Dr. Mother Nature

Natural Healing for Kids

By Crystal Patriarche

A banana peel, a wedge of onion, ginger root, garlic and a pair of wet socks. It sounds like the ingredients to a witch's brew, but what you actually have are some simple natural remedies for curing basic hurts in children.

With some parents becoming more educated about what is available, naturopathic medicine (using food, herbs and natural remedies to help heal) is becoming an increasingly popular alternative.

"Parents are looking for answers to recurring ailments like ear infections instead of using antibiotics all the time," says Dr. Tim Schwaiger, a naturopathic doctor (N.D.) at the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine in Tempe, Ariz., one of few fully accredited national programs for naturopathic physicians. "They want to know what they can do naturally to get to the root of it."

Natural healing remedies, used from the earliest of times, include two basic forms: herbs (plant extracts) and homeopathic remedies (highly diluted medicines in the form of pellets that dissolve in the mouth and stimulate the healing powers of the body). These remedies can be found in health food stores, drugstores and some supermarkets.

One of Dr. Schwaiger's patients, Miranda Rowe from Tempe, Ariz., uses natural remedies for her son. After doctors said he had asthma when he was a baby and needed steroids, Rowe sought alternatives. "I was really upset about having my child go through all the medications I went through as a child with asthma," she says. "We went to specialists and tried everything. We were desperate."

Rowe took her son to the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine clinic and within days his breathing trouble and diarrhea improved. "It was tremendous," she says. "It's not some miracle drug. It's a common sense, basic approach we've lost track of."

The naturopathic doctors used acidophilus (found in yogurt) in natural powder form to help Rowe's son's diarrhea and a tincture (liquid form of herbs) to help his asthmatic symptoms. Now Rowe uses natural remedies on her son for everything from earaches to itchy bug bites and fevers. For a cold, Rowe uses a common herb called echinacea because it stimulates the immune system. For an upset tummy she gives him ginger tea.

Want to see more?

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• Getting "Our" Daily Dose: Vitamins, Minerals, Supplements and Herbal Formulas While Breastfeeding
• Herbal Supplements: Consider Safety, Too
• Talk about it!