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healthy kids
Healing the Whole Child Holistic Pediatricians Go Beyond Meds by Ronica O’Hara When Jackie Jones’ 4-year-old daughter had a persistent runny nose and cough, three visits to the pediatrician proved fruitless. “He would see us for two minutes, listen to her chest, saying she had ‘a cold’, and yet still prescribe an antibiotic and steroid that would just trash her immune system,” the Atlanta mom says. “She ended up developing pneumonia in both lungs that landed her in the hospital.” This propelled Jones to switch her children’s care to a holistic pediatrician. “He actually listens to me and takes time with his patients, and recommends 26
vitamins and supplements to keep them healthy, in comparison to just handing out antibiotics,” she says. On the first visit, he queried Jones about family use of shampoos, soaps and cleaning products that might contain chemicals. “Definitely not a conversation I had with my old pediatrician!” she related. Jones, who dispenses pregnancy advice at PisforPregnant.com, benefitted from a growing trend among pediatricians. The number of doctors that self-identify as holistic by joining the integrative medicine section of the American Academy of Pediatrics has grown
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from a dozen in the early 1990s to more than 400 today, says Kathi Kemper, M.D., an Ohio State University pediatrics professor who founded the section and authored The Holistic Pediatrician. “Holistic pediatricians are interested in helping children and families meet their health goals, not just diagnosing and dispensing drugs,” she says. “We use an evidence-informed approach, including all appropriate therapies and therapists, with a strong emphasis on healthy lifestyle behaviors such as diet, exercise, sleep, stress management, social and emotional skills, spirituality
