Jared M. Skowron - 100 Natural Remedies for Your Child: The Complete Guide to Safe, Effective Treatments for Childhoods Most Common Ailments, from Allergies to Weight Loss

For my parents,
And all parents who do the very best for their children.

60 Chicken Pox

86 Atopic Dermatitis (Eczema)

A LONG LINE OF DOMINOES LED to this book. It starts with my parents and my teachers, building my background of interest to search for a real solution to a problem and to never be satisfied with adequate. I need to thank Dr. Peter DAdamo, who put me in touch with my fantastic agent, Janis Vallely, who connected me with the wonderful Lynn Lauber, who made my stories sing. More thanks goes to Julie Will, Marie Crousillat, Gena Smith, Marilyn Hauptly, Nancy Elgin, David Kiefer, and all the enthusiastic sales, marketing, editing, and publicity folks at Rodale. Huge thanks to my wife, Nicole, who is beside me every step of the way, and thanks to my patients, who prove to me that natural therapies are real and sometimes, miraculous. Last, but not least, is thanks to you: the parent, the grandparent, the teacher. It is the love you have for your children that fuels a search for the very best for them. I thank you for your limitless pursuit for their great potential.

IF YOU HAD THE CHOICE, would you rather give your depressed son fluoxetine (Prozac)a strong prescription drug with possible side effects that include abdominal pain and suicideor fish oil and vitamin B complex supplements?

Would you rather see your daughters acne treated with isotretinoin (Accutane) a medication for which the FDA requires prescribers, pharmacies, and patients to follow a strict risk management program because it causes birth defects and may be linked to inflammatory bowel diseaseor eliminate fat-free milk and other dairy items from her diet?

If youre like most parents, youd probably feel more comfortable trying natural remedies first, using safe, effective options and ultimately wanting your child to be healthy and happy. In the 21st century, parents understand that a greener, cleaner environment includes their childrens bodies.

Yet many parents dont have quick access to reliable natural, science-based remedies. Thats why Ive written this book: to help parents who want to prevent their children from having to take unnecessary medications or having to undergo unneeded surgeries or other invasive treatments. I also want to share the rewarding results of my clinical experience treating children who suffer from a variety of medical conditions with natural remedies. Why go to such extreme lengths when there are natural options that are safer, less costly, more effective, and readily available?

Many childhood disorders can be gently and safely treated with naturopathic medicine. Thats why so many parents visit my Connecticut office in search of cures for their childrens attention deficit disorder, asthma, colic, autism, and other health conditions that dont require a heavy dose of medication.

Two years ago, Marie drove 3 hours in order to carry her gravely ill daughter, Emily, into my office. She knew I am a top pediatric expert in natural health, and she had already been to countless doctors in some of the most prestigious pediatric groups in the country, from Harvard to Johns Hopkins to the Cleveland Clinic. Along the way, shed met many experts, but shed found no answers to the illness that had mysteriously attacked her young daughter.

Emily suffered from mitochondrial disease, a potentially fatal disorder. The mitochondria, the energy-producing cells in her body, had simply stopped working. Her visits to the top hospitals in the country had provided her with a diagnosis, but they didnt give her the answer to her real question, How do I feel better? Once a vibrant 10-year-old who trained her Afghan hound for competitions, Emily now was bedridden and listless, plagued by migraines and chronic fatigue.

Marie was frantic; her daughters life seemed to be slipping away, and no MRI or CT scan had been able to locate the source of the problem. I often meet parents like Marie who are desperate for answers, whose children are suffering from complex, often serious disorders. Many of these chronic conditionsfrom obesity to diabetes to asthmaarent caused by bacteria or viruses, but by something more far-reaching: what they are eating and the way they are living their lives.

Through rigorous testing and examination, I was able to discover the root cause of Emilys illness: She not only had a severe vitamin deficiency, but also serious food sensitivities. As a result, her muscles had atrophied and her gastrointestinal system had begun to shut down.

One of the things I love most about naturopathic medicine is that we spend time with patients to discover the root cause of illness. We get a full sense of the patient as a person, not a disease, run scientific tests that are often overlooked by mainstream physicians, and discover a safe, natural therapy that helps the patient at the deepest level. While the physical exam remains the same regardless of who performs it, lab work and other testing methods are extremely varied. The laboratories that naturo-pathic physicians use for standard blood work also perform nutrient analysis, heavy metal toxicity screens, and other tests to see how you are functioning.

Many sick children have a genetic intolerance to specific foods, and their bodies react to these foods as if they are fighting off an infection. Emily was no exception. When we tested her, we found that she had a serious sensitivity to cows milk. We eliminated it from her diet; substituted goat, rice, and soy milks; and then began making plans to rebuild her health, including instituting a regimen of vitamins, herbal remedies, and nutritional supplements. These included:

1. Vitamins and supplements: High doses of the B vitamins; coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10); Seacure protein supplement
2. B vitamins and CoQ10 are essential for the production of energy. Our cells need these nutrients so their energy factories (the mitochondria) can create adenosine triphosphate (ATP), which the cells then use to power their work. Seacure is a fish protein supplement (not a fish oil) that heals the intestines.
3. Herbs: Rhodiola
   The herb Rhodiola rosea is known for boosting energy levels in people with fatigue.
4. Homeopathics: UNDA 3, UNDA 6
   Used in drainage homeopathy for the cells, these two compounds contain herbs and metals that support digestion and the liver.

In my practice, I detoxify many of my patients with safe, effective homeopathic drainage remedies. They are specific combinations of diluted herbs and metals. The principle behind their use is one you probably remember from high school chemistry, like dissolves like: The diluted metals in the remedies grab onto toxins in the body and remove them.

Emily had never felt a treatment work before. Her other physicians had tried a multitude of drugs that didnt make her feel better or more energetic.

Natural medicine strives to include a persons total environment in the healing process. Emilys beloved dog Hank had always been an important part of her life. In fact, her family relied on Hank to alert them when Emily experienced painful muscle spasms. Now we included Hank in Emilys treatment plan, utilizing him to help her walk again, rebuild her muscle mass, and regain her strength. When Emily was reluctant to get out of bed, Hank inspired her to get outside and take daily walks again. This dog made an enormous difference in Emilys mental state and provided her with the motivation to take an active part in her own recovery.