Background: Previous studies on anthroposophic lifestyle and allergy show that the children have less risk of developing allergies. All studies so far have been retrospective and have included children in school age. In view of the facts that this lifestyle seems to protect children from allergies and that different symptoms of atopy have increased dramatically during the last decades it is of general interest to study this group of children more in detail. The earlier findings have now been followed up in a prospective research program ALADDIN (Assessment of Life style and Allergic Disease During Infancy), applying different approaches. One of these is to focus on stress (as measured by cortisol) as a factor that may underlie the decreased risk of allergy in children from anthroposophic families.   Aim: This thesis is based on data from the ALADDIN study focusing on influence of family lifestyle on allergy sensitization early in children’s life in relation to psychosocial factors and salivary cortisol as an indicator of stress. Methods: A total of 552 families were recruited during pregnancy or during the first month of the child´s life in two recruitment waves, 330 families between September 2004 and November 2007 and another 222 families between March 2008 and January 2011. They were recruited at anthroposophic maternal and child health care centers (MCHC) and from conventional MCHCs.  Data on demographics and exposures were obtained by questionnaires and interviews. Parental capacity to adapt to stressors was evaluated by means of the questionnaire “Sense of Coherence” (SOC; Antonovsky). Salivary samples were collected at home from the infants and both parents for analyzes of cortisol. Blood samples were obtained from the parents and from the children for analyzes of IgE. Results: Many family related characteristics differed markedly between the groups before and during pregnancy, during delivery and the first 12 months of age. Children from anthroposophic families had lower levels of salivary cortisol compared to peers from families with a more conventional lifestyle on all sampling occasions at 6 months of age and on some of the occasions at 12 and 24 months of age. There were no differences concerning cortisol between parents with different lifestyle and no significant differences concerning SOC-scores between the three lifestyle groups. An anthroposophic lifestyle was associated with a lower risk of allergic sensitization up to five years of age. This risk was partially explained by lower cortisol levels during infancy. Children in families with a partly anthroposophic lifestyle also had substantially lower risk of sensitization. Conclusion: An anthroposophic lifestyle protects from development of allergy during childhood, at least up to five years of age. This protective capacity is partly mediated by low cortisol levels during infancy but is also dependent on unknown characteristics of this lifestyle.  These results call for further studies on health related effects of an anthroposophic lifestyle.

Koncentrat av Järna är ett Folkets hus+ som fokuserar på landskapet och de befintliga aktiviteter i Saltå by och Järna, Södertälje. Visionen är att skapa en plats som representerar Järna och allt vad de har att erbjuda. Arkitekturen försöker fånga de olika miljöerna runt om platsen, med öppningar mellan byggnaderna och inuti för att förstärka detta. Konceptet ramar in de olika siktlinjerna åt varje väderstreck och fångar en byggnad som kopplar ihop Järna till en helhet. Byggnaden gör så att besökaren kan uppleva byn och tätorten både genom det visuella i form av landskapet, men även med karaktäristiska aktiviteter för området. Den antroposofiska åskådningen färgar området och representerar i byggnaden med hjälp av olika kurser, aktiviteter och försäljning av produkter från lokala producenter. Mitt Folkets hus+ administreras av människor från den dagliga verksamhet som tar plats i Saltå by, där det i dagsläget tillhandahålls med olika typer av aktiviteter för människor med olika psykiska funktionsvariationer. / "Koncentrat av Järna", Concentrate of Järna, is a Folkets hus+ that focuses on the landscape and existing activities in Saltå by and Järna in Södertälje, with the vision to create a space that represents Järna and what the conurbation has to offer. The architecture aims to capture the different landscapes, with openings between and inside the buildings. The concept frames the different views in each cardinal point and creates a building that connects Järna as a whole, so you can experience the town both through vision, but also through characteristic activities. The anthroposophic view that colors the area, is represented with training courses in craftsmanship, activities and sales of different locally produced products. The building is operated by people with different physical disabilities, which makes it a part of the already existing operation that currently takes place in Saltå by.