Holistic Approach to Ear Infections

It is amazing to me that some children suffer bout after bout of ear "infection". With all of my children this hasn't been the case, with Nathan at 18 months old he can put a check in the NO column after ear infection. I think to many of us (I was one of them so I can say this without being judgemental) rush to the doctor at the first sign of tugging at the ear, fever and possible ear problem, or one that I wasn't a victim of, having the doctor tell you your perfectly happy child has an infection because at a well child visit the ears were examined and appeared to be red. I am not saying everyone should adopt my philosophy, however get educated so the next time your doctor says it's an infection and wants to prescribe antibiotics you can as the pertinent questions; 1. How do you know it is bacterial (the only type antibiotics will work on) vs. viral. 2. Is it just red, is there fluid? 3. And the ringer questions: According to the AAP it is suggested the antibiotics NOT be used until 48 hours after the intial diagnosis, what are your feelings on this?
This isn't about making everyone holistic it is encouraging everyone to become the boss, advocate, and decision maker in your child's health. Without knowing about ear infections it would be hard to double check what the doctor is telling your. The following article is written by an M.D.


Holistic Approach to Ear Infections
by Lawrence P. Palvesky, M.D., F.A.A.P., A.B.H.M.Jan-Feb 2003 It is 3am and your child wakes up complaining of ear pain. What can you do? Ear pain is one of the most common complaints in the pediatric population. Parents exchange frequent stories about the number of times their child has taken a banana or cherry flavored antibiotic for one or more ear infections. It is the rare parent who sits by, not wanting to add to the anxiety of other parents, with the knowledge that their child has never taken an antibiotic for an ear ache. What's more, the child has never had a serious problem resulting from not using antibiotics.When I went through my medical school and residency training, we were warned about the serious complications of allowing an ear infection to progress without antibiotic treatment-mastoiditis, an inflammation and infection of the bony area behind the ear at the base of the skull, and meningitis, an inflammation and infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord which could lead to permanent brain damage, not to mention, the possibility of permanent hearing loss. Over the last 13 years, evidence from the European medical literature and observation of the medical practice of some of our own pioneering primary care providers and ENT (Ear, Nose & Throat) physicians, has taught us that the majority of cases of ear pain can and will resolve on their own. Without antibiotics. Without serious outcomes. With good clinical follow-up. Yet, many children receive antibiotics, and sometimes multiple antibiotics, for ear aches. And their ear aches continue to recur. Are Ear Aches Really Ear Infections? Inflammation occurs in the body as characterized by the following five observations--redness, swelling, heat, pain and loss of function. When a young child has an ear ache, the ear drum is usually found to be red (redness) with clear fluid or mucus buildup in the middle ear (swelling) causing pain, often accompanied by fever (heat) and occasionally accompanied by an acute loss of hearing; clearly a description of inflammation. Even if there were an infection, most studies confirm that viruses are the main organisms responsible for causing the development of these symptoms, not bacteria. Neither a viral infection, nor an inflammation in the ears responds to treatment with antibiotics. Only bacteria respond to antibiotic treatment. Therefore, in the majority of cases, antibiotics do not help. And, in many cases, antibiotics may cause more harm than good when they are used inappropriately.A child is found on exam to have a red ear and no complaint of ear pain even though a fever is present. A pre-verbal infant or toddler with a red ear drum or fluid behind the ear appears well and is smiling. Another child presents with ear fluid and is no longer in pain. Most often these children are not suffering from ear infections and do not warrant antibiotic treatment. By definition, these children simply have inflamed ears which often respond better to other types of treatment. Children who have infections, on the other hand, also present with these five signs of inflammation but, for the most part, do not look clinically well and often have an illness that is more serious than a simple ear infection. A child in pain who appears not to look well should be re-evaluated after the pain is relieved. Early in my pediatric practice, I often gave a child a ten day course of an antibiotic for what I believed was a classic ear infection using the criteria I described for inflammation. More often than not, 2-3 days after completing the antibiotic, the child returned with the same symptoms. I would subsequently write another antibiotic prescription. Frequently, the same pattern would recur. Conventional training taught me that the child had an infection caused by a bacterium that was resistant to the antibiotic. Therefore, a different and stronger antibiotic was needed. Eventually it occurred to me that perhaps the child never needed the antibiotic in the first place. Perhaps there was a different process going on that required a different set of treatments and understanding. Why do infants & children get ear aches? How do the ears become inflamed?Conventional pediatric practice focuses on prescribing treatment interventions once a child's symptoms have already appeared. Non-conventional approaches concentrate on preventing the development of inflammation and infection and attempt to evaluate the causes that contribute to their presentation. In addition, non-conventional approaches use remedies and interventions that facilitate the body's natural healing abilities in a nourishing way in an attempt to avoid suppressing the inherent healing mechanisms that are present in the body. Often, elimination of the factors that are known to contribute to the development of the underlying symptoms is sufficient to treat the problem(s) without introducing additional remedies. This is especially true when it comes to ear pain and ear inflammation. Infants and children have a natural tendency to generate a lot of mucus. The production and the amount of mucus lessen as the child grows older and the developing immune system strengthens. When a child has a build up of excess mucus (one of the primary indicators of inflammation), his/her body attempts to "burn off" this mucus in order to return to a balanced state, also known as homeostasis. This is accomplished by the onset of an illness accompanied by a fever. Children, even without