How to Avoid “Shiny Object Syndrome”
Many parents today are actively looking for new health interventions to help their children feel better and thrive, especially children with chronic conditions, struggling with a multitude of symptoms, and developmental or behavioral challenges.
- How do parents who know that there must be more they can do for their child carefully navigate a course through this fast-paced health industry with many interventions promising the latest and greatest solutions, some with a very high price tag?
- How do parents and practitioners avoid the “shiny object syndrome” and know what is right for a particular child – what is worth investing in, emotionally, financially or otherwise?
This is a general guide for parents who are approaching new tests, therapies, supplements, or medications that promise answers or relief.
Parents who have already successfully navigated a path to their child’s healing or repair often warn others newer to this journey that the road to success, “is not a sprint; but a marathon.” And we all know that a satisfying marathon outcome (as well as a healthy and fulfilling life) takes time, care, and wise preparation. So please be patient, thoughtful, and careful as you seek out the best options for your child. Some new interventions gain popularity almost overnight, especially when backed by strong marketing, social media, or early success stories. Some therapies take precedence by familiarity alone. Whether new or old, therapies tend to be less helpful (or even harmful) without considering context.
New Health Interventions Don’t Always Mean Better (or Safer) for Your Child
The popularity of a new therapy is not only determined by its value. Its popularity may be due to:
- Multiple therapies of a similar nature entering the market at the same time
- Larger advertising budgets or better access to popular social media or news outlets
- Early results that look promising, while long-term impact has not yet been established
- Stories coming from celebrities and influencers who capture a broad audience quickly
Older Health Interventions Don’t Always Mean Better (or Safer) for Your Child
Older therapies may dominate our cultural thinking of what is possible or best because they are structurally supported, not necessarily because of their relative value.
- Older information systems like academic institutions sometimes rely on outdated information
- “Well-researched” therapies may be biased toward those with a financial stake in outcomes
- Insurers may dictate what gets attention for practical and administrative purposes
- The narratives of regulating agencies or established institutions often take precedence
- Doctors may have limited training or may be legally confined to standard operating procedures – which can include outsourcing their opinions to the “experts” who make up the standards
New or old therapies can be helpful, even life changing, but every child deserves careful consideration of the options, not quick decisions based just on hype or fear. A parent should not feel compelled to chase the latest solution or to blindly trust an old one.
What follows is a practical guide for parents to ground their child’s healthcare decisions by reviewing examples and relevant questions – to help you feel more informed, respected and empowered in your decision making. It may augment but should not replace the judgment of qualified health care providers. It should help us “zoom out” and get a broader understanding of the potential risks and complications of a given therapy (old or new), and the potential long-term impact on a child’s overall health, development, and resilience before parents move forward.
8 Key Questions for Parents to Consider When Evaluating a New Health Intervention
What Is Your Understanding of the Health Intervention and What Is It Doing in the Body?
Before embarking on any new health intervention, ask yourself whether you understand what it is intended to achieve, which body systems will be affected (gut, brain, immune system, hormones, metabolism, growth), and whether it is addressing the root cause of a problem or just managing a symptom. Keep in mind that some interventions are not geared toward children (or have only been studied with adults) and strengthening a child’s foundational supports may reduce the need for more aggressive therapies.
Is There Good Evidence, Timing or Safety Guidelines for This Health Intervention?
Try to find out how long a particular health intervention has been in use and whether there are any known short or long-term side effects. Explore what is known and not yet known about it. For instance:
- How long it takes to do the therapy?
- Does it need to be repeated?
- How often or for how long?
- Does stopping the therapy cause problems?
- Has its use been tested before or is it being offered because it is new, popular, or heavily marketed?
- Does it help us understand why my child is struggling or just manage a symptom?
Is the Health Intervention a Good Fit for Your Child Currently?
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Is your child at a good developmental age or stage for this intervention, or should you wait until they are more developed or have more support in another area to realize the potential benefits?
- Might another intervention be more appropriate first such as structural alignment, reflex integration, inflammation-lowering supports (“putting the fire out before entering the building”) or be helpful to use in conjunction with this therapy such as nutritional supports to offset depletion?
- How might this therapy impact different systems or stages of development that are currently in process for my child (involving areas like the brain, the immune system, gut health, growth, appetite, hormones, or emotional development)?
Is the Health Intervention Individualized?
