwent ear surgery.
The tubes put in his tiny ears corrected the problem, but didn't fix
Arnold's faith in traditional medicine.
When Joey developed a chronic cough, Arnold decided to visit a
homeopathic pediatrician in Morristown. She left with a prescription
for herbal pellets, not pills.
That night, her son slept soundly for the first time in weeks, she
said. "My husband and I didn't expect it to work that well," said
Arnold, 32, who just moved from Totowa to Kinnelon.
Arnold has rebelled against conventional medicine. So are many other
local parents, often out of disbelief in traditional remedies or the
rushed doctors who sometimes administer them. Others are drawn to the
preventive focus of holistic medicine, or are desperate to help remedy
a child's chronic illness.
The techniques and names -- alternative, complementary, integrative or
holistic medicine -- vary widely. Most practitioners emphasize a
thorough assessment of a child's health history, including childbirth
and environmental stresses. Ailments are said to be prevented by a
healthy diet, or treated with herbal remedies. And some recommend
eyebrow-raising procedures such as chiropractic alignments for
children, or forgoing vaccines because of fears they cause autism.
Pediatricians across the spectrum are using alternative practices such
as music therapy to ease the effects of cancer treatment.
But few advocate a wholesale abandonment of Western medicine.
"That's where there can be problems," said Dr. Michael Lamacchia,
chairman of St. Joseph's Children Hospital in Paterson. "To completely
embark on something that may not be tested, could be dangerous." |
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Comment: Drug
manufacturers would like you to believe the drugs pushed on you have
been tested, yet most are hurriedly brought to market without proper
testing as evidenced by deaths from use.
Still, the demand for holistic pediatricians and related specialists
has grown tremendously in the past 10 years, said Dr. Lawrence Rosen,
head of a new division of Hackensack University Medical Center
focusing on holistic pediatrics.
"This is not a fad. It's not even really a trend. It's a full-blown
movement," Rosen said.
Between 30 percent and 50 percent of families use some form of
alternative medicine for their children, national and state surveys
show.
The rate is around 70 percent, Rosen said, for children with chronic
conditions including allergies, cancer and autism -- which affects one
in 94 New Jersey children, the highest rate in the nation.
Many of the techniques are influencing traditional pediatrics.
Eighty-seven percent of doctors have been asked by patients about
alternative therapies, a survey by the American Academy of Pediatrics
found. In response, the group established a council on complementary
medicine. In 1999, the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New
Jersey, of Newark, opened an alternative medicine institute.
"Acceptance by the conventional establishment is clearly there," said
Dr. Adam Perlman, the institute's director.
But many local families say their parents and friends aren't as
understanding.
"I don't share these things with everybody," said Sonya Rold, of
Clifton, whose 5- and 7-year-olds eat helpings of raw vegetables and
visit a Clifton chiropractor every week.
Rold's says she has sufficient proof in the turnaround of Skylar, her
older girl, who was born with a debilitating heart condition. Rold's
doctor said that if the condition improved, Skylar was destined for
"the record books." After a steady diet of organic vegetables and back
alignments, Rold brought Skylar back to the cardiologist's office for
a checkup. The lab worker gasped, Rold remembers.
"She healed on her own," said Rold, 47, an education administrator in
Montclair. "Every year she's improved."
Rold was one of the first members of the Passaic County chapter of the
Holistic Moms Network, a group begun informally in Verona in 2002. The
network has quickly gone national. Thirty states are home to 92
Holistic Moms chapters, with 15 more in the works, said Nancy Massotto,
of Caldwell, the organization's director.
Massotto built a Web site, but did little other advertising.
"Parenthood is a threshold. It's when you become worried about the
health of someone other than yourself," said Massotto, who stopped her
breakfasts of a "Diet Coke and a cigarette" before the birth of her
two sons.
