HOW TO IMPROVE GUT HEALTH IN CHILDREN
1. What are the signs that a child has poor gut health?
Indigestion, Vomiting, Bloating, Abdominal Pains, Poor Appetite, Delayed Growth, Picky Eating, Diarrheas’, Loose Stools, Burping, Regular Hiccups, Bad Breath, Pungent Wind etc.
2. What causes gut-related disorders?
External factors may include Wind, Cold, Heat, Dampness, Dryness, or Fire (“风寒暑湿燥火”) which may enter and harm the Spleen directly giving rise to gut disorders. Other factors may also be due to infections from viruses, bacteria or parasites.
Internal factors could include improper dietary habits (such as irregular meals and/or volume, incorrect food types selections and lack of food variety, picky eaters, overtaking of oily, deep-fried, overly salty, sweet or spicy foods etc), predisposed genetic conditions (such as lactose intolerance, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis etc), emotional distresses, accidental ingestion or poisoning (such as incautious intake of dirty, mouldy foods or poisonous items), side effects from medications etc.
3. What are the treatments for these disorders?
TCM aims to treat these disorders through solving the root of the problem. As a child is constantly growing, the selection of treatment strategies will be more stringent and delicate, such as through considerations for treatment methods (internal methods like herbal prescription and/or external methods like paediatric tuina, acupuncture, cupping, moxibusion, herbal inhalation etc), choice of herbs, dosage and administration of herbal prescription etc. The condition of a child also tends to evolve quicker, hence it is imperative to have close monitoring of the situation to provide the most efficient route to recovery.
Due to the child’s tender age, it is recommended to select herbs with properties which are not too extreme, and to cease medication once the child has recovered to avoid disrupting the child’s natural Yin-Yang balance, thereby affecting their recovery process and growth development.
It is also important to note that children should not have an excessive intake of tonics. With a healthy diet and lifestyle, a child will grow and develop well and naturally. With excessive intake of tonics unnecessarily, it may harm the normal functionality of their Spleen, thereby affecting digestion, absorption, and bring about a series of gut related disorders, or even early maturation. The intake of tonics during a child’s illness may also impede their recovery process, allowing the illness to drag and evolve. Tonics should be taken moderately and appropriately only to replenish areas which the child is lacking in.
Treatment usually tackles the core of the illness, i.e. for an excessive syndrome (实证), we aim to remove the excess such as an excess in dampness, phlegm caused by indigestion of foods, obstruction of qi; for a deficiency syndrome (虚证), we aim to identify and replenish the deficient in Yin, Yang, qi or blood of the Spleen respectively.
4. What can parents do to prevent gut problems?
Parents can help to play a major role in the prevention of gut problems. Breastfeeding mothers should strive for a healthy and balanced diet to ensure the newborn babies get sufficient nutrients such as proteins, minerals (iron, zinc and calcium etc), and vitamins (Vit D, Vit E etc) which are essential for normal growth development. From 4 months old, gradual weaning can be introduced, starting with small amounts of soft, liquid and individual food types to give time for the Spleen to develop well. As the child progresses to 12 months old and onwards, go for a light and nutritious diet with a wide variety of fresh foods, fruits and fiber, with grains being the staple. Avoid cold foods and drinks which harm the Yang of Spleen, giving rise to gut problems. Cultivate regular meal times and volumes, limiting on snacks and sweets. Practise good eating habits like hands washing before meals and no vigorous activities after meals. Make eating a happy process. Observe the pooing habits and stools of the child to pick up any irregularities early. Encourage intake of water and other healthy liquids.
5. Can tuina or acupuncture help?
Paediatric tuina is an effective external therapy in TCM, stimulating specific acupressure points or areas, unique to children, for the treatment and prevention of paediatric diseases. It also helps to stimulate growth and brain development in children. It combines massage, acupressure stimulation and other forms of body manipulation by applying pressure to acupoints, meridians and groups of muscles of nerves to remove blockages to promote the free flow and optimal circulation of qi and blood.
Its execution is convenient, painless, enjoyable, and non-invasive, and is performed according to the characteristics of children’s physiology and pathology. The effects of paediatric tuina for common paediatric diseases of the respiratory system (such as flu, fever, cough, asthma etc) and digestive system (such as stomach ache, diarrhea, constipation, vomiting, poor appetite etc) are pronounced. Paediatric tuina is also suitable for illnesses like frequent bedwetting, night crying, myopia etc, and is useful to improve their overall health by strengthening the child’s immune system.
Acupuncture, moxibusion and cupping are other treatment methods worth considering for children. The selection of acupoints is precise, acupuncture needles are usually shorter, and execution is brisk and gentle, with the assistance of heating lamp. Sometimes the needles are remove right away after stimulating the acupoints. Moxibusion is also done briefly due to their tender skin, hence timing of the treatment is well controlled till the skin shows mild redness and warmth. Cupping is executed for older children with medical grade silicon cups with appropriate cupping duration according to the child’s age and medical condition.
6. In TCM, are there herbs that function like probiotics / prebiotics for guy health?
There are herbs which aids digestion of food, reducing the burden of our gut, and at the same time boosts the function of our Stomach and Spleen and improves the absorption and distribution of nutrients in our body. Some of these herbs include 山楂，神曲，麦芽，谷芽，鸡内金.
Some herbs aid in the removal of excess dampness in our Spleen and promote a healthy bowel movement by working on the intestinal mucosa [1], such as 黄芪，党参，山药，白术，苍术，茯苓，大枣，瓜蒌，火麻仁，麦冬，蜂蜜 etc. Research has also shown that 七味白术散 is helping in the growth of good gut bacteria [2].
7. When is the best age to start building a strong gut microbiome?
TCM believes a healthy diet giving rise to a strong guy microbiome should be built as early as possible. With a strong gut comes a strong immune system too, and TCM believes in the daily preventive care of our body than to treat the illness only when it arises. With a strong Stomach and Spleen (脾为中土[3]), the digestion and absorption of essence to make qi and blood will be optimized, and the whole body and our organs will be nourished well, giving rise to a healthy body constitution, keeping all illnesses at bay.
[1] https://www.wjgnet.com/1009-3079/full/v25/i35/3115.htm
[2] https://www.wjgnet.com/1009-3079/full/v26/i17/1022.htm
[3] https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E8%84%BE%E4%B8%BB%E4%B8%AD%E5%9C%9F/10946338