Each child is unique in their current state of health and resiliency (not just their physical shape and size or developmental stage). Each child has a unique family, diet, lifestyle and medical history, a specific genetic profile, and status. A parent will want to know if their own child is a good candidate for a therapy, especially if it is “one-size-fits-all” and doesn’t truly fit all sizes. What helps one child may harm another. Ask yourself the following questions:
- How might different factors (e.g., medical, nutritional, genetic, or emotional) change my child’s response to the health intervention?
- Are there signs that this therapy might stress my child’s systems rather than support them or appear to be stressful, but are an expected, transient part of achieving a desired outcome?
- What measures could I take to watch for or avoid any unintended or harsh consequences?
Is a Particular Test or Measurement Involved or Necessary with a Health Intervention?
Sometimes therapies are better utilized when a baseline is established or if change is measurable. Ask yourself the following questions:
- If there is a particular evaluation needed with this therapy, what is it attempting to answer?
- Will the results of such an assessment help guide clinical judgment or just add data?
- Is a given test designed to identify patterns that can be addressed or changed, or is it just a means of establishing a label?
- Once a given test is performed, will the results be carefully reviewed and explained in an understandable way?
How Do You Feel About the Risks and Benefits?
It is helpful to think about the following questions:
- Do you have a clear sense of potential risks and benefits?
- In your mind, does one carry more weight than another for your child given their unique situation?
- What foundational supports could improve the outcome or sustain benefits?
As you learn about risks and benefits of one therapy, it may be valuable to review and explore other options for achieving a similar goal that would be a gentler starting place.
What Foundational Supports Should I Address While Considering Others?
One foundational support for parents is a well-regulated nervous system (your own even before your child’s). Success often requires a parent to slow down and meet their own basic needs first (as they tell us in the airplane, “put on your own oxygen mask first”). Keep in mind that no one is perfect at nervous-system regulation. We are all a work in progress, but practice helps. From a state of relative calm, you can better answer the question of whether you or your child’s basic needs are being met.
- Have you evaluated or adequately addressed your child’s nutrition, sleep status, gut health, or stress level (at home, school, or in medical settings)?
- Do you have basic supports in place for movement, natural light, time outdoors, human connection, social, emotional or financial resources, etc.?
Supporting your own basic needs as well as your child’s is key before moving to something more intense for either of you.
Do You Have a Trusting Relationship with the Person(s) Guiding You?
Ask yourself the following questions:
- Are you comfortable asking questions or discussing any concerns with a practitioner or another parent before you follow their advice?
- Do they know and share openly about any uncertainties, risks or limitations of a therapy that is new to you?
- Do you feel comfortable asking questions and expressing concerns with your advisors?
- Can you get clarity on any plans for monitoring, reassessing or adjusting a therapy?
- What would be grounds for stopping or changing the approach?
- Is this a short-term or long-term intervention?
As parents and practitioners, our goal should not be trying everything new or promising, but rather choosing what is thoughtful, supportive and right for an individual child.
We Need Multiple Reference Points for Discerning What Is Best for a Child
If you are a parent considering any new health intervention for your child, we recommend you also read How to Prioritize Therapies for Autism, SPD, ADHD and Other Neurodevelopmental Conditions. This article gives concrete, actionable steps to best prioritize and sequence therapies, especially for children with different neurodevelopmental needs. It also gives practical tips on meeting a child’s foundational needs, honoring their developmental stages and unique bio-individuality – acknowledging that no two children will respond to a given therapy the same way.
Introducing any new intervention will be less effective, less sustainable, and may even cause undue harm if a child’s foundational (and personal) needs fail to be met – like a runner that attempts a marathon without appropriate planning and preparation. Parents should feel more informed, respected and confident in their choices when they are equipped to ask thoughtful questions, not as a substitute for medical care, rather to help assure that their child gets good care. When possible, parents should partner with a qualified professional to support their decisions about their child’s health and well-being.
About Heather Tallman Ruhm MD
Heather Tallman Ruhm MD is the Medical Director of the Documenting Hope Project. She is a Board Certified Family Physician whose primary focus is whole-person health and patient education. She draws on her conventional western training along with insights and skills from functional, integrative, bioregulatory and energy medicine. She believes in the healing capacities of the human frame and supports the power of self-regulation to help her patients recover and access vitality.
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