Dolphins help children open up just by simply
playing with them.Zheng Jun says 15 sessions with a pair of
bottle-nosed dolphins at Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park
have helped his 5-year-old autistic son become "aware" and
"alert" enough to become his kindergarten's class monitor. The father
believes the dolphin-assisted therapy has been more effective than any other
treatment. "Now, you can't tell he's different from his classmates,"
he says. Zheng became a believer after he visited an Australian dolphin-swim program
years ago. He says his son is elated when he splashes with the creatures in the
park in Zhejiang
province's capital.
More than 80 parents of children with severe mental disabilities have booked
all of next year's spots in the program. (Sessions only run in the summer
because the water temperatures are too cold for the kids in other seasons.)
So, newcomers must wait until 2014, says Liu Quansheng, manager of the park's
owner, Zhejiang Aquarium Investment Group.
Despite the demand, dolphin-assisted therapy has not been scientifically
proven. Still, many experts and parents of special-needs children swear by it.
Liu, who also coordinates his company's 3-year-old dolphin-swim program, says:
"People with mental disabilities often have short attention spans. Swimming
with dolphins helps them relax and focus."
This is especially true of children, he says.
"Dolphin therapy is effective because these animals hold the kids'
attention better than even the most engaging human therapist," he says.
While the science of dolphin-assisted therapy's assortment of purported
benefits hasn't been verified, many believe at least some benefits come from
the experience's emotional magic.
"Once the children are in the pool they're only focused on the dolphins.
They love it, because the creatures let the kids touch and kiss them, grab
their fins and swim with them."
Most proponents agree on the merit of the fun factor. Some also claim it boosts
people's immune systems.
And many experts contend the therapy's benefits run deeper.
Dolphins' presence palpably changes water. Those who swim with the creatures
report fizzing sounds, as if the marine mammals carbonate the water. The sound
has been compared to popcorn, flames and sparklers.
The marine animals' ultrasonic energy is four times more powerful than
scientific instruments used to peer inside the body to make diagnoses, monitor
pregnancies and break down kidney stones, gallstones and cataract-clouded
lenses.
This is amplified by the water, which transmits sounds at 60 times air's
efficiency. The ultrasonic energy then enters our bodies - which are, in turn,
mostly water. But how - and if - this helps children with mental disabilities
remains unclear.
Preliminary tests by the AquaThought Foundation suggest human brainwaves change
when they interact with dolphins.
One theory says the two species' frequencies sync during interactions.
AquaThought researchers report shifts in neural oscillations among people who
interact with the marine mammals.
Their studies have measured switches from the beta state of everyday
consciousness, to the alpha state that is typical of relaxed closed-eyed
wakefulness. Subjects sometimes also slip into the meditative theta state, the
results find.
The foundation also measured increased synchronization between the brain's
hemispheres, which is linked to enhanced learning and cognizance.
Western therapists have for decades used dolphins to treat children with
autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders.
China
has only recently started experimenting with dolphin-swims, among other forms
of animal-assisted therapy.
But a lack of scientific affirmation of the treatments' effectiveness isn't the
sole source of opposition.
Animal rights advocates oppose the practice.
Marketing director of Shanghai's
Changfeng Park Ocean World Xu Jie says the aquarium nixed its dolphin-swim
therapy program when British operator Merlin Entertainments invested in the
park last year.
"They really value animal rights," Xu says. "They believed it
was too much to have the dolphins work as both healers and performers."
That's why Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park
has designated two of its 15 dolphins solely for therapy.
"It would be too much for them to both perform and provide therapy,"
Liu says."The dolphins might feel stress and could even hurt the
children."
Each dolphin only sees two or three children a day.
The treatments cost 2,300 yuan ($370) for 15 sessions, given every other day
over a month.
Zheng believes it's money well spent.
Whether dolphin-assisted therapy is science or pseudoscience - or something
else entirely - the father says his son's progress is the only proof he needs
that it works.
