If you notice that your baby has a thick white coating inside his or her mouth or on her lips, it is probably thrush. Thrush is a caused by an overgrowth of yeast, also known as candida, in a baby’s mouth. Almost all breast-fed babies acquire a small amount of yeast from their mother’s skin. So a very light coating of white on the tongue is common and quite normal. But when the coating is extensive, feeding becomes uncomfortable and difficult for the baby. It often happens that yeast overgrowth in a baby’s mouth can in turn lead to yeast infection of the mother’s nipples causing painful cracks and redness. The yeast in the baby’s mouth can also colonize the baby’s gut and lead to gassiness and frequent or chronic diaper rash, since it comes through in the stool.
The usual medical treatment of thrush is to give the baby oral antifungal medication and to apply antifungal creams to the diaper area. This works for an isolated episode of thrush or diaper rash. But if you find yourself struggling with frequent diaper rash in your baby, or redness and cracking of your nipples, your baby probably has an overgrowth of Candida in his gut. And you probably do too! To eradicate recurrent thrush or diaper rash you will need to restore the normal bacterial balance in his gut, so that the good bacteria will naturally keep the yeast organisms from flourishing.
You can buy a liquid preparation that contains live Lactobacillus Acidophilus bacteria, also known as Probiotics, from any health food or drugstore. There are preparations of liquid Acidophilus made specifically for babies and young children, containing just the right amount of organisms for a baby’s gut, including that of a newborn. These bacteria are the good bacteria necessary for your baby’s gut to properly digest milk. It often happens that if your baby or you have received any antibiotics, the good bacteria in the gut are killed off and then the yeast takes up the space. So it is necessary to actively replace these bacteria. You can put a few drops of liquid Acidophilus directly on your baby’s tongue just before breastfeeding several times a day, or every time you nurse. Two or three drops of live liquid Acidophilus at each feeding is adequate to gradually restore the normal balance in your baby’s gut and say goodbye gassiness and to diaper rashes. If you are experiencing redness, itching or cracking of your nipples, you can also apply a few drops of the liquid Acidophilus to your nipples and air dry after each nursing, then apply breast cream over the Acidophilus. This makes for a more rapid healing and prevents recurrence so you can nurse your baby comfortably for longer.
Dr. Ikenze MD is certified by the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a diplomate of the British Institute of Homeopathy
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
TOP 10 Reasons Breastfeed with Mamatini
• Give your baby all the good antibodies for a healthy immune system from day one.
• Give your baby the foundation of a healthy digestive system and prevent the early development of allergies in your baby.
• Help your baby’s development by ensuring good levels of essential vitamins and minerals in your breast milk.
• Bond with your baby in that special way that is unique to you and your baby!
• Save time and energy. No need to fuss with mixing up or warming up formula, brewing herbal teas, etc
• Prevent the development of colic in your baby so you can get your beauty sleep!
• Burn off that pregnancy fat more quickly and efficiently by turning it into food for your baby.
• Restore your energy and the radiant vitality of your skin and hair more quickly with the help of the micronutrients in Mamatini
• Did you know that there is a lower incidence of breast and uterine fibroids in women who breastfeed?
• Best of all is just knowing, that you are giving your baby the very best by giving yourself the healthiest nutrition and vital support for your body.
Dr. Ikenze MD is certified by the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a diplomate of the British Institute of Homeopathy.
• Give your baby the foundation of a healthy digestive system and prevent the early development of allergies in your baby.
• Help your baby’s development by ensuring good levels of essential vitamins and minerals in your breast milk.
• Bond with your baby in that special way that is unique to you and your baby!
• Save time and energy. No need to fuss with mixing up or warming up formula, brewing herbal teas, etc
• Prevent the development of colic in your baby so you can get your beauty sleep!
• Burn off that pregnancy fat more quickly and efficiently by turning it into food for your baby.
• Restore your energy and the radiant vitality of your skin and hair more quickly with the help of the micronutrients in Mamatini
• Did you know that there is a lower incidence of breast and uterine fibroids in women who breastfeed?
• Best of all is just knowing, that you are giving your baby the very best by giving yourself the healthiest nutrition and vital support for your body.
Dr. Ikenze MD is certified by the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a diplomate of the British Institute of Homeopathy.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Vaccinations - To Give Or Not To Give?
