The health of a child can set them up for future health. At Whole Medicine, we are passionate about supporting families to raise the healthiest kids possible. This means teaching children about healthy lifestyle habits, supporting physical exercise and developing emotional skills. In addition to making sure all their nutritional needs are met, our family doctors are proactive about addressing the following health concerns.
Attention levels are decreasing over the whole population for a variety of reasons. However, in children it can affect their learning, social functioning, behaviour and future potential. There is a raft of evidence-based interventions to try, including diet and nutrition, lifestyle and sleep, movement, occupational therapy and other therapies, mindfulness games, medications and other behavioural supports.
Behavioural issues that are outside normal functioning can impact on family harmony, school learning, social functioning and mental health. Looking holistically at a child can reveal some underlying issues at play. Supporting brain growth and function with lifestyle, nutrition, diet and other factors can support children. Having access to specialists and referral networks is also vital for the whole family.
Some children just can't shake an infection, or they seem to constantly catch cold-after-cold. This can wreak havoc on a working family as often the adults contract them, too. A lowered immunity is often impacted by a poor lifestyle, having food intolerances, excessively poor food choices, poor sleep or nutritional deficiencies, to name a few. Sometimes breaking the vicious cycle is all that's needed to get back on track.
Vaccinations are an important community health intervention. From early 2018, we plan to offer all childhood immunisations at the Whole Medicine clinic.
Food intolerances are becoming more prevalent in the community. As the foods' we chose to eat are more processed, grown in poorer soils and of lesser quality, these choices can impact on our gut biome. A poorer functioning gut biome sets the gut up for food allergies and intolerances. Food intolerances can be single food groups, multiple food groups, food chemical groups or a mix of the above. Elimination diets are the gold standard for diagnosing food intolerances and with our experience some simple changes can make a world of difference. From young babies to toddlers, and even as they are growing, food intolerances can cause issues such as skin rashes, headaches, fatigue, behavioural issues, poor feeding, tummy troubles, asthma and eczema.
Sleep is the golden elixir of any young family's life. When a child isn't sleeping well, no-one sleeps well. Sleep is vital for brain development, emotional regulation, optimal detoxification, hormonal stability and cellular and immune repair. Taking a whole-person approach to sleep issues is vitally important in general practice. Research shows, 25 per cent of children with ADHD have sleep apnea. Sleep can be negatively impacted for a variety of reasons including emotional health, nutrition, behavioural patterns, physical obstructions and gut issues.
Newborn and family support
Having a newborn baby is incredibly exciting, but equally as overwhelming for many. Their delicate immune systems, tiny limbs and sensitive brains are in our hands. We love taking care of new parents and their babies. From the six-week check-up, to helping you through immunisations, food introduction, breast-feeding and more.
Digestion can be a real issue for some children. From recurrent tummy issues to coeliac disease, immune issues, food intolerances and reflux. Digestive issues in children impact the whole of their health. Taking a step-by-step approach to gut issues is important for their long-term health, socially, physically and emotionally.