Parents are the gatekeepers to the well being of their children. As a parent you are a teacher, a nurse, a cook, a mentor and more. Your keen sensitivity to your child's moods and behaviors renders you better able to detect and respond to a health issue with greater insight than any professional. Empowering yourself with knowledge about natural and balanced means for maintaining your child's health and happiness affords your child a balanced lifestyle.

Many parents turn to alternative treatments when allopathic avenues have failed to solve a chronic health issue that their child may experience like ear or upper respiratory infections. Perhaps you are among this group, or maybe you are among the growing number of parents who are look to ancient and modern systems for natural healing as they are backed by scientific research.

Food and Thought
At any age, sustainable health begins with a nutritious diet. Health conscious parents afford their children this important lesson: "You are what you eat." Whether it's providing delicious whole foods at meal and snack time, or keeping preservatives, pesticides, and hormones out of the kitchen as often as possible, parents who encourage healthy habits at the table are informing a child's ability to create nurture him- or herself.

Remedies at the Ready
You can prepare simple treatments at home for common childhood ailments that work wonderfully well. Over the counter drugs for coughs, colds, flu, and skin rashes are harsh on a child's delicate and developing system. Because children have sensitive systems, they are more responsive to mild herbal treatments in the form of teas, syrups, herbal popsicles, and glycerites-treatments that are much easier for mom or dad to administer than terrible tasting alcohol-based medications.

An integrative approach to health and healing for your child also means considering various methods of administration, especially for infants and smaller children. Natural therapies offer baths, rubs, creams, washes, and poultices. This gives parents the ability to choose between several methods of administration, so that healing is comfortable and positive experience for your child.

Natural Treatments to Try
Over 10% of school-aged children are diagnosed with hyperactivity or ADD or ADHD. It's an alarming percentage, but a problem that is easily managed in most cases with dietary changes. Many studies have shown that food and additive allergies, heavy metal toxicity and other environmental toxins, low-protein/high-carbohydrate diets, mineral imbalances, essential fatty acid and phospholipid deficiencies, amino acid deficiencies, thyroid disorders, and B-vitamin deficiencies are the main triggers of attention deficit. Studies show that food supplement treatment is as effective in treating AD/HD as Ritalin. A mix of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, amino acids, essential fatty acids, phospholipids, and probiotics where used to address the AD/HD biochemical risk factors.

Diaper rash can leave your baby and you very frustrated and uncomfortable. The first thing to consider, if possible, is to use cloth diapers to allow your baby's skin to breathe. Committing the use of cloth diapers can seem daunting, but you can switch between synthetics on the road and cloth for home. Also, letting your baby's bum get some time in the fresh air each day can have a wonderful effect.

Calendula-Comfrey Diaper Ointment
1 lb. coconut oil
2 good handfuls calendula petals
Comfrey leaves*

*Comfrey leaves are not to be used by pregnant women.

Melt the coconut oil in a pan. Then, add herbs and cook on low heat for 30 minutes. The petals will become crispy, but do not burn. Filter the blend into jars, and use when needed.

Tasty soups are great for immune support and remedying illness during the cold season. Recipes with onions, ginger, shitake mushrooms, lots of garlic, and a little hot spice can make a big difference.

Children's delicate systems are susceptible to nose bleeds due to dry heated air in the winter and pollen. Using a humidifier in the home when the heat is on not only keeps the family respirating healthily, it also allows you to turn down the thermostat. The moister in the air will distribute heat throughout your home more efficiently. Bilberry herb can be used to reduce the fragility of the tiny blood vessels in the nose; astringent herbs like witch hazel can be applied topically to reduce bleeding, and supplementing Vitamins A, C, and K and Zinc.

Supplementing Modern Meds
Treating strep throat is great example of how modern medicine and natural therapies can integrate to form total healing systems for your child. Thanks to antibiotics, strep throat can be cut off at the pass to avoid tonsillitis and surgery.

Antibiotics, however, do nothing to repair the throat's damaged tissue, to address a weakened immune system, or to replace the digestive flora that the medication eradicates. Working alongside a trained herbalist, you can effectively restore balance by supplementing with natural treatments like yarrow and meadowsweet to reduce inflammation, calendula to repair damaged tissues, and acidophilus to replace lost flora.