VNS
Dolphin-assisted therapy helps children with mental disabilities
Dolphin-assisted
therapy for children with mental disabilities has made a splash in the West,
and China is now riding the experimental tide.
Dolphins help children open up just by simply
playing with them.Zheng Jun says 15 sessions with a pair of
bottle-nosed dolphins at Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park
have helped his 5-year-old autistic son become "aware" and
"alert" enough to become his kindergarten's class monitor. The father
believes the dolphin-assisted therapy has been more effective than any other
treatment. "Now, you can't tell he's different from his classmates,"
he says. Zheng became a believer after he visited an Australian dolphin-swim program
years ago. He says his son is elated when he splashes with the creatures in the
park in Zhejiang
province's capital.
More than 80 parents of children with severe mental disabilities have booked
all of next year's spots in the program. (Sessions only run in the summer
because the water temperatures are too cold for the kids in other seasons.)
So, newcomers must wait until 2014, says Liu Quansheng, manager of the park's
owner, Zhejiang Aquarium Investment Group.
Despite the demand, dolphin-assisted therapy has not been scientifically
proven. Still, many experts and parents of special-needs children swear by it.
Liu, who also coordinates his company's 3-year-old dolphin-swim program, says:
"People with mental disabilities often have short attention spans. Swimming
with dolphins helps them relax and focus."
This is especially true of children, he says.
"Dolphin therapy is effective because these animals hold the kids'
attention better than even the most engaging human therapist," he says.
While the science of dolphin-assisted therapy's assortment of purported
benefits hasn't been verified, many believe at least some benefits come from
the experience's emotional magic.
"Once the children are in the pool they're only focused on the dolphins.
They love it, because the creatures let the kids touch and kiss them, grab
their fins and swim with them."
Most proponents agree on the merit of the fun factor. Some also claim it boosts
people's immune systems.
And many experts contend the therapy's benefits run deeper.
Dolphins' presence palpably changes water. Those who swim with the creatures
report fizzing sounds, as if the marine mammals carbonate the water. The sound
has been compared to popcorn, flames and sparklers.
The marine animals' ultrasonic energy is four times more powerful than
scientific instruments used to peer inside the body to make diagnoses, monitor
pregnancies and break down kidney stones, gallstones and cataract-clouded
lenses.
This is amplified by the water, which transmits sounds at 60 times air's
efficiency. The ultrasonic energy then enters our bodies - which are, in turn,
mostly water. But how - and if - this helps children with mental disabilities
remains unclear.
Preliminary tests by the AquaThought Foundation suggest human brainwaves change
when they interact with dolphins.
One theory says the two species' frequencies sync during interactions.
AquaThought researchers report shifts in neural oscillations among people who
interact with the marine mammals.
Their studies have measured switches from the beta state of everyday
consciousness, to the alpha state that is typical of relaxed closed-eyed
wakefulness. Subjects sometimes also slip into the meditative theta state, the
results find.
The foundation also measured increased synchronization between the brain's
hemispheres, which is linked to enhanced learning and cognizance.
Western therapists have for decades used dolphins to treat children with
autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders.
China
has only recently started experimenting with dolphin-swims, among other forms
of animal-assisted therapy.
But a lack of scientific affirmation of the treatments' effectiveness isn't the
sole source of opposition.
Animal rights advocates oppose the practice.
Marketing director of Shanghai's
Changfeng Park Ocean World Xu Jie says the aquarium nixed its dolphin-swim
therapy program when British operator Merlin Entertainments invested in the
park last year.
"They really value animal rights," Xu says. "They believed it
was too much to have the dolphins work as both healers and performers."
That's why Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park
has designated two of its 15 dolphins solely for therapy.
"It would be too much for them to both perform and provide therapy,"
Liu says."The dolphins might feel stress and could even hurt the
children."
Each dolphin only sees two or three children a day.
The treatments cost 2,300 yuan ($370) for 15 sessions, given every other day
over a month.
Zheng believes it's money well spent.
Whether dolphin-assisted therapy is science or pseudoscience - or something
else entirely - the father says his son's progress is the only proof he needs
that it works.