Should I vaccinate my child or not? Is there mercury in the vaccine? Does my child really need all those vaccines? Do vaccines cause autism? What is the risk to my child if I don’t vaccinate him? These and other questions are raised by parents faced with having to navigate the increasingly complex array of vaccines recommended for their children, starting right at birth. Many families feel coerced by their pediatricians to vaccinate their children. They feel powerless to argue against the campaign for universal vaccination for as many diseases as possible.
20 years ago children were vaccinated against 7 common childhood illnesses: Polio, Diptheria, Whooping Cough, Tetanus, Measles, Mumps and Rubella. Each one of these diseases was recognized to be likely to result in death, or significant long-term damage. In the case of rubella damage occurred in the womb if the mother became sick with rubella while pregnant. Since then more and more vaccines are constantly being added to the list of recommended vaccines. So that today a child must be vaccinated against 12 different diseases before school age. In addition to the diseases already mentioned, there are now required vaccinations against HIB and Pneumococcus, two bacteria that cause serious infections in young children; Chickenpox also know as Varicella; Hepatitis A and B; Rotavirus, a common cause of diarrhea in children; Meningococcus i.e. meningitis; HPV which is a virus that can cause abnormalities of the genital system. The last two vaccinations are recommended at adolesence. Some researchers even talk of developing vaccines against every form of illness and perhaps, giving one mega shot all at once. As it is now, most children have to received vaccine cocktails with multiple vaccines in one shot at each vaccination visit. This is ostensibly intended to reduce the cost of multiple doctor visits for vaccination, and also reduce the amount of painful injections for the child. But at what cost to the child?
As a pediatrician as well as a homeopathic physician, my policy is to give the parent the final say on which vaccinations to give to their child and when. While the state and medical associations have designed so called universal vaccination schedules that presumably apply to every child, it is important to know that these schedules vary from country to country and that they are not written in stone. I also explain to them the actual content and method of production of each vaccine; which contain live infectious agents, which do not, and again, which contain undesirable additives. Not all the vaccines are of equal importance for protecting a child’s health or of equal safety to the child’s health.
The basic idea of infecting a person with a small and weakened dose of a disease material in order to generate an immune response makes sense in general and cannot be argued with. However there are flaws in the manner in which vaccinations are carried out in order to achieve universal protection of the population while ignoring the immunological susceptibilities of the individual child. It is a known fact that in the event of an epidemic, not every child succumbs to illness and of those who succumb, only a certain number actually expire. One could say the immune systems of those who succumb or expire were already weak at the time of infection compared to the other children. In the event of mass vaccination, it can be extrapolated that those same children would be more likely to suffer vaccine damage. Unfortunately many physicians do not give enough attention to the basic state of health of the child before administering a vaccination. Secondly, no one naturally ever suffers from six unrelated diseases all at the same time. Such a person would very quickly expire. So, why do we artificially infect our children with up to six disease agents at a time and not expect them to be adversely affected, if perhaps, only in the possibility that the immune system becomes overwhelmed or confused by being attacked on so many fronts at the same time.
It is my observation after 25 years of practice that the incidence of chronic respiratory disorders and autoimmune disorders is rising and may be related to the current vaccination practices. Having said that, I still maintain that the vaccines in themselves are safe when administered judiciously. When a person becomes naturally infected with a disease there is an initial incubation phase that may last days to weeks, then an acute phase of illness, followed by a convalescent phase. It is during the convalescent phase that the body manufactures the antibodies that will now protect it against that particular disease. This period of antibody production takes about 4 to 12 weeks, with an average of 6 weeks. Bearing this in mind, it makes sense to give the body adequate time to recover from a particular vaccination before administering the next. In this context, a one-month interval cannot be seen as anything but detrimental to the overall immunologic competence of a child’s body.
Based on these arguments, I usually suggest the following guidelines to my patients:
1. It is reasonable to request a vaccination schedule that is tailored to your particular child and still get all the necessary vaccines administered before the child is of school age.
2. It is best if there is an interval of about 3 months between vaccinations.
3. Avoid giving your child vaccine cocktails containing multiple bacterial and viral agents all at once. In general, try to limit vaccinations to no more than 3 related agents, and never give two unrelated viruses at the same time, e.g. do not give Hepatitis B and Measles-Mumps-Rubella all at the same time; or Hepatitis A and B at the same time; or Chicken Pox and MMR or Hepatitis at the same time etc. The Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine is a combination of three live viruses that require the entire attention of a young child’s immune system to deal adequately with them. For this reason it is safest to be sure that the child is at least 15 months old before administering the MMR and resist pressure to give this particular vaccine at 12 months old when the immune system is not quite as sturdy as at 15 or 18 months of age. Unfortunately the Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccines are no longer available as individual preparations. Separating the vaccines may mean more visits to the doctor and more actual injections, as well as increased cost. But it will reduce the likelihood of running into long-term vaccination related health problems.
