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| Hpathy Ezine - April, 2005 | ||||
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An Interview with DANA ULLMAN, MPH Treating Children with Homeopathic Medicines |
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| Now here's a big one: hyperactive children! What can homeopathy do for this problem? Homeopathic medicines are wonderfully effective for hyperactive children (and hyperactive adults), though this doesn't necessarily mean that a remedy will "cure" them. Sometimes, the remedy will simply slow them down and help them feel more in control of their energy. One study of 43 children with hyperactivity found a statistically significant benefit in those given an individually chosen homeopathic medicine. After the first phase of the study, the children who were given a placebo were then given a homeopathic medicine, and there was again a statistically significant improvement in their health. By the way, the most common remedies used in this study were Stramonium (thornapple) at 35%, Cina (wormseed) at 19%, Hyoscaymus (henbane) at 19%, Veratrum album (white hellabore), Tarentula (tarentula), and several others. [Reference: John Lamont, "Homeopathic Treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder," British Homeopathic Journal, Vol. 86, October, 1997, 196-200.] Homeopathic medicines can elicit a deep and powerful healing that truly changes the child’s personality. It is as though the homeopathic medicine helped pull off a veil of disease that embodied the child. Hyperactivity sometimes requires a constitutional remedy rather than an acute one. Mind you, acute remedies may provide short-term relief, but such relief is not what most children and what parents want. They want long-term improvement, though they can and will accept whatever they can get. The course of treatment may require miasmatic remedies and other remedies based on etiology of the child’s problem (a "miasm" is the homeopathic concept of an underlying genetic and/or acquired chronic disease from which various chronic and acute symptoms manifest). A miasm can be the result of a previous infection or environmental toxin that a person or one of his/her ancestors experienced and never adequately recovered from. Two colleagues, Judyth Reichenberg-Ullman, ND, and Robert Ullman, ND (no relation to me!), have written two books on the subject of hyperactivity, both of which are helpful to practitioners and parents: Ritalin Free Kids and Rage Free Kids. These books provide very useful descriptions of the leading remedies for hyperactivity and its various syndromes. I highly recommend these books. Can homeopathy stand on its own to meet all of a child's medical needs? I think that it is important for homeopaths to be familiar with other natural healing tools. Such tools can be helpful when you need more time to determine the best homeopathic medicines and because such tools provide some benefit in and of themselves. Having other tools also discourages us from becoming "homeopathic chauvinists," that is, being so obsessed with homeopathy that other solutions are not considered. Having other tools helps avoid putting all of your eggs in the one homeopathic basket. Having other tools is important for the practice of medicine (or of healing) because it encourages us to experiment to see what elicits some type of healing or what may impede it (changing diet is a useful exercise and experiment). What about children who have trouble learning? Absolutely. When the child has greater control of their energy, they are better able to learn and absorb. Healing and learning have more in common than we realize. Healing is about learning on some level, though in homeopathy we don’t always heal by conscious learning. The greatest healers help bring consciousness to learning and healing. Which remedies are we talking about here? Virtually all homeopathic medicines are potential remedies for hyperactivity or learning disabilities, though the most common ones are: Stramonium, Hyoscyamus, Arsenicum, Medhorrinum, Tuberculinum, Tarentula, Veratrum album, Lycopodium, Natrum mur, Natrum sulphicum, Cina, Argentum nitricum, Zincum, and Nux vomica. One small study of 43 kids with ADHD observed that Stramonium was the most prescribed (35%), Cina and Hyoscyamus had 19% each, Tarentula and Veratrum album were next. What about children who may not have such severe problems, what would be the benefit in treating them? Good homeopathic treatment during childhood can and will help create healthier teenagers (if there is such a thing as a healthy teenager—some parents wonder about this). Good homeopathic treatment will also help build healthier adults, physically and psychologically; all of which then helps to create a healthier world. This is homeopathy at work. And this is real healing! Any closing thoughts? It deeply saddens me that so many parents and doctors give powerful drugs to infants and children. They unknowingly are committing what I call "medical child abuse." Although these may be harsh words today, I believe that history will show them to be accurate. Homeopathic medicines provide a viable alternative to the powerful conventional drugs of our day, and I sincerely hope that parents and doctors learn about them soon. I have to agree with you; I don't think parents realize that the whole approach to children's health care is the suppression of symptoms, which are only expressions of a healthy immune system! Homeopathy works with the body in its effort to throw off disease; it doesn't disrespect it by thwarting its efforts through force. The symptoms are not the disease, they are the body's immune system at work against the disease; why would we want to damage our immune systems? It's an awfully simplistic approach: if there's a runny nose, dry it up, everybody's happy! (What's wrong with that?) Well, the runny nose was hosing germs out that had entered through the nose; now, thanks to the drying action of the nasal spray, those same germs have total access to where ever they want to go! Thanks alot, doctor! (And thank you too, Dana!) _________________________________________________ Contact: (Note: Dana Ullman does not see patients, but his company, Homeopathic Educational Services (HES) is a leading resource center for homeopathic books, tapes, medicines, software, and distance learning courses. HES will provide a free list of homeopaths in your U.S. state with any book order.) Dana Ullman, MPH |
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