The tragic death of a seven-year old boy is being investigated over fears a holistic therapy called “slapping therapy” may have contributed to his death.
Last week seven-year old Aidan Fenton was attending year one classes at primary school, playing with friends, laughing, alive.
He is now tragically dead and police fear a form of alternative Chinese medicine may have contributed to his death.
Seven-year old Aidan Fenton was found dead at a hotel in the Sydney suburb of Hurstville on Monday night.
He had been staying at the hotel with his parents, Lily and Geoff Fenton, taking part in an $1800 week-long alternative Chinese medicine workshop at the Tasly Healthpac Centre in Hurstville.
Seven-year old Aidan was a diabetic and The Daily Telegraph reports that police believe he may have been taken off his insulin possibly as a part of the alternative treatment.
Police are investigating Chinese therapist Hongchi Xiao – who has since left the country who ran the seminar. The treatment involves ‘Paida-Lajin’ or slapping therapy where patients are literally slapped until they bruised to cure illnesses and rid the body of poisons.
The Daily Telegraph reports that participants were asked to fast for three days in order to prompt vomiting and dizzy spells and then undertake the slapping therapy.
Aidan is reported to have been among those vomiting during the seminar.
On Monday night at about 9pm police and paramedics were called to the Hurstville Ritz Hotel when the Year 1 student from Prospect was found unconscious.
Hotel staff told The Daily Telegraph they heard screams coming from the room of the family. An ambulance was called but the little boy died before they reached hospital.
A police spokesman told The Daily Mail “The ambulance paramedics performed CPR on the boy, however he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Top Comments
The parents need to take stock of what they have done. To take a diabetic off his insulin was a death sentence. It is irrelevant what Hongchi Xio told them. He didn't force them to do it. It was their decision alone. How stupid and negligent. What a tragic loss of one little boy.
As a mum of a type 1 diabetic, I see so many people advising up of what they have heard to cure diabetes. When I say that cinnamon wont work or a good dose of vitamins I am met with judgement over why would I want my child to suffer when there are things that will help.There is not enough exposure that type 1 and 2 are two very different diseases. The catalyst program about a low carb high fat diet had people all over the internet advising people with diabetes to follow this diet. If a type 1 (or type 2 on insulin) doesn't have carbs they wont produce glycogen and store it in their liver, and if they have low blood sugar (anyone on insulin can) their body wont release glycogen and they can die. Yet when I mention this, people question me etc. There are too many know it alls advising in a convincing manner ways to help people. This poor boy would have died of ketoacidosis from not having insulin, which often kills not yet diagnosed type 1s or those whose sugars are too high. It is a terrible way to go. I feel so sorry for this young boy. Only insulin can keep type 1 diabetics alive. I think this is a wake up call for people to realise that as much as we wish for another outcome, some things can only be managed by medicine.