Saturday, December 27, 2008

Worried Child or Nutrition and Mental Illness

Worried Child: Recognizing Anxiety in Children and Helping Them Heal

Author: Paul Foxman

Anxiety in children decreases their intellectual, emotional, and social development, as well as physical health. Author Paul Foxman believes there are three interacting ingredients that contribute to anxiety in children - biological sensitivity, personality, and stress overload. The Worried Child shows that anxiety is preventable - or can be minimized - by raising children's self-confidence, increasing social and self-control skills, and teaching them how to play, relax, and communicate their feelings and needs. Written for parents and teachers and anyone dealing with children, the guide covers the importance of adequate rest, sleep, and exercise and provides detailed lists, charts, skill exercises, sample dialogues, and case studies. It also presents extensive information on the various types and symptoms of anxiety disorders. Advice for educators, health care professionals, childcare workers, and psychotherapists is included along with a chapter and tutorial written specifically for children.

Publishers Weekly

Psychologist Foxman (Dancing with Fear) has penned a caring yet straightforward book about helping kids deal with feelings of angst. Noting that one in five children suffers from a mental health problem, Foxman says some experts call today's children the "shell-shocked" generation. Divorce, crime, violence, failing schools, the threat of terrorism and drug abuse are a few of the contemporary issues often magnified for kids by vivid media coverage, and they've contributed to the rise of stress and anxiety among children, says Foxman. The author, who suffered from anxiety as a child and as an adult, melds personal and professional experience as he differentiates between normal and abnormal worrying (the latter involves a degree and frequency that interferes with daily routines). According to Foxman, three factors coincide to create an anxious child: biological sensitivity, personality and stress. Children who are perfectionists, who are overly sensitive to criticism and have difficulty with assertiveness, among other traits, are prone to anxiety, though many of the worried child's personality traits, such as intelligence and a strong sense of responsibility, are positive. In addition to global issues such as war, terrorism and violence, Foxman delves into how personal crises (e.g., divorce, sexual abuse and school-related stress) can affect children, and suggests how parents can help and when they should seek therapy for their child. He rounds out this informative guide with a chapter for children that speaks directly to young readers. (Mar.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Psychologist Foxman (director, Ctr. for Anxiety Disorders, Burlington, VT; Dancing with Fear) addresses a problem in which he specializes: anxiety in children. Parents will find an indispensable chapter on the components of childhood anxiety and the personality profile that suggests a predisposition toward it. Drawing on case studies, Foxman describes various types of childhood anxiety disorders in addition to chronicling danger signs which may indicate that a child needs professional help. Moreover, the author devotes a substantial portion of this book to sources of anxiety in children. Biology, family dynamics, sociocultural factors, school, and the media can generate anxiety, which can be counteracted by the biochemical and psychotherapeutic treatment approaches set forth in Part 3. Best of all, Foxman includes a helpful chapter written for anxious young people in language easily accessible to them. This superb book belongs on the shelves of public libraries alongside Katharina Manassis's Keys to Parenting Your Anxious Child and Elizabeth DuPont Spencer's The Anxiety Cure for Kids: A Guide for Parents.-Lynne F. Maxwell, Villanova Univ. Sch. of Law Lib., PA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.



Read also Hunger of Memory or John McCain

Nutrition and Mental Illness: An Orthomolecular Approach to Balancing Body Chemistry

Author: Carl Curt Pfeiffer

Believing that drugs and psychoanalysis were not always the best course of treatment for a variety of mental illnesses, Dr. Carl Pfeiffer began an extensive program of research into the causes and treatment of mental illness, and in 1973 opened the Brain Bio Center in Princeton, New Jersey. Here, with a team of scientists, he found that many psychological problems can be traced to biochemical imbalances in the body. With these patients, he achieved unprecedented success in treating a wide range of mental problems by adjusting diet and providing specific nutritional supplements for those conditions where deficiences exist. This book documents his approach.

Each year, thousands of people are diagnosed as schizophrenic; many more suffer from depression, anxiety, and phobias.

Dr. Pfeiffer's methods of treatment presented in Nutrition and Mental Illness are a valuable adjunct to traditional therapies, and can bring hope of real wellness to many of those who suffer. 



Table of Contents:

Nutrition and Mental Illness
An Orthomolecular Approach to Balancing Body Chemistry

Preface
Foreword

1. Mental Illness- Not All in the Mind
2. Understanding Mental Illness
3. Anxiety and Phobias-The Copper Connection
4. High Histamine Can Cause Depression
5. B6 and Zinc-The Missing Link
6. Brain Allergies
7. The Dangers of Daily Bread
8. Hypoglycemia-The Sugar Blues
9. Minerals, Mood Swings, and Manic Depressive Disorders
10. Diet, Crime, And Delinquency
11. How to Age Without Senility
12. Drugs-The Treatment That Leads Nowhere
13. Why Nutrition is the Way Forward
14. There is an Alternative to Hospitalization
15. Optimum Nutrition for Mental Health
16. Nutrition Programs for Specific Diseases
Conclusion-Have Faith in Tomorrow's Medicine
Summary of the Schizophrenias
References and Further Reading
Useful Addresses
Index

Carl C. Pfeiffer Ph.D., M.D. was the Director of the Brain Bio Center in Princeton, New Jersey.

No comments:

Post a Comment