Reasons to Consider Complementary Therapies for Childhood Cancer

January 25th, 2010 -- Posted in Uncategorized | 0

Welcome back!

Complementary Therapies are a diverse range of therapies which can be used in addition to mainstream medicine in order to relieve the discomfort of children with cancer and improve their quality of life.   Some of the best known are aromatherapy massage, reflexology, art therapy, music therapy and counselling.   The use of these therapies is increasing especially in the cases of the sickest children.

The most frequent reasons that parents opt to use a complementary therapy for their child with cancer are:

•    They wish to try every possible healthcare option
•    To improve the child’s general health
•    To help the child to relax
•    To reduce side effects from treatment
•    To decrease the child’s anxiety

Complementary therapies can have varied effects from soothing and relaxing to pain relief and also in helping strengthen the immune system.  On an emotional level both the parents and the child can feel that they have taken back some of the control by using a complementary therapy.  Some patients may believe that it can change their outcome and parents who go this route can feel more motivated to find a cure for their child.

The Department of Medical Oncology at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London, produced a research paper which concluded that patients’ satisfaction with complementary therapies was high even without the hoped for anti-cancer effect.   Patients also reported psychological benefits such as optimism and hope.

Therapies such as aromatherapy and reflexology are based in the area known as holistic medicine, which means that well-being is a harmonious balance between the mind, body and spirit.  When this balance is restored it is said to stimulate the body’s natural self-healing processes.

For those who feel less comfortable with touch or talk therapies art or music therapies are wonderful options.  Art therapists believe that being creative helps to heal.  To do music therapy the patient does not need to be musical as the purpose is to relax and reduce anxiety, symptoms and the side effects of treatment.

A brief history of complementary therapies:

For those new to considering complementary therapies it may be a surprise to find out that the roots of many holistic therapies go back 4000-5000 years across the Ancient Egyptian culture to the Indian subcontinent where one could find Ayurvedic medicine which is still practised today.  

Chinese Medicine has more than 4000 years of history and is based on the philosophical concept of balance – yin and yang.  In China they would pay their physicians to maintain their health not when they found themselves ill.

As the UK has been a destination for invaders, refugees, scholars, travellers and migrants part of this legacy is a diversity of health and medical practices that are today referred to as “complementary and alternative medicine” (CAM).  There has been much conflict in the past between conventional medicine and CAM practitioners and during the early twentieth century CAM was virtually outlawed in Britain.  Nowadays the complementary/alternative health movement is accepted as part of modern life and increasing amounts of people are opening up to trying these therapies.

Jackie is trained in reflexology, auricular acupuncture and Vortex Healing®. This is the first of a set of articles focusing on complentary therapies for childhood cancer. The series is dedicated to Meltem Ocal Kogelbauer’s daughter Melanie who lost her battle with childhood cancer and all the other children and parents who have been through the same experience.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/alternative-medicine-articles/reasons-to-consider-complementary-therapies-for-childhood-cancer-1775272.html

The Benefits of Aromatherapy in Childhood Cancer

January 25th, 2010 -- Posted in Uncategorized | 0

What is Aromatherapy?

Aromatherapy is a complementary therapy to promote psychological and physical well-being as well as reducing the symptoms of a range of conditions. It is based on the use of concentrated essential plant oils.  Essential oils are the pure essences which are found in herbs, flowers, grasses, roots, seeds, bark, berries and fruits.  These are extracted mainly by steam or water distillation.  There are about 400 essential oils but in general there are 40 which are commonly used.

These essential oils consist of tiny aromatic chemicals which aid in a variety of health, hygiene and beauty conditions.  People can benefit from them via massage, vaporisation, bathing and inhalation.  The theory is that each essential oil has its own specific health benefits.  Aromatherapy is also used in preventative medicine.  

In aromatherapy the essential oils are absorbed through the skin and have gentle physiological effects.  It is especially effective for a variety of chronic conditions as well as stress related problems.  As the oils stimulate your sense of smell it is also thought that this process may play a part in the effects of aromatherapy.

Aromatherapy and Childhood Cancer

As with other complementary therapies, both children and their parents choose aromatherapy for a number of possible reasons:
•    The feeling that they are doing something pro-active to help themselves
•    To reduce pain
•    To manage anxiety
•    To manage stress
•    To improve well being

In the case of childhood cancer when children are receiving chemotherapy it is the nausea and vomiting which remain as two of the most distressing symptoms.  As well as the chemotherapy itself the anticipatory anxiety is a big factor.  

Aromatherapy has been anecdotally reported to decrease vomiting and nausea as well as anxiety while also increasing the quality of life of the patients.

Children can easily self administer depending on their age and the form of aromatherapy which also means that outside of a scheduled session the child or perhaps parent can administer the essential oils.