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-27T18:12:10Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Dissertacao Mauro Domingues Fernandes.pdf: 2243484 bytes, checksum: 6223d4b0b4aaf5b8cbcf5453c1e499ea (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-03-31 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / This work aims at investigating the clinic method in anthroposophic medicine, identifying the contributions of its approach for the comprehension oh hearing and language in phoniatric practice, and identifying possible outcomes in the construction of therapeutic paths on language disorders. The investigation presents a case study design as it is configured by the analysis of a limited set of situations in their several relationships relative to a specific process: a case in which the clinic method in anthroposophic medicine has been applied, having relative requirements for hearing and language disorders, creating the possibility of understanding the diagnostic steps inherent to this methodology, its different integrated qualitative perspectives in dialogue with the quantitative data, and the therapeutic strategies in varied scopes which arise during the conduction of such process, making up a clinic planning. This is one of the challenges that anthroposophic medicine must face in this practice from its epistemologic bases, trying to clasp the mankind in its complexity in physical, animical and spiritual perspective in their sensitivy and super-sensitivy reality, thus, in qualitative-quantitative approach. It was introduced in Brazil in the 1960s, having been reckoned as a medical practice by the Conselho Federal de Medicina in 1993. It has its epistemological foundations in the Anthroposophy, which is a scientic-philosophical movement begun in the early 20th century in Switzerland and Germany by the Austrian epistemological philosopher and educator Rudolf Steiner (1861 1925). Worldwidely, the anthroposophic medicine was begun by the Dutch doctor Ita Wegman in Switzerland between 1920 and 1924, having a progressive spread, initially in Europe, and afterwards, during the 20th century, towards the other continents. The unfoldings of this clinic method have been observed in the phonological practice, deepening the diagnostical possibilities with the enhancement of the therapeutical strategies focused on a binomial phoniatry-phonoaudiology, including other health and education professionals to form a community. The contributions for the health sciences in the present times, before their dilemmas and perspectives, have been observed, including epistemological reflexions, the humanization of procedures, researches, and the deepening in the use of natural therapeutics, including medicinal ones and salutogenical emphasis in its practice / O trabalho tem por objetivo investigar o método clínico na medicina antroposófica, identificar contribuições de sua abordagem para uma compreensão dos fenômenos da audição e linguagem na clínica foniátrica e identificar possíveis desdobramentos na construção de caminhos terapêuticos nos distúrbios da linguagem. O desenho da investigação é o de um estudo de caso, na medida em que se configura pela análise de um conjunto delimitado de situações-em suas várias relações-relativas a um processo específico: um caso em que o método clínico na medicina antroposófica foi utilizado, tendo demandas relativas aos distúrbios de audição e linguagem, gerando a possibilidade de compreensão dos passos diagnósticos inerentes a essa metodologia, suas diferentes perspectivas qualitativas integradas, em diálogo com os dados quantitativos, e as estratégias terapêuticas em diversos âmbitos que surgem na condução dos processos em questão, constituindo- se um planejamento clínico. Esse é um dos desafios que a medicina antroposófica procura enfrentar em sua clínica, a partir de suas bases epistemológicas, buscando-se abarcar o homem em sua complexidade, em uma perspectiva física, anímica e espiritual, em sua realidade sensível e supra-sensível, portanto em uma abordagem quali- quantitativa. Foi introduzida no Brasil na década de 1960, tendo sido reconhecida como prática médica pelo Conselho Federal de Medicina em 1993. Tem como bases epistemológicas a Antroposofia, que é um movimento científico-filosófico iniciado nas primeiras décadas do século XX, na Suíça e Alemanha, pelo filósofo, epistemólogo e educador austríaco Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925). No mundo, a medicina antroposófica teve seu início a partir da médica holandesa Ita Wegman, entre 1920-1924, na Suíça, com a expansão progressiva, inicialmente para a Europa, e posteriormente, durante o século XX, para os demais continentes. Os desdobramentos do método clínico são observados na clínica foniátrica, aprofundando as possibilidades diagnósticas com a ampliação das estratégias terapêuticas, centrada a partir de um binômio foniatria-fonoaudiologia, incluindo-se os demais profissionais da Saúde e Educação, formando-se uma comunidade. Observam-se contribuições para as ciências da saúde na atualidade, diante de seus dilemas e perspectivas, incluindo as reflexões epistemológicas, a humanização do atendimento, as pesquisas e o aprofundamento no uso de terapêuticas naturais, incluindo-se as medicamentosas e uma ênfase salutogênica em sua prática clínica