the presence of a fever, tend to run on the hot side. Most of their heat rises towards the head. Heat generated by a fever (another of the primary indicators of inflammation), further raises the energy towards the head. With an abundance of mucus already present in the nose and throat during an upper respiratory infection it is no coincidence that the ears repeatedly become inflamed.Many clinicians and parents report that after a child has recovered from an illness with a fever without the use of suppressive pharmaceuticals, he/she experiences a growth spurt in neurological, developmental and behavioral milestones. Clearly, the immune system is now stronger. Children, who develop excess mucus and need to burn it off through an array of normal childhood febrile illnesses, and are blocked from accomplishing this through the use of inappropriate, suppressive pharmaceutical treatments, often remain in a state of chronic mucus production, i.e., chronic inflammation. This can be seen today in many of our children who live with excess mucus, are often sick and never quite fully recover and have a life of chronic illnesses and delays in reaching their milestones. Prevention & TreatmentUltimately, the goal is to reduce the production of excess mucus, support the process of acute illnesses with good clinical follow-up and safe and effective, non-suppressive, supportive interventions and offer information for families that will both prevent and treat serious acute and chronic illnesses. In the case of ear inflammation, the two approaches that I have seen work most effectively to reduce ear fluid, ear pain and chronic ear problems is a change in the child's and family's diet and the incorporation of manipulative modalities into the treatment plan, i.e., chiropractic, osteopathic and/or cranial sacral therapy.Children have undeveloped digestive systems. Spitting up, vomiting, frequent burping, excess gas and loose stools are frequent pediatric complaints indicative of poor digestive function. Often, children are given a food or a combination of foods that serve to further weaken and stress their digestive systems. Invariably, food is incompletely digested and, as a result, children are confronted with having to deal with nourishment that does not serve them. Consequently, the body's response is to produce additional mucusAs described in immunology, Chinese Medicine, Ayurveda and nutritional medicine, mucus in the nose, throat, sinuses, airways, ears and other parts of the body can arise merely from the failure of the digestive system to accomplish its task successfully. Adults may suffer from the same process as well. Those foods most likely to increase mucus production and further stress a child's already weak digestive system are: dairy, soy (especially overly processed soy products), commercial formulas, a heavy diet of raw fruits and vegetables, iced or cold foods and beverages, wheat and most flour products, baby cereals and commercial cereals, thick, creamy and heavy foods, processed grains, juice, soda, soft drinks, refined sugars, processed and refined foods, fried foods and oils, multiple food choices at a time and overfeeding. Reducing and/or eliminating these foods from a child's diet will often quiet the inflammation and prevent the development of further problems in acute flare-ups and, more specifically, in chronic inflammation of the ears. On the other hand, offering a child warm, cooked, simple, smooth, easy to digest, whole, non-processed foods, accompanied by small amounts of food herbs and spices, will strengthen and support a weak digestive system and keep mucus production and inflammation at a minimum. Immediate ManagementSo, it is still 3am and your child's body is doing its best to purge the excess mucus. Yet, the fluid is not draining and the pain is the main focus. Ultimately, the goal is to rid the body of the mucus. The following is a list of suggestions for parents to help them get through this difficult situation:1) Hold and comfort your child.2) Try to raise the head of the bed. For smaller children, place blankets or pillows under the mattress.3) Keep your child hydrated with room temperature water, clear soup and/or tea. Herbs that help to break up the mucus and comfort your child include thyme, ginger, licorice, eyebright, elder flowers and chamomile. Keep the diet simple. Keep solid foods to a minimum. Offer small doses of vitamin C throughout the day with fluids. Start children's Echinacea within the first 24 hours of illness.4) Diffuse lavender essential oil in the room to help calm any anxiety you may have.5) Place several drops of mullein oil in a container and warm inside a pot of water on the stove. Take several drops of the mullein oil and place them in the affected ear canal. Gently pull and massage the ear lobe away from your child's head and in a slightly downward direction. Use extra virgin olive oil in the same manner if no mullein oil is available or, 6) Take 1-2 drops of organic tea tree essential oil and mix in a base of 20 drops of olive oil and place several warmed drops of this mixture into the affected ear canal. Use any one of the ear drop remedies several times a day to relieve the discomforts of the inflammation. Please be sure to use essential oils that are organic and top grade quality whenever possible.7) Use the tea tree oil combination and massage it into the front of your child's chest below the collarbones in a horizontal fashion. Then rub the oil behind the affected ear(s) and massage down the side of the neck towards the collarbones. This will help open the drainage of lymph fluid into the chest cavity and allow the congestion to drain from the head. This can be done 2-3 times per day until the congestion has resolved.8) See your chiropractor, osteopath or cranial sacral worker the next day. Repeat visits as discussed with your provider.9) Contact your medical health care provider if your child does not improve within 48 hours, develops drainage from the ear or appears to be getting worse.Dr. Lawrence B. Palevsky, MD is a board certified pediatrician who received his medical degree from the NYU School of Medicine. He completed a pediatric residency at the Mount Sinai Hospital in NYC and a one year fellowship at Bellevue Hospital-NYU School of Medicine in the outpatient department and emergency room. Dr. Palevsky's clinical experience includes pediatric emergency room and pediatric acute care medicine, in-patient and out-patient pediatric medicine, neonatal intensive care, newborn and delivery room medicine and private practice. Most recently he was in practice as the holistic and integrative pediatrician at the Center for Health & Healing, a complementary medical facility affiliated with the Beth Israel Medical Center in NYC. Dr. Palevsky is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and a Diplomate of the American Board of Holistic Medicine.