4. Do not be persuaded to give a vaccination to a child who happens to be under the weather at the time, even if it is only a little sniffle. A child needs all his defenses in good working order to deal with each vaccination.
5. You can also give your child additional protection from the deleterious effects of a vaccination by giving him a constitutional homeopathic remedy chosen for your particular child based on his particular physical mental and emotional makeup. The constitutional remedy is given on the day before and the day of vaccination.
Following these guidelines has resulted over the years in an almost complete disappearance of vaccination reactions in my patient population. At this time the most frequent question I get is whether to vaccinate against the H1N1 virus. So far, those of my clients who have received the H1N1 have had only minor flu-like symptoms lasting about a day and have been fine. However I think the verdict must still be awaited concerning long-term protection and possible long-term side effects because viruses can remain dormant in the system for long periods. So, I still caution parents to avoid giving other vaccinations at the same time as the Influenza vaccine and whenver possible to give the child a constitutional remedy at the time of the vaccination.
Dr. Ikenze is certified by the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a diplomate of the British Institute of Homeopathy.
20 years ago children were vaccinated against 7 common childhood illnesses: Polio, Diptheria, Whooping Cough, Tetanus, Measles, Mumps and Rubella. Each one of these diseases was recognized to be likely to result in death, or significant long-term damage. In the case of rubella damage occurred in the womb if the mother became sick with rubella while pregnant. Since then more and more vaccines are constantly being added to the list of recommended vaccines. So that today a child must be vaccinated against 12 different diseases before school age. In addition to the diseases already mentioned, there are now required vaccinations against HIB and Pneumococcus, two bacteria that cause serious infections in young children; Chickenpox also know as Varicella; Hepatitis A and B; Rotavirus, a common cause of diarrhea in children; Meningococcus i.e. meningitis; HPV which is a virus that can cause abnormalities of the genital system. The last two vaccinations are recommended at adolesence. Some researchers even talk of developing vaccines against every form of illness and perhaps, giving one mega shot all at once. As it is now, most children have to received vaccine cocktails with multiple vaccines in one shot at each vaccination visit. This is ostensibly intended to reduce the cost of multiple doctor visits for vaccination, and also reduce the amount of painful injections for the child. But at what cost to the child?
As a pediatrician as well as a homeopathic physician, my policy is to give the parent the final say on which vaccinations to give to their child and when. While the state and medical associations have designed so called universal vaccination schedules that presumably apply to every child, it is important to know that these schedules vary from country to country and that they are not written in stone. I also explain to them the actual content and method of production of each vaccine; which contain live infectious agents, which do not, and again, which contain undesirable additives. Not all the vaccines are of equal importance for protecting a child’s health or of equal safety to the child’s health.
The basic idea of infecting a person with a small and weakened dose of a disease material in order to generate an immune response makes sense in general and cannot be argued with. However there are flaws in the manner in which vaccinations are carried out in order to achieve universal protection of the population while ignoring the immunological susceptibilities of the individual child. It is a known fact that in the event of an epidemic, not every child succumbs to illness and of those who succumb, only a certain number actually expire. One could say the immune systems of those who succumb or expire were already weak at the time of infection compared to the other children. In the event of mass vaccination, it can be extrapolated that those same children would be more likely to suffer vaccine damage. Unfortunately many physicians do not give enough attention to the basic state of health of the child before administering a vaccination. Secondly, no one naturally ever suffers from six unrelated diseases all at the same time. Such a person would very quickly expire. So, why do we artificially infect our children with up to six disease agents at a time and not expect them to be adversely affected, if perhaps, only in the possibility that the immune system becomes overwhelmed or confused by being attacked on so many fronts at the same time.
It is my observation after 25 years of practice that the incidence of chronic respiratory disorders and autoimmune disorders is rising and may be related to the current vaccination practices. Having said that, I still maintain that the vaccines in themselves are safe when administered judiciously. When a person becomes naturally infected with a disease there is an initial incubation phase that may last days to weeks, then an acute phase of illness, followed by a convalescent phase. It is during the convalescent phase that the body manufactures the antibodies that will now protect it against that particular disease. This period of antibody production takes about 4 to 12 weeks, with an average of 6 weeks. Bearing this in mind, it makes sense to give the body adequate time to recover from a particular vaccination before administering the next. In this context, a one-month interval cannot be seen as anything but detrimental to the overall immunologic competence of a child’s body.
