What's The Alternative?

More parents are turning to complementary therapies to treat their children’s ailments. But how safe are they? Young Parents investigates.

Ethan Cleaver was barely six months old when the asthma attacks started.

“He could hardly breathe, and my husband and I had to rush him to KK Hospital’s A&E if the nebeuliser we had didn’t work. This happened two to three times a week,” recalls his mother, Lu Minru.

Two months later, nothing changed. Exhausted and exasperated, she turned to Eu Yan Sang’s clinic, which practices Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM).

“Two weeks later, Ethan’s attacks stopped! The best part was he didn’t mind the medicine at all, so that made it easy for us to administer. He received treatment for six months and has had no more attacks since. He turned four last month,” says the 38-year-old PR consultant.

Like Minru, more parents here are turning to alternative therapies to treat their children’s illnesses or improve their well-being.

Dr Nirubha of Global Ayurvedic Centre says 20 to 30 per cent of her patients are babies and children. She has been practising in Singapore for more than six years.

“I have seen an increase in the number of young patients, largely because of greater awareness of ayurveda and its benefits, especially as a preventive measure against many kinds of flu, and to strengthen the immune system.”

Complementary therapies work on the philosophy that the human body has self-healing powers, and all it requires is a little help or support from essences, herbal preparations, or a gentle nudge from a massage or manipulations.

Perhaps the most well known here is TCM, which is enjoying a resurgence. Some hospitals like Singapore General Hospital and Raffles Hospital even have centres dispensing the traditional remedies.

Carl Wong, head of the TCM group at Healthway TCM Medical Clinic, says it can be used to treat almost all types of illnesses.

“Children should start with simple TCM treatment methods, such as tuina or accupressure massage, after which they can try more complicated methods like accupuncture. These treatments will regulate the flow of qi and blood, and boost their immune system.”
Besides traditional Asian therapies, some local parents have also turned to Western ones like homeopathy and osteopathy.

Read the February 2010 issue of Young Parents for the full story, and to learn more about alternative healing methods that have gained popularity with parents here.