People of all ages can benefit by including Chinese medicine in their health care. The approach to treating children is somewhat different than that of adults. With acupuncture, very few needles are used, and in young children the needles are not retained, but quickly inserted and withdrawn. Oftentimes the child is unaware of the procedure.
I rarely use needles on children younger than one year; babies respond very well to tuina, a form of massage that can set their systems right. The pediatric concerns I see most often in my practice are asthma, cough, sleep issues and GI problems. Older children have these same complaints, along with issues that, sadly, are often stress related. The calming effect of acupuncture can be very helpful in addressing symptoms caused by the demands of modern life.