1. In children, the three systems that are most commonly affected are digestion (spleen-stomach), lungs and the immune system.The digestive systems of infants are immature and delicate. They are easily injured by overeating or by food that is too cold or too rich (spicy, fatty or sugary). Cow's milk would be considered too rich and fatty, and often leads to food stagnation. Food retention caused by overfeeding is responsible for vomiting, colic, diarrhea, malnutrition and anorexia (poor appetite). In these cases, effective formulas include bao he wan. Occasionally, wind-cold can lead to food retention, and an effective formula is huo xiang zheng qi wan. In cases of constipation with fever in infants, saline enemas, purchased in drug stores, are quite effective.
2. Infants and toddlers are susceptible to exogenous pathogenic factors (wind, cold, dryness, heat, summer-heat and damp). Appropriate formulas for wind-cold and windheat can be used. The ones I use most frequently are xiao qing liong tang for wind-cold and yin qiao san for wind-heat.
3. If untreated or ignored, pathogenic factors will remain in the body. This can manifest in the lungs and sinus as phlegm, in which case formulas such as qing qi hua tan wan are effective. If the pathogens settle in the lymph or tonsils, one can combine xiao chai hu tang with pu ji xiao du yin. As far as boosting the immune system, I rely on either yu ping feng wan or astragalus vials (huang qi). This is especially effective during the pollen allergy season.
4. When to treat, when to refer: Treating children takes study, enthusiasm and some degree of confidence. Many parents are quick to jump to Western medicine, but the experienced practitioner knows when to treat and when to refer. Referring, in my opinion, means that the child requires hospitalization.
Conventional medicines for non-hospitalization illness in infants and children can be quite damaging. Many pediatricians rely on antibiotics and steroids for treating a majority of pediatric conditions, when herbal medicine or acupuncture offers effective and much safer alternatives. The TCM pediatrician should see themselves as an alternative to Western pediatricians for the outpatient level of common problems. Hospitalization, when necessary, however, draws on the true power and knowledge of Western medicine in order to save life or limb.
* Above Extracted from Jake Paul Fratkin, OMD, L.Ac. Articles.
No comments:
Post a Comment