West End Osteopathy

Osteopaths at West End Osteopathy are happy to treat patients with any condition listed above.

Spitting up

Spitting-up is a fairly common condition for babies during their first 6-12 months. Milk or food is reguritated fairly gently by the child in an involuntary fashion; by contrast vomiting is a more violent expulsion of food or liquid. The medical term is "gastroesophageal reflux". The most common cause of this reflux is the relatively small size of the baby's stomach relative to the amount of milk drunk or food ingested and is exacerbated if the baby takes in too much air whilst feeding. Osteopaths recommend to try to slow feeding and to hold the baby upright whilst drinking and for as long as possible - at least a quarter of an hour - after feeds. Osteopaths frequently treat this condition which can be helped by gentle massage of the stomach and release of tension in the soft tissues around the blood vessels feeding the liver, lungs , diaphragm and the small intestine. In addition the release of tension around the umbilical scar has been found beneficial in treating spitting up.

Delayed Development

Delayed development is troubling for parents because it is often noticed over a long period of time as the failure by a child to keep up with the development path of peer children. The symptoms include a lack of coordination, difficulty walking or running or failing to talk, either at all or clearly. Yet noticing an absence is difficult and, of course, the speed at which individuals develop on multiple dimensions will always vary substantially. Nevertheless, once parents or carers become aware of this issue, it is important to look to potential physical causes rather than to assume the child is less bright than others. It is apparent all too often that such kids are suffering from vital nerves at the base of the skull being trapped or pinched. Once the nerves are released the speed of development can be amazing with some children very rapidly catching up to their friends.