• Created on 6/5/13 by Melanie Mayo

  Summer is here and many of us are thinking about how we can keep our kids safe in the sun.    The first line of defense for most parents is to grab the sunscreen and make sure the kids are properly covered. But who wants to slather on a cream that contains potentially dangerous chemicals?   That's where natural sunscreens come into play. Using safe ingredients, many lotions, creams and sticks provide excellent UV protection while minimizing chemical exposure.   Below is a list of just... read more

• Created on 2/11/13 by Amy Lansky

by Amy L. Lansky, PhD   1. Don't listen to people who say autism is incurable.    Conventional doctors may not understand how to help, but plenty of alternative practitioners are making great strides!  Stay optimistic and start doing your research online.  A good place to begin is www.autism.com -- the Autism Research Institute.   2. Start your child on your chosen therapies as soon as possible.  The earlier you begin, the better and more complete your chances are for recovery. However, even if your child is older, there is hope for significant... read more

• Created on 9/27/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Philip Incao "What should I watch for?" is a question I am often asked by mothers when their children are working through an acute inflammatory illness. Many mothers don't trust themselves to be able to discern the difference between a routine illness that can be managed at home and one that requires a visit to the doctor.In my experience, mothers have every reason to feel confident in their powers of observation, and in their intuitive sense of what's happening with their child during illness and healing. I have found that, most often, a mother's assessment is... read more

• Created on 9/27/12 by Mothering Editorial

Straight Talk on the 100-Day Cough by Lauren Feder, MD Issue 164 January-February 2011 Please see the accompanying article by Dr. Jay Gordon for more information on whooping cough and the pertussis vaccine. You can also purchase this article along with "The Problem with Pertussis Vaccines,” by Barbara Loe Fisher in the Mothering Shop.  In June 2010, news reports confirmed that whooping cough was now an epidemic in California.1 Physicians were inundated with calls from concerned parents. As the disease spread in California and across the nation, it became important that... read more

• Created on 9/18/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Karen BurkaIssue 132, September/October 2005 Routine infant circumcision continues to be the most commonly performed surgery on children in the US, with about 1.2 million newborn boys circumcised each year.1 The US also continues to be the only industrialized nation that circumcises the majority of its newborn baby boys for nonreligious reasons. The health-based reasons have been criticized and are controversial.2 Despite these facts, the rates of routine infant circumcision (RIC) in the US have steadily declined for more than a decade, and dropped more than 11... read more

• Created on 8/27/12 by Mothering Editorial

Make a simple baby massage oil by adding 2 drops of lavender and 2 drops of rose oil to 1 ounce of sweet almond or grapeseed oil. If your baby has a fussy period in the day, massage her half an hour before that period; to aid her digestion, massage her a half an hour after a feeding. Get a soft towel and sit outside or near a sunny window. Lay the towel on the ground, or over your lap. Place your naked baby on the towel. Gently, but firmly, massage his stomach in a clockwise motion with your fingertips. Do this with baby’s legs outstretched as well as... read more

• Created on 8/27/12 by Cynthia Mosher

Managing Asthma with Natural Medicine By Randall Neustaedter Web Exclusive Natural medicine can significantly strengthen immune function, preventing asthma attacks and even curing the underlying cause of symptoms. The most successful approach to asthma, and the easiest for parents to adhere to, is constitutional homeopathy as practiced by an experienced, certified, classical homeopathic practitioner (see www.homeopathicdirectory.com ). The constitutional medicine is a single substance that corresponds to the overall picture of a child's physical symptoms,... read more

• Created on 8/21/12 by Mothering Editorial

Chickenpox Party: Developing Natural Varicella Immunity By Brian Wimer, Jacquelyn L. Emm and Deren Bader Issue 122, January - February 2004 "Whoopee!" When word got out that little George's cousin Natalie had chickenpox, the playgroup phone tree lit up with the jubilant consensus: "Chickenpox party!" George was there, as was Natalie, our "Patient Zero." Jonah, Timothy, Sam, and Luka came with parents in tow, hoping to bring home a lifelong party favor of double-stranded DNA herpesvirus. Yes, it sounds cruel and unusual to subject one's child to a biological sneak... read more

• Created on 7/23/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Sherri J. TenpennyIssue 120, September-October 2003 The time has finally arrived for the highly anticipated trip out of the country. The plans began long ago: airplane tickets, hotel reservations, rental car, sightseeing plans. The bags are being pulled from the attic to be packed, and the excitement mounts with each passing day. Everything is a go. But wait-what about vaccines? Is this one more preparation that needs to be added to the "To Do" list? Traveling out of the country can feel like a venture to another planet. Pictures of exotic destinations coupled with... read more

• Created on 7/23/12 by Mothering Editorial

By Pascale WowakWeb Exclusive - September 10, 2007 When my baby daughter was two weeks old, I noticed a red dot on her torso and another one on her forehead. My husband proclaimed them to be moles. I wasn't so sure, and quickly sought the opinion of our daughter's pediatrician. "Hmmmm," the doctor said as she said as she looked at them—over and over again for what felt like the longest time. It was the kind of "hmmmm" that seemed to be saying: "I'm stalling because I know what this is but I don't want to scare you so I'm going to triple check and take my time figuring... read more