Complementary Health Approaches For Kids
Charlotte Parent|January 2020
Everywhere we look these days, dietary supplements, home remedies, or mind and body practices claim to be the next best thing to cure ailments and improve wellness.
Liz Rothaus Bertrand
Complementary Health Approaches For Kids

According to the 2017 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), the number of adults and kids using at least some complementary health approach is on the rise. Between 2012 and 2017, the percentage of children practicing yoga more than doubled, and the rate of children practicing meditation increased from 0.6 percent to 5.4 percent.

From bone broths to yoga, here’s a look at a variety of complementary health approaches with expert advice on their safety and effectiveness.

Defining Complementary Health

More people are using complementary health approaches, but what are they, exactly?

“Complementary health approaches are using the body’s immune system and strengthening the body’s own resources to fight illness rather than (using) medication,” says Dr. Maria-Ana Temple of Integrative Health Carolinas. As a pediatrician trained in both conventional and functional medicine, she focuses on nutrition and lifestyle with an emphasis on prevention. “We begin with a complementary approach from birth.”

Integrative medicine uses the best of both worlds, explains Dr. Sheila Kilbane of Infinite Health. After finishing her medical residency, she grew frustrated as she repeatedly prescribed antacids for 3-month-old babies, steroids for eczema, or saw patients with recurrent bouts of colic, sinus infections, and constipation. “I knew I was just putting a Band-Aid on this stuff and I knew that I had to look deeper,” she says.

This story is from the January 2020 edition of Charlotte Parent.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the January 2020 edition of Charlotte Parent.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM CHARLOTTE PARENTView All
The Covid-19 Legacy
Charlotte Parent

The Covid-19 Legacy

How will this generation-definind event affect our children?

time-read
6 mins  |
Summer 2020
Four fun things to experience with your kids this month
Charlotte Parent

Four fun things to experience with your kids this month

Four fun things to experience with your kids this month

time-read
1 min  |
April 2020
Charlotte Parent

Staying Fit As a New Parent

It’s not impossible

time-read
6 mins  |
April 2020
Autism Diet Do's and Don'ts
Charlotte Parent

Autism Diet Do's and Don'ts

Autistic individuals often have difficulties with sensory processing issues, sometimes called Sensory Processing Disorder, or SPD.

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2020
Best Friends in the end
Charlotte Parent

Best Friends in the end

You can be friends with your child…just not yet

time-read
4 mins  |
April 2020
Therapeutic Riding
Charlotte Parent

Therapeutic Riding

Teaching confidence, focus, and friendship, one ride at a time

time-read
5 mins  |
April 2020
A Cool Girl's Bedroom
Charlotte Parent

A Cool Girl's Bedroom

WHEN DESIGNER JACY PAINTER KELLY, owner of Jacy Painter Kelly Interiors, took her family to New York City last summer, her 10-year-old daughter Lucy went crazy for the cool urban vibe of their downtown hotel room. It gave Lucy the itch to makeover her own bedroom in their Fort Mill home. She wanted more mature accents like silver wall sconces and velvet pillows, paired with punk rock elements like a graffiti-inspired bed frame and pink neon sign. Luckily her designer mom knew exactly how to tie it all together.

time-read
1 min  |
April 2020
Three Charlotte Murals
Charlotte Parent

Three Charlotte Murals

An art critic and his 5-year-old daughter offer their thoughts on public artworks found around the city

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2020
Growing with Grace
Charlotte Parent

Growing with Grace

Everyday etiquette for children and teenagers

time-read
3 mins  |
April 2020
The Pint-Sized Foodie
Charlotte Parent

The Pint-Sized Foodie

A visit to NC Red

time-read
2 mins  |
April 2020