By ABC
A Sydney naturopath who allegedly told a mother to stop medicating her eight-month-old boy, leaving him close to death, has been arrested.
NSW Police said Marilyn Bodnar, a 59-year-old registered nurse and midwife who also practices naturopathy, had been consulted by the mother of the young boy seeking an alternative health treatment for the baby’s eczema.
Officers allege the naturopath advised the mother to stop the child’s medical and dermatological treatments.
The baby was admitted to Westmead Hospital in May suffering from malnourishment and developmental issues.
Police said the boy had lost more than a kilogram and was near death.
He was released from hospital on Wednesday.
Child Abuse Squad detectives arrested the woman at a Leppington property about 7:30am on Thursday.
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She was granted conditional bail to appear at Fairfield Local Court later this month, charged with grievous bodily harm and failure to provide for a child, causing danger of death.
The child’s mother is facing similar charges.
The chair of the Australian Medical Association’s Council of General Practice, Dr Brian Morton, has advised patients to always follow evidence-based treatment.
“It’s very important to continue medical treatment that’s been prescribed and speak to the doctor who’s prescribed that before you make a decision,” he said.
“I think it’s very important that alternative health practitioners know when they’ve made an error.
“Alternative therapy doesn’t have much place in the treatment of dermatological conditions like eczema.
“Following proven, known safe methods of treatment is the way to go.”
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Dr Morton said alternative therapies could interfere with good health.
“They are often untested, they’ve not been passed through the [Therapeutic Goods Administration] so we don’t know their real effect and we don’t know their interactions and we don’t know their safety profile,” he said.
A statement from NSW Health confirmed naturopaths are unregistered health practitioners and are subject to a code of conduct under the Public Health Act and Regulation.
It said such practitioners are required to provide services in a safe and ethical manner, and not to attempt to dissuade clients from seeking or continuing with treatment by a registered medical practitioner.
NSW Health said a prohibition order can be made against a practitioner if a breach of this conduct is reported and the practitioner poses a risk to the health or safety of members of the public.
This article was originally published by ABC News.
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Top Comments
Reading some of these comments, it's HUGELY important not to allow the anti-vax situation to colour your views of alternative health treatments. Do not throw the baby out with the bathwater!
It's an anti-medicine, anti-science situation. Anti-vax is just a very noticeable part of it.
This makes me so angry!! If this happened to the child due to a prescribed medication, where an MD were responsible, he'd never be charged with anything and there would be NO news story! "Alternative" Healthcare has been around for centuries longer than allopathic medicine, yet it has been marginalized in the last century due to money and greed. I can't obviously speak to this particular case, but I'm so sick of other legitimate means of healthcare being demonized by people who know nothing about it!!