Based on these arguments, I usually suggest the following guidelines to my patients:
1. It is reasonable to request a vaccination schedule that is tailored to your particular child and still get all the necessary vaccines administered before the child is of school age.
2. It is best if there is an interval of about 3 months between vaccinations.
3. Avoid giving your child vaccine cocktails containing multiple bacterial and viral agents all at once. In general, try to limit vaccinations to no more than 3 related agents, and never give two unrelated viruses at the same time, e.g. do not give Hepatitis B and Measles-Mumps-Rubella all at the same time; or Hepatitis A and B at the same time; or Chicken Pox and MMR or Hepatitis at the same time etc. The Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine is a combination of three live viruses that require the entire attention of a young child’s immune system to deal adequately with them. For this reason it is safest to be sure that the child is at least 15 months old before administering the MMR and resist pressure to give this particular vaccine at 12 months old when the immune system is not quite as sturdy as at 15 or 18 months of age. Unfortunately the Measles, Mumps and Rubella vaccines are no longer available as individual preparations. Separating the vaccines may mean more visits to the doctor and more actual injections, as well as increased cost. But it will reduce the likelihood of running into long-term vaccination related health problems.
4. Do not be persuaded to give a vaccination to a child who happens to be under the weather at the time, even if it is only a little sniffle. A child needs all his defenses in good working order to deal with each vaccination.
5. You can also give your child additional protection from the deleterious effects of a vaccination by giving him a constitutional homeopathic remedy chosen for your particular child based on his particular physical mental and emotional makeup. The constitutional remedy is given on the day before and the day of vaccination.
Following these guidelines has resulted over the years in an almost complete disappearance of vaccination reactions in my patient population. At this time the most frequent question I get is whether to vaccinate against the H1N1 virus. So far, those of my clients who have received the H1N1 have had only minor flu-like symptoms lasting about a day and have been fine. However I think the verdict must still be awaited concerning long-term protection and possible long-term side effects because viruses can remain dormant in the system for long periods. So, I still caution parents to avoid giving other vaccinations at the same time as the Influenza vaccine and whenver possible to give the child a constitutional remedy at the time of the vaccination.
Dr. Ikenze is certified by the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a diplomate of the British Institute of Homeopathy.
Micronutrients What are they and what can they do for you?
If you are struggling to return to your youthful pre-pregnancy weight and figure and having a difficult time with it, you are not alone. For many women this is one of the most confounding problems. On the one hand you want to lose weight, but on the other hand you are hungry all the time because you are breastfeeding a growing baby who depends on your to manufacture a wholesome milk containing all the nutrients essential for his or her physical and mental development. So, how can you get the best of both worlds and lose some of the pregnancy weight and regain lean body mass, while at the same time ensuring that your milk has an optimal nutritional content?
This is where the homeo-therapeutic micronutrients in Mamatini come in. These micronutrients are minerals that are delivered to the body in microscopic, almost immeasurable amounts, and in a form similar to their naturally occurring physiological state in the body. These extremely small amounts of minerals that are very important for proper cell metabolism are presented to the body in a form that is immediately absorbed and assimilated directly into the cells to balance and enhance the metabolism of every cell in the body.
Micro-minerals improve a sluggish metabolism. The result is, you find that your energy level is much better, allowing you to engage in more activity and exercise, and weight loss becomes much more effortless. But that is not the only benefit. These micronutrients stimulate and balance every cell in your body, and that includes the milk producing cells, ensuring a high concentration of valuable nutrients in the milk. So it’s a win-win situation for both you and your baby.
This is where the homeo-therapeutic micronutrients in Mamatini come in. These micronutrients are minerals that are delivered to the body in microscopic, almost immeasurable amounts, and in a form similar to their naturally occurring physiological state in the body. These extremely small amounts of minerals that are very important for proper cell metabolism are presented to the body in a form that is immediately absorbed and assimilated directly into the cells to balance and enhance the metabolism of every cell in the body.
Micro-minerals improve a sluggish metabolism. The result is, you find that your energy level is much better, allowing you to engage in more activity and exercise, and weight loss becomes much more effortless. But that is not the only benefit. These micronutrients stimulate and balance every cell in your body, and that includes the milk producing cells, ensuring a high concentration of valuable nutrients in the milk. So it’s a win-win situation for both you and your baby.
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