Local Holistic Mom members swap remarkable stories. Mary Moscarello-Gutierrez,
of Clifton, found that garlic oil cleared up her daughter's earache in
two days. Melissa Machado, of Nutley, cut back on fast food and
started eating grains with funny names -- like quinoa -- after
suffering from a difficult birth and post-partum depression.
"I didn't even know how to spell quinoa before," joked Machado, 33,
whose newborn has had far fewer health problems than her older child
did. "It was a total 360."
Rosalie Aste, of Clifton, is not so convinced. She gave her daughter a
natural cold remedy, but had to administer the drops every half an
hour. She never saw a result.
"I like some things, but I'm not totally sold," said Aste, 49.
The question of vaccination is especially divisive. Vaccines have
shown some ties to autism, which prompted Moscarello-Gutierrez, 37, to
request a state religious waiver for her daughter's shot requirements
at school. But .Lamacchia said there is no definitive link, and argued
that shots are an essential part of public health.
"Vaccines have prevented illnesses that were catastrophic years ago,"
said Lamacchia, an infectious-disease specialist.
Still, Arnold's faith in drug research was rattled when her son was
given an eczema medication that was later banned for infants.
"You're
not going to die from taking a vitamin," she said.
But alternative therapies usually don't deliver immediate relief to a
child screaming in pain. They can be costly, as few insurance plans
cover them. Chiropractic alignments for Rold's family cost $200 a
month. Buying organic produce adds roughly $150 a month to Arnold's
grocery bill. A homeopath charged Moscarello-Gutierrez's $300 for two
visits and remedies for her daughter, but their initial consultation
lasted three hours.
Sometimes the vast world of essential oils and herbal concoctions
overwhelms Moscarello-Gutierrez.
She knows her parents think she's a bit crazy. But mostly, she sees
daily victories -- like the peppermint oil that brought her daughter's
fever down in an hour earlier this week.
"I take one thing at a time, and usually I end up doing the right
thing," she said.
Reach Heather Haddon at 973-569-7121 or haddon@northjersey.com.
* * *
Resources for parents
American Academy of Pediatrics
Their section on Complementary, Holistic and Integrative Medicine
lists member doctors and resources. For more information, call
847-434-7650 or visit www.aap.org/sections/CHIM.
Holistic Pediatric Association
A Pennsylvania-based group that has a membership directory of
providers. For more information, visit www.hpakids.org.
Holistic Moms Network
A New Jersey-based group of moms and dads that provides holistic
parenting education and support. Annual dues are $35 a year for
individuals and $45 for families. The group meets monthly. For the
Passaic Chapter, e-mail marymoscarello @hotmail.com. For Bergen,
contact amara_wagner@hotmail.com.
La Leche League
A breastfeeding support group. The Ringwood chapter meets monthly.
Dues are $40.For more information, call 973-835 5774 or e-mail sfmagee@optonline.net
International Chiropractic Pediatric Association
Provides a directory of family chiropractors at www.icpa4kids.com.
Common techniques
Holistic techniques include hundreds of treatments and medical
traditions from all over the world. Here is a sample of some of the
most common:
Acupuncture: An ancient Chinese art of releasing blocked
energy through inserting thin needles into key points.
Chiropractics: A method that manipulates the spine to free
it, in part, of compromised nerves that can cause pain in any part
of the body.
Complementary Medicine: The use of alternative therapies
along with traditional ones, like helping control the pain of cancer
treatment through massage.
Diet: Many practitioners emphasize disease prevention through
diet. Parents often make their own baby food from vegetables and
provide fresh juice for their children. Some stick to an organic
diet.
Herbalism: Using plants and herbs to combat disease.
Different cultures have used herbs for centuries.
Homeopathy: Helping the body heal itself by stimulating
natural defenses against disease.
Holistic/Integrative Medicine: Treating disease by assessing
the "whole" person's health picture. Integrative medicine puts more
emphasis on using approaches with scientific backing. |
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The
The
Labors in the Spirits of
Science
Living on the Lost Planet 