Your Child's Naturopathic Physician
As with any medication giving a child much more of an herb that is recommended could be dangerous. Plants contain powerful chemicals. Remember, 25% of all prescription drugs come from plants. Contact a naturopathic physician who can prescribe treatment with that manages possible conflicts any herb might create with another.
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Skin is your body's largest organ and the one most visible to you and everyone you meet. The condition of your skin communicates your mood and physical state. No wonder we see so many products advertised to create or maintain "beautiful, radiant skin." We all want to look our best.

Skin care and healing are about much more than appearing attractive to others. Your skin is the gateway between you and the environment. Your skin is able to meet nature's challenges on its own when supplied with proper food, drink, sunlight, air, and water. When any of these elements are deficient or overly abundant, the skin reacts. Acne, rashes, chicken pox, and sweating are signs that your skin is performing its job by regulating environmental irritants and internal balance.

Skin Facts
- The average square inch of skin holds 650 sweat glands, 20 blood vessels, 60,000 melanocytes, 50 million bacteria, and more than a thousand nerve endings.

- Skin protects senses, regulates heat, controls evaporation, communicates, stores, synthesizes, excretes, absorbs, and resists.

- Skin regenerates faster than any other organ.

Skin conditions and Natural Treatments

Sunburn is best to avoid altogether by staying in the shade, wearing appropriate attire, and applying sunscreen. When it's too late and sunburn strikes there are several methods for natural healing.

- Hydrotherapy is a fancy word for taking a soak, shower, or applying a towel compress. Lukewarm or cool water is best. Water that is too hot can strip the skin oils produced to repair the problem. 10 to 15 minutes of hydrotherapy three times a day can provide great relief.

- Aloe vera is always good to have on hand in bottled or plant form. The gel within has anti-inflammatory properties that soothe and heal burned skin.

- Stay hydrated by drinking plenty of fluids to replenish water lost out in the sun and heat.

Eczema patients are greatly benefited by an integrative approach. Numerous stressors can trigger the red, itchy, irritated, and sometimes oozing sores that attend eczema. Homeopathy, dietary changes, herbs, and breathing exercises among other treatments can be combined to restore the skin's health. Switching to cotton clothing and taking a daily dose of flaxseed oil is enough to ease some patient's symptoms, while others benefit from detoxification and meditation.

Acne is often thought to be caused by poor hygiene. While washing the skin twice daily is important to remove dead skin cells and dirt, over-washing leaves the skin without the oils it needs to heal.

- Chinese herbal treatments like cnidium seed, honeysuckle flower, or root water are alternatives to Western chemical treatments.

- Supplements like black currant seed oil or evening primrose oil capsules can nurture the skin from the inside out.

- Herbs and teas such as echinacea, calendula, tea tree oil, and goldenseal or a tea made from nettles and cleavers tincture can help.

Dry Skin needs to be cleansed gently. Non-detergent, neutral-pH products applied with a gentle touch will avoid further irritation. Gently massage with oils relaxes and replenished the skin and stimulates it to heal itself. There are all manner of masks you can make at home to nourish dry skin. The ingredients for this mix are easy to come by:
- 1 egg
- 1 teaspoon of honey
- 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil
- A few drops of rose water
Mix and apply as mask.

Vitamin C and Vitamin E give skin a glow that shows you are healthy from the inside out. Foods rich in Vitamin C include: papaya, oranges, broccoli, strawberries, kiwifruits, cauliflower, lemon, cranberry juice, tomatoes, and grapefruits. For Vitamin E eat: sunflower seeds, almonds, blueberries, hazelnuts, wheat germ, pine nuts, avocado, salmon, and olive, sunflower, or corn oil.

Skin solutions are rarely, if ever one-fits-all. What works for Harry may harm Sally, so consulting a physician before starting treatment is important. What you've read here is simply an introduction to a few means of balancing a limited number of skin conditions. Please, feel free to contact the IMS office to learn more about integrative approaches to nurturing your skin.
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