Children (and their parents!) love Chinese medicine! 

In children, we use a massage technique called Pediatric Tuina (pronounced twee-NAH). Different areas of the baby's hands, feet, back, tummy or face are massaged to help ease the symptoms they are experiencing and to treat the underlying cause of the disease.

While needles CAN be used in children, I find that these simple massages are as effective (and less invasive - I always go for the least invasive treatment!).  In addition, parents can be taught the massage routines to be done at home!

We can also use Chinese herbal formulas to help our babies and children feel better soon!

So, what sorts of health problems in children can be treated with Chinese medicine? 

• Colds and Flus
• Colic
• Digestive upsets
• Teething
• Eczema
• Asthma
• ADD/ADHD

Tuina Massage and Chinese herbs can usually be used in conjunction with biomedical treatments, but always discuss with your acupuncturist and doctor as to the appropriateness of these treatments for your child and their health problem.

When my girls (ages 3 and 5) start feeling like they're getting colds, they ask me for their herbs.  Yep, both girls are able to take teapills, though tinctures could work just as well for children who are unable to swallow pills.

When my sister's newest arrival suffered from extreme colic, we found that some simple massage techniques combined with herbs (in tincture form this time) made all the difference in the world for her!

Children respond very easily to Chinese medicine.  They don't have the years of imbalance that we adults do that is behind their illnesses.  There's less to sort out!

If your children suffer from some of the symptoms above, consider Chinese medicine  - as any parent knows, the whole family will rest easier when everyone's feeling their best!

You're down for the count with whatever it is that's going around.  You're miserable and wondering how it is you're supposed to get restful sleep when you're so stuffed up and feverish.

If this sounds familiar, try this old therapy that really works!

Make sure you have a pair of cotton socks and a pair of wool socks (they need to be at least 90% cotton/90% wool).

Dip the foot part of the cotton socks in cold water and wring them out thoroughly.

Next, get your feet warmed up.  (If they're already nice and toasty, you can skip this part)  Soak your feet in a tub of hot water until they are nice and warm and the skin is pink.

Remove your feet from the hot water, dry them off quickly and put on the cold, wet cotton socks. 

Immediately put dry wool socks on over the wet cotton ones.

Go straight to bed, keeping your feet covered, for the night.

After about 30 minutes, if all of the steps were followed (it won't work if you don't go to bed! Sorry, lounging on the couch where you get up and down to do stuff around the house doesn't count!), you'll notice that your congestion will be relieved (often better than with medications!)!  Sick children who do this will have a MUCH easier time falling to sleep.  Some people will notice that this calms sore throats, eases earaches and relieves sinus infections as well!

Your feet should be warm and dry within about 4 hours.  If the congestion returns at that point, feel free to repeat the process to get that relief back!

Caution: This is only meant to ease symptoms associated with colds and flus.  If it's possible your illness is something else, call your doctor!

A child is not just a small adult. In biomedicine, we know that children metabolize drugs differently than adults. Take Ritalin, for example. In adults it is a stimulant, however, in children, it is used to counteract hyperactivity. Children are, in a sense, a species all of their own. 

According to Chinese medicine, it isn't until around age 6 that a child's meridians are formed. Until then, their energy is more freely flowing, and perhaps a little chaotic at times (does this sound like your young child? ;) ). Because a child's meridians aren't yet formed, an acupuncturist can't massage or needle the same points that they might on an adult.

But don't worry, there's still a lot that can be done to help your child! Just like in biomedicine, there is a pediatric branch of Chinese medicine. A child may be treated using massage (called Tuina - pronounced tweeNAH), acupuncture or herbs (or some combination of these).

Some common complaints for which a child may be treated using Chinese medicine:

*ADD/ADHD
*Colds & Flu
*Childhood Diseases (such as Chicken pox, Whooping Cough, Measles, etc.)
*Allergies
*Asthma
*Eczema

So, even though your child must be looked at differently from an adult, they can still get treatment for the things that ail them!