I had requests to blog on some quick tips on common pediatric ailments such as frequent colds/flu, asthma and eczema, just to name a few. Some quick answers could be: Children’s ibuprofen and honey cough syrup for colds/flu, albuterol inhalers for asthma, and steroid and calendula cream for eczema. Done. However, if you’re a parent like me, you’ve probably tried these and are getting tired of a temporary fix. Because a few weeks later these issues return. And over time, these remedies stop working.
To get to the root of the issue, I frequently test my pediatric patients for food intolerance’s or sensitivities. I’m not talking about food allergies where you eat a peanut and break out in hives. While it may be good to do a scratch test on the skin to identify food allergies, many children nowadays react to food sensitivities. Believe it or not, foods can contribute to many of common pediatric health issues that I mentioned earlier! There are tests out there that check for food sensitivities like a finger prick or blood draw (depending on the child’s age). Remember that foods can act like medicine, but also not so much like medicine. Foods can actually contribute to inflammation like on the the skin (eczema/rashes) or in the lungs (asthma). Once you identify and eliminate these foods, over time these rashes improve, or colds don’t last as long or occur as frequently.
Ask me or your primary care provider about food sensitivity testing. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll prescribe a steroid cream for eczema to calm down inflammation on the skin – who wants their child scratching all night long? But this is just a bandage approach. It’s time to rip off the bandage and get to the underlying health issue!
Michael Corsilles ND, PA-C
