I have passionate opinions when it comes to child health. I urge all parents to become ‘investigators’ when it comes to their child’s ailments, as I believe that this is the key to unlocking childhood illness and has a huge effect on lifelong health and happiness. The most important lesson my study and practical work with children has taught me is that the gut must be healthy before any other body systems (and therefore learning) can be worked on.

It is crucial that parents notice what is going on with their child’s body (and write these details down as a reference point). Imagine you are a private investigator searching for clues to the puzzle – eg if your child is going to the toilet often, has a rash, a sore stomach, itchy eyes, a croaky voice or are wheezing. What does it mean? What could it be a sign of? It can be extremely difficult to know who to consult – a GP will often take blood tests which show that there is ‘nothing wrong’ or write a script for antibiotics if there is a bacterial infection. While antibiotics are often necessary to treat an infection, they do not treat the underlying cause or reason for the infection and also weaken the immune system, as they wipe out all the ‘good’ bacteria in the gut. Prolonged antibiotic use can have a devastating effect on physical and mental health, which I have personally experienced after many years of daily antibiotics for ear and throat infections (until my tonsils were removed as an adult). Naturopaths work to treat the underlying causes of and reasons for illness. I would recommend seeing a holistic doctor (or naturopath) and a general practitioner. Unfortunately these practitioners very rarely work in with each other.