Introduktion: WHO betonar vikten av att integrera traditionell- och komplementärmedicin i nationella hälsovårdssystem. I Sverige förekommer integrativ medicin med antroposofisk inriktning på Vidarkliniken i Järna. Syfte: Att studera förändringar av självskattat hälsotillstånd hos patienter som erhållit antroposofisk vård på Vidarklinikens öppenvårdsmottagning i Norrköping. Metod: En kvantitativ metod med enkäter till 26 patienter på Vidarklinikens öppenvårdsmottagning i Norrköping, konsekutiv datainsamling. Hälsorelaterad livskvalitet skattades med hjälp av EQ-5D (rörlighet, hygien, aktivitet, smärta och oro) och EQ-VAS (totalt hälsotillstånd) samt två enkäter, konstruerade för denna studie, med VAS-skalor för sömnkvalitet, fysiskt tillstånd, psykiskt tillstånd och förutsättningar att hantera sin livssituation, samt patienternas beskrivning av måluppfyllelse. Därutöver undersöktes patienternas sjukskrivningsgrad och läkemedelsförbrukning. Resultat: Patienterna hade mycket varierande diagnoser och ofta sammansatt problematik. Vanligast var utmattning, fibromyalgi och smärta. Resultaten varierade mellan diagnosgrupperna. Huvuddelen av patienterna rapporterade stor tillfredsställelse med vård, behandling och bemötandet från personal, till hög grad uppnådda förväntningar och mål, samt att överlag ha fått bättre förutsättningar att hantera sin livssituation. Det fanns ingen signifikant skillnad i medelvärdet för EQ-5D index eller EQ-VAS, men trend till signifikant förbättring vad gäller sömnkvalitet och psykiskt tillstånd, samt signifikant förbättring av självskattat fysiskt tillstånd (p=0.021). Vid delanalys av de enskilda dimensionerna (EQ-5D) fann man förbättrat tillstånd i någon/några av dimensionerna hos 36 % av patienterna, oftast vad gäller rörlighet och minst vanligt vad gäller smärta. Slutsats: I denna grupp med omfattande och varierande och ofta mycket långvarig problematik påvisades stor uppskattning av vården, trender till förbättrade resultat vid sömnkvalitet och psykiskt tillstånd, samt signifikant förbättrade resultat vid självskattat fysiskt tillstånd. / Introduction: WHO stresses the importance of integrating traditional and complementary medicine into national health systems. In Sweden, integrative medicine with an anthroposophical focus is practised at Vidar Clinic in Järna. Purpose: To study changes in the self-rated health status of patients receiving anthroposophic care at Vidar Clinic outpatient facility in Norrköping. Method: A quantitative method using questionnaires to 26 patients at the Vidar Clinic outpatient facility in Norrköping, [using] consecutive data collection. Health-related quality of life was estimated using EQ-5D (mobility, hygiene, activity, pain and anxiety) and EQ-VAS (overall health status) along with two questionnaires specially designed for this study, with VAS scales for sleep quality, physical condition, mental condition and the ability to manage their lives, as well as the patients’ description of whether or not they felt fulfilled in their lives. In addition, the patients’ sickness absence rates and drug consumption were analysed. Results: The patients had extremely varying diagnoses and often complex problems. The most common were fatigue, fibromyalgia and pain. The results varied between the diagnostic groups. The majority of the patients reported great satisfaction with their care and treatment and how they were being cared for by the staff; to a large extent they felt that their expectations and goals had been achieved, and that in general they had been given better capabilities to manage their lives. There was no significant difference in the mean value for the EQ-5D index or EQ-VAS, but a tendency to significant improvement in sleep quality and mental condition, and a significant improvement in self-estimated physical condition (p=0.021). When a partial analysis was conducted of the individual dimensions (EQ-5D), improved conditions were found in one/some of the dimensions in 36 per cent of the patients, usually in terms of mobility and least common with regard to pain. Conclusion: In this group, with extensive and varied and often very long-term problems, great appreciation of the care was shown, there were tendencies to improved results in sleep quality and mental condition, and significantly improved results in self-estimated physical condition.