Chiropractic and Ear Infections

I have 3 blogs, this one, one dedicated to FIF, and lastly my chiropractic blog. While I love them all, I take special pride in my chiropractic blog. As chiropractic has changed my life it brings a little joy to see all the visits from around the world on my chiropractic blog. The number one topic that gets hit is chiropractic and ear infections. I have had other authors link to my blog specifically for these articles. The articles weren't written by me, but are more easily accessible on my blog.

Yesterday when I arrived at the YMCA for Annika's music class I joined in a conversation that two mothers were having about their childrens recurrent ear infections. I mentioned they should see a chiropractor, to which I received a look of whatever crazy. As the conversation progressed it moved to the need for tubes. I took this as another opportunity to mention chiropractic, but with a more personal story to share. I have a friend who's daughter had entered the evil ear infection antibiotic cycle and the doctor had mentioned that the next step would be tubes in the ears. Wanting to avoid this at all cost she finally called me and asked for my chiropractors number. Her daughter went in for one visit, one, just one visit, the ear infection cleared up and has yet to return. Major surgery avoided for a $7.00 visit to the chiropractor. The women were suprised, and wanted to know how a "back" doctor could help with ear infections. I gave them a really quick explanation and one women asked if I had the chiropractors card. I also shared that my 17 month old hadn't had a single ear infection and that he had been adjusted at 6 hours old. She wanted to know why it would be necassary to adjust such a small baby. Think of the first thing that happens as soon as the babies head is out of the birth canal, your doctor pulls on it to help get the rest of the baby out. He may not pull hard enough to pull your babies head off (let's hope) but it doesn't take much to move those fragile bones out of alignment. Here is one of the articles from my other blog that explains how chiropractic works with ear infections, and it's not from some secret chiropractic journal it is from Ladies Home Journal.

"Chiropractic Helps in Prevention of Recurring Ear Infections.
In the October 1998 issue of the Ladies Home Journal appeared an article entitled, "Chiropractic Adjustments for Chronic Ear Infections." This article reviewed several studies showing the effectiveness of chiropractic care for preventing re-occurring ear infections known as Otitis Media or OM.

According to the article, reoccurring ear infections account for over 35% of all pediatrician visits in the United States. Sometimes these infections are due to bacteria and sometimes these are due to a virus. The most common medical care for this situation has been antibiotics, even though antibiotics have no effect on viruses. While the article mentions that the antibiotic may be effective in an acute bacterial infection, they do nothing to stop repeat infections. Research and statistics is now showing that repeated use of antibiotics is contributing to future infections by creating drug-resistant infections. The surgical approach has met with little long term results as the "tubes" placed in children’s ears often come out and usually require a child to be put under general anesthesia to do the surgery.

The article in the Ladies Home Journal states, "Chiropractic care is thought to prevent recurrent infections by correcting misalignments (called subluxations) and allowing normal fluid drainage from the middle ear." What the article took special note of was that 6 months after the chiropractic care was given to the children in the study, 80 percent had not suffered a recurrence of ear infections.

In closing the article did make a profound statement. They made a recommendation to parents on this subject. "If your child is between ear infections and his doctor suggests ear-tube surgery, ask if you can try chiropractic treatment first." While we agree with that sentiment, we suggest you not wait for a period between episodes, and you don’t have to "ask" permission from any other doctor to seek chiropractic care. As the sneaker company said, "just do it!"

Don't wait around for Danny to make it back to Utah, you can come and see him when he gets there. Help your kids be ear infection free take them to a chiropractor today! Article on the Web