Pediatrics
Did you know that pediatrics has been part of Chinese medicine for millennia and acupuncture can be used on babies, children, tweens and teens? Treatments vary per age, so if we are treating a baby we do not sustain the needles and use tiny needles that babies cannot even feel as well as non needle techniques such as Shoni Shin which stimulates the channels, gua sha and cupping. As children get older, we sustain the needles longer and many kids really look forward to their acupuncture relaxation time.
Chinese medicine can successfully treat many common Childhood ailments such as asthma, eczema, ADHD, digestive disorders and various inflammatory conditions where Western medicine cannot help or truly understand the issue.
Chinese medicine has the ability to heal a child’s body through nutritional therapy, painless acupuncture techniques and pediatric herbal medicine. Children’s bodies respond quickly, stimulating the healing process and restoring balance within the body by reducing inflammation and increasing the immune system.
We use a mix of Pediatric Chinese medicinal herbs if needed and various modalities that have been used in Pediatric Chinese medicine for centuries.
6 Common Pediatric Conditions Commonly Treated with Chinese Medicine & Acupuncture
1. Colic
A double blind, placebo controlled trial found that light stimulation of one acupuncture point, twice per week, led to a shorter duration of fussy behavior and a quicker resolution to infant’s colic (1). Acupuncture, herbal medicine and infant massage techniques can help to strengthen the digestive system, calm the nervous system and relax the infant. I personally experienced this with my own newborn and found he had immediate relief after acupuncture. Here is an article I wrote on the subject
2. Constipation
Constipation can be a very common and stressful issue with children and infants. Miralax is typically the go to standard of care given by pediatricians but it isn’t something that the body should depend on and can have negative health effects with long term use.
Acupuncture and herbal medicines help to treat constipation by treating the root of the issue, verse using a laxative which is not a healthy band-aide. “A systematic review found acupuncture to be a safe and effective treatment to increase stool frequency and improved constipation symptoms and stool formation (2).”
Typically patients improve almost immediately. I have had babies who just after a few sessions go from chronic constipation to regular daily bowel movements.
This has been found effective with children too, with my little patients often experiencing a bowel movement very shortly after acupuncture!
3. Insomnia
In 2008, a meta-analysis showed that acupuncture and herbs are effective in the treatment of insomnia (3). Often, as babies, toddlers and children develop, they experience sleep difficulties and sleep regressions. Acupuncture and herbal medicine can help to balance your little one’s overall health and help them to make it through these transitions with more ease.
4. Acid Reflux
One of my saddest moments in clinic was when a three year old explained that it felt like there was lava in his chest. After a few treatments this little fellow felt much much better. Indeed one study found that acupuncture significantly reduced the symptoms of GERD (4), with another study finding positive effects on decreasing stomach acid (5).
5. Anxiety
Acupuncture is effective at calming the nervous system, and helping the body to transition from the fight or flight sympathetic nervous system to the rest and digest parasympathetic nervous system. This can help little ones who are struggling with anxious tendencies as well as behavioral issues.
These days the #1 issue I am treating both children, tweens and teens for is Anxiety. Not only has acupuncture been proven to be even more effective than medication for some patients, it works very quickly in children and teenagers, even those with more severe presentations and panic attacks.
In a recent study : “Children with anxiety, aged 8-16, were randomized to either the acupuncture or waitlist control groups. Anxiety was measured using the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAM-A) for children and adolescents with generalized anxiety disorder and Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children 2nd Edition (MASC-2) self-rated and parent-rated forms.Twenty participants were enrolled in the study and 19 completed all the questionnaires to be included in the analysis. There were no differences in socio-demographic characteristics at baseline between the two groups.
Conclusions: This study provided promising results on the potential use of acupuncture to treat children and adolescents with general anxiety. “
5. ADHD/ OCD & Autism Spectrum
Acupuncture has been proven to be a safe alternative to medication for kids who may suffer from ADHD and OCD or can be complementary to help any side effects and also increase overall cognitive response.
Other issues we commonly treat in kids
Behavioral Issues
Low Immune System
Respiratory Issues
Eczema / Skin Issues
Colds/ Coughs / Ear Infections
One Mother’s Story
“ Acupuncture on babies works! I have a 14-month-old son who suffers from some incredibly painful stomach/digestion issues. When he was around 3 months old he started waking from his naps and at night would scream in pain unable to fall back asleep. My husband and I tried everything we could possibly think of to provide our baby some relief. I was breastfeeding exclusively so I stopped eating dairy - which helped - but didn't solve the problem. We took him to a gastro doctor who thought it was reflux and put him on Mylanta - didn't solve the problem. Then tried MiraLAX - it didn't solve the problem. I read everything I could get my hands on and nothing we tried seemed to provide consistent relief. A little before he turned 6 months old we started feeding him solid food and he got so constipated he would be unable to poop for days screaming in pain.
We were beyond absolutely exhausted and at a loss for what to try next. Every night he was waking for hours crying and moaning in pain as he lay on my chest. I could feel his stomach clenching over and over as he tried desperately to get some relief. Then, when our son was 8 months old, we found Two Rivers Acupuncture. From the first session, Lauren was incredibly warm and patient. Our appointments are only about 5-10 minutes long and yet yield remarkable results. Within 2 sessions our son was sleeping better. Within a month, he was sleeping through the night and not waking from his naps anymore. I now schedule our appointments so that they are during his naptime and he literally sleeps through the entire session. Lauren also recommended two different Chinese herbal drops, one of which we still give him once a day (down from two drops, three times a day each.) We now see Lauren about once a month (down from once a week.) He loves to eat everything and anything we put in front of him - although we are steering clear of any gluten or dairy products for the moment. (Fingers crossed he will outgrow these current intolerances as he gets older and his stomach continues to develop!) All to say, Lauren dramatically helped change the course of our son’s life. Western medicine was not able to provide anywhere close to the same amount of healing and natural relief. There is no better feeling than watching your child enjoy the world pain free. It's truly amazing what acupuncture can do and how fast it works on infants. Lauren’s knowledge of acupuncture and Chinese medicine for babies is exceptional. I highly recommend Two Rivers Acupuncture.” Meg McInerney