Research

1.    A Nursing Times survey of nurses in relation to complementary medicine found that aromatherapy massage was overwhelmingly the most popular complementary therapy employed by nurses.  The reasons for this are the demonstrable therapeutic benefits including the alleviation of anxiety, chronic tension headache, cancer pain in addition to reducing stress perceived by patients in intensive care units.

2.    In 1993 a study took place with palliative patients for six months which comprised of 42 female and 27 male patients.  None of them had previously had the treatment.  The results revealed that 81% stated that they either felt ‘better’ or ‘very relaxed’ after their treatments.  25% reported that the benefits lasted for more than one day.

3.    A study at a UK cancer centre to evaluate an aromatherapy service had 89 initial patients.  The study required six aromatherapy sessions and 58 out of the 89 patients completed these.  The authors of the study reported significant improvements in anxiety and depression (measured by HADS)*.

4.    Another small study focused on the physical and psychological effects of aromatherapy massage on 8 patients with primary malignant brain tumours who were attending their first follow-up appointment after radiation therapy.  Although the authors reported no psychological benefits but did report a statistically significant reduction in blood pressure, respiratory rate and pulse.

*HADS – Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale

What Happens in an Aromatherapy Session?

Firstly the aromatherapist will ask you questions about your medical history as well as your general lifestyle and health.  Through this the aromatherapist will be able to decide which essential oils are most appropriate for the client.

The chosen oils will then be combined with what is called carrier oil, normally vegetable oil, as the essential oils are very concentrated so it needs to be diluted.  The aromatherapist will then massage the oils gently into your body.  The session normally takes from 60 to 90 minutes.  Most people find aromatherapy massage to be very relaxing and soothing.

A Brief History of Aromatherapy
Aromatic or essential oils have been used for thousands of years as treatments for a wide range of disorders, as well as stimulants and sedatives.  Historically essential oils can be linked to the Bible as infused oils and unguents as well as ancient Egypt, as remedies throughout the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

In the 20th century the French chemist and perfumer Rene Gattefosse coined the term ‘aromatherapy’ and published a book of that name in 1937.  Gattefosse and his colleagues in Italy, Germany and France spent 30 years studying the effects of aromatherapy but then it went out of fashion around the middle of the twentieth century.  It was another Frenchman, Jean Valnet who was a physician, who rediscovered it and he published his book The Practice of Aromatherapy in 1982.

Today aromatherapists publish their own journal, the International Journal of Essential Oil Therapeutics.

Jackie is trained in reflexology, auricular acupuncture and Vortex Healing®. This is the second of a set of articles focusing on complementary therapies for childhood cancer, which looks at <a rel=”nofollow” target=”_blank” href=”
aromatherapy”>http://www.montyscorner.org/content/aromatherapy-cancer”>aromatherapy and childhood cancer. The series is dedicated to Meltem Ocal Kogelbauer’s daughter Melanie and all the other children and parents who have been through the same experience.

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/alternative-medicine-articles/the-benefits-of-aromatherapy-in-childhood-cancer-1775358.html

Autism Disabilities - Children and Learning Disabilities

January 24th, 2010 -- Posted in Uncategorized | 0

Autism DisabilitiesThere has been an disasterous increase in the number of children faced surrounded by perceived and true neurobiological-based dysfunctions resulting in an foreseen 5-15% of our nation’s children on medications for a variety of learning, mood and behavioral issues. IT as long as be noted, however, that opposite ingredients may create inattentiveness, lack of focus, impulsivity and hyperactivity which contribute to a misdiagnosis of ADD/ADHD. For example, food, chemical and environmental allergies can influence attention, focus and concentration. Dr. Donald W. Miller, Jr. blames the high rates of neuro-dysfunction on the modern rushed vaccination schedule to which very young children are subjected. Dr. Miller explains the problem: “The brain has its own specialized immune system, separate from that of the rest of the body. When a person is vaccinated, its specialized immune cells, the microglia, become activated (the blood-brain barrier notwithstanding). Multiple vaccinations spaced close together over-stimulate the microglia, causing them to release a variety of toxic elements - cytokines, chemokines, excitotoxins, proteases, complement, free radicals - that damage brain cells and their synaptic connections.” Autism Disabilities What is Autism? Autism is an early-onset biological disorder that causes severe deficits of higher mental functions, as well as behavioral manifestations. There is no single, clear-cut cause and no complete cure for autism. Causally speaking, immune factors, neuro-chemical factors, genetic susceptibility factors and environmental factors (such as microbial infections and chemical toxicity) have been implicated. Autism is a very complex, multi factorial disorder. Many parents believe that a mercury-based preservative in the vaccines, as well as severe exposures, are indeed contributing factors to autism. Don’t let your love ones suffer anymore! Lead them out through Autism Disabilities program now!

Feeling lost without solutions? Autism Disabilities is a proven Autism Solution for your Child.

Try The Program and change child’s life forever!

Article Source:http://www.articlesbase.com/alternative-medicine-articles/autism-disabilities-children-and-learning-disabilities-1769810.html

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