COMPLEMENTARY & INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE
What is complementary and integrative medicine (CIM)?
Complementary medicine refers to practices that are used in addition to the educational, behavioral, and medical interventions recommended by your child’s pediatrician and schools.
Alternative medicine refers to treatments that are used in place of the recommendations of your child’s pediatrician.
When traditional and complementary practices are used together, it is often called integrative medicine.
CAM (complementary and alternative medicine) is another way of saying complementary and integrative (CIM) medicine.
Pediatricians are trained to recommend evidence-based treatments. This means scientific studies have been done to determine if the treatment is safe and effective. Some CIM therapies are currently undergoing studies as well.
CIM is often separated into the following categories:
- Biological- Examples include supplements, diets, and medicines.
- Mind-body medicine- Examples include biofeedback, auditory integration training, and optometric (eye muscle) exercises.
- Manipulation- Examples include massage and craniosacral manipulation.
- Energy medicine- One example includes qigong.
Most families learn about CIM online, in books, in other media, and from other families. Several of these methods have not been studied in peer-reviewed journals. Peer-reviewed means that other scientists have looked at the studies and made sure they were done well.
You will want to understand the evidence for any treatment you may want to explore for your child. Questions you might ask include:
- Has it been published in a research journal where experts have reviewed the study and the results?
- How good was the study? Did it have enough children in it to make the claims it made? Was the treatment the same for all children? Was there a placebo (substitute with no expected effect, such as a sugar pill) so that the results could be compared with results of children not receiving the treatment but receiving similar attention? Did the children get other treatment that would change the result?
- Will your insurance cover it? How much will it cost? Most health care insurers will not cover treatments that are not evidence based.
- Will my child miss or have to stop other treatments to use it?
- What are the side effects? Every intervention or treatment has some potential side effects.
Many adults in the United States use CIM treatments themselves. Parents who use CIM treatments on themselves are more likely to use them with their children.
You can work with your pediatrician to look at evidence for a treatment you are interested in and decide together if the benefits outweigh the risks.
Children with developmental delays and ASD learn skills over time, and so they may seem to improve with or without a CIM treatment.
Are CIM methods harmful?
Some might be. For example, no one knows the long-term effects of high-dose vitamins or supplements in young children. Some vitamins may be given at doses high enough to cause side effects. Dietary restriction may also decrease needed nutrients.
Some CIM treatments, such as chelation and intravenous immunoglobulins, have known side effects and may put a child at risk. Chelation can cause seizures, heart arrhythmias, and kidney damage. Intravenous immunoglobulins are used to treat severe immune deficiencies but can cause allergic reactions and blood clots. Others, such as stem cell therapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy, have not been shown to work for certain childhood conditions such as ASD and have risks. Stem cell therapy can cause tumor growth, and hyperbaric oxygen can cause rupture of ear drums.
Should I tell my child’s pediatrician if I am using a CIM with my child?
Many families do not think their child’s pediatrician needs to know about a CIM treatment because they can get it without a prescription or from a complementary provider. Families may be concerned that their child’s pediatrician may not understand the treatment or may not approve of it.
It is important to tell your child’s pediatrician about every treatment you are using for him. If the pediatrician does not know about a CIM treatment, you can learn about it together so you can discuss risks and benefits.
In a medical home, families and doctors partner together to plan care for children. It is important for families and pediatricians to have an open conversation about CIM treatments. Your child’s doctor may not agree that the treatment you wish to try has enough scientific evidence to support its use. But you still need to discus this so that the doctor can help monitor for side effects or response. You and your child’s pediatrician are partners in your child's health care.
Adapted from information from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
AAP Feed run on: 9/14/2024 Article information last modified on: 9/14/2024
COMPLEMENTARY & INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE
What is complementary and integrative medicine (CIM)?
Complementary medicine refers to practices that are used in addition to the educational, behavioral, and medical interventions recommended by your child’s pediatrician and schools.
Alternative medicine refers to treatments that are used in place of the recommendations of your child’s pediatrician.
When traditional and complementary practices are used together, it is often called integrative medicine.
CAM (complementary and alternative medicine) is another way of saying complementary and integrative (CIM) medicine.
Pediatricians are trained to recommend evidence-based treatments. This means scientific studies have been done to determine if the treatment is safe and effective. Some CIM therapies are currently undergoing studies as well.
CIM is often separated into the following categories:
- Biological- Examples include supplements, diets, and medicines.
- Mind-body medicine- Examples include biofeedback, auditory integration training, and optometric (eye muscle) exercises.
- Manipulation- Examples include massage and craniosacral manipulation.
- Energy medicine- One example includes qigong.
Most families learn about CIM online, in books, in other media, and from other families. Several of these methods have not been studied in peer-reviewed journals. Peer-reviewed means that other scientists have looked at the studies and made sure they were done well.
You will want to understand the evidence for any treatment you may want to explore for your child. Questions you might ask include:
- Has it been published in a research journal where experts have reviewed the study and the results?
- How good was the study? Did it have enough children in it to make the claims it made? Was the treatment the same for all children? Was there a placebo (substitute with no expected effect, such as a sugar pill) so that the results could be compared with results of children not receiving the treatment but receiving similar attention? Did the children get other treatment that would change the result?
- Will your insurance cover it? How much will it cost? Most health care insurers will not cover treatments that are not evidence based.
- Will my child miss or have to stop other treatments to use it?
- What are the side effects? Every intervention or treatment has some potential side effects.
Many adults in the United States use CIM treatments themselves. Parents who use CIM treatments on themselves are more likely to use them with their children.
You can work with your pediatrician to look at evidence for a treatment you are interested in and decide together if the benefits outweigh the risks.
Children with developmental delays and ASD learn skills over time, and so they may seem to improve with or without a CIM treatment.
Are CIM methods harmful?
Some might be. For example, no one knows the long-term effects of high-dose vitamins or supplements in young children. Some vitamins may be given at doses high enough to cause side effects. Dietary restriction may also decrease needed nutrients.
Some CIM treatments, such as chelation and intravenous immunoglobulins, have known side effects and may put a child at risk. Chelation can cause seizures, heart arrhythmias, and kidney damage. Intravenous immunoglobulins are used to treat severe immune deficiencies but can cause allergic reactions and blood clots. Others, such as stem cell therapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy, have not been shown to work for certain childhood conditions such as ASD and have risks. Stem cell therapy can cause tumor growth, and hyperbaric oxygen can cause rupture of ear drums.
Should I tell my child’s pediatrician if I am using a CIM with my child?
Many families do not think their child’s pediatrician needs to know about a CIM treatment because they can get it without a prescription or from a complementary provider. Families may be concerned that their child’s pediatrician may not understand the treatment or may not approve of it.
It is important to tell your child’s pediatrician about every treatment you are using for him. If the pediatrician does not know about a CIM treatment, you can learn about it together so you can discuss risks and benefits.
In a medical home, families and doctors partner together to plan care for children. It is important for families and pediatricians to have an open conversation about CIM treatments. Your child’s doctor may not agree that the treatment you wish to try has enough scientific evidence to support its use. But you still need to discus this so that the doctor can help monitor for side effects or response. You and your child’s pediatrician are partners in your child's health care.
Adapted from information from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
AAP Feed run on: 9/14/2024 Article information last modified on: 9/14/2024
