Children cause problems when they don't meet expectations – in terms of their genes, their development and their behaviour. The topic “Problem Children?” of the spring 2015 edition of SPECTRUM is therefore ambivalent, hence the question mark. After all, the problem often lies with the excessive expectations of parents, teachers and a society with innovative information technologies that can overburden even the most developmentally normal children. ADHD and DMDD are diagnoses that may be associated with exaggerated expectations as much as with the sensory overload found in the modern world. With the choice of the cheeky girl for the cover picture of “Problem Children?” we were playing up the amusing nature of the photo: things aren't so bad after all! But that was before the latest fashionable diagnoses from the American Psychiatric Association (APA): “disruptive mood dysregulation Disorder” (DMDD) as well as severe and recurrent verbal and/or behavioral fits of rage.
With her case of a highly gifted and extremely angry Lanthanide girl, Resie Moonen raises the issue of whether such diagnoses can be justified. Further contributions from Paresh Varsani, Dinesh Chauhan, Wyka Feige and others show how frequently parents these days seek homeopathic help for their children due to fits of anger and aggression. Treatment is always individualised and the remedies come from all the natural kingdoms. Michal Yakir uses her plant table, for example, to find the most suitable remedy for a girl who is constantly irritable.

Alongside behavioral problems, school performance is also a major issue. The paediatrician Heiner Frei presents cases of “academic failure” due to a wide range of causes including learning disorders, poor concentration, lack of motivation, anxiety and hyperactivity.

Physical and mental development disorders have always been of concern to paediatricians. Bettina Baltacis reports in a competent and affectionate style on her work in the multidisciplinary team of the first Austrian Down's syndrome clinic. Sunil Anand describes the possible influence of multiple vaccinations on childhood development and the value of vaccine nosodes. Friedrich P. Graf describes the particular dangers of aluminium as a vaccine adjuvant.
Andreas Richter examines the common and often highly fraught relationship between adoptive parents and their children. Without intervention and treatment, bonding disorders can often lead to traumatic family dramas.

The extract from this issue of SPECTRUM comes from Anna Koller-Wilmkings with her fascinating account of her paediatric practice, presenting the entire spectrum of the theme of this issue – from developmental and behavioural disorders through psychiatric problems to severe physical pathologies, from well-known to minor remedies, and from classical repertorisation to the sensation method.

All the authors of this issue of SPECTRUM demonstrate the beneficial effects of homeopathic help for children, not just for classical disorders but also for the pathological excesses of our modern world.