VNS
Dolphins help children open up just by simply
playing with them.Zheng Jun says 15 sessions with a pair of
bottle-nosed dolphins at Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park
have helped his 5-year-old autistic son become "aware" and
"alert" enough to become his kindergarten's class monitor. The father
believes the dolphin-assisted therapy has been more effective than any other
treatment. "Now, you can't tell he's different from his classmates,"
he says. Zheng became a believer after he visited an Australian dolphin-swim program
years ago. He says his son is elated when he splashes with the creatures in the
park in Zhejiang
province's capital.
More than 80 parents of children with severe mental disabilities have booked
all of next year's spots in the program. (Sessions only run in the summer
because the water temperatures are too cold for the kids in other seasons.)
So, newcomers must wait until 2014, says Liu Quansheng, manager of the park's
owner, Zhejiang Aquarium Investment Group.
Despite the demand, dolphin-assisted therapy has not been scientifically
proven. Still, many experts and parents of special-needs children swear by it.
Liu, who also coordinates his company's 3-year-old dolphin-swim program, says:
"People with mental disabilities often have short attention spans. Swimming
with dolphins helps them relax and focus."
This is especially true of children, he says.
"Dolphin therapy is effective because these animals hold the kids'
attention better than even the most engaging human therapist," he says.
While the science of dolphin-assisted therapy's assortment of purported
benefits hasn't been verified, many believe at least some benefits come from
the experience's emotional magic.
"Once the children are in the pool they're only focused on the dolphins.
They love it, because the creatures let the kids touch and kiss them, grab
their fins and swim with them."
Most proponents agree on the merit of the fun factor. Some also claim it boosts
people's immune systems.
And many experts contend the therapy's benefits run deeper.
Dolphins' presence palpably changes water. Those who swim with the creatures
report fizzing sounds, as if the marine mammals carbonate the water. The sound
has been compared to popcorn, flames and sparklers.
The marine animals' ultrasonic energy is four times more powerful than
scientific instruments used to peer inside the body to make diagnoses, monitor
pregnancies and break down kidney stones, gallstones and cataract-clouded
lenses.
This is amplified by the water, which transmits sounds at 60 times air's
efficiency. The ultrasonic energy then enters our bodies - which are, in turn,
mostly water. But how - and if - this helps children with mental disabilities
remains unclear.
Preliminary tests by the AquaThought Foundation suggest human brainwaves change
when they interact with dolphins.
One theory says the two species' frequencies sync during interactions.
AquaThought researchers report shifts in neural oscillations among people who
interact with the marine mammals.
Their studies have measured switches from the beta state of everyday
consciousness, to the alpha state that is typical of relaxed closed-eyed
wakefulness. Subjects sometimes also slip into the meditative theta state, the
results find.
The foundation also measured increased synchronization between the brain's
hemispheres, which is linked to enhanced learning and cognizance.
Western therapists have for decades used dolphins to treat children with
autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy and other neurological disorders.
China
has only recently started experimenting with dolphin-swims, among other forms
of animal-assisted therapy.
But a lack of scientific affirmation of the treatments' effectiveness isn't the
sole source of opposition.
Animal rights advocates oppose the practice.
Marketing director of Shanghai's
Changfeng Park Ocean World Xu Jie says the aquarium nixed its dolphin-swim
therapy program when British operator Merlin Entertainments invested in the
park last year.
"They really value animal rights," Xu says. "They believed it
was too much to have the dolphins work as both healers and performers."
That's why Hangzhou Polar Ocean Park
has designated two of its 15 dolphins solely for therapy.
"It would be too much for them to both perform and provide therapy,"
Liu says."The dolphins might feel stress and could even hurt the
children."
Each dolphin only sees two or three children a day.
The treatments cost 2,300 yuan ($370) for 15 sessions, given every other day
over a month.
Zheng believes it's money well spent.
Whether dolphin-assisted therapy is science or pseudoscience - or something
else entirely - the father says his son's progress is the only proof he needs
that it works.
VNS
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