Asthma Risk & Antibiotics Before 1st Birthday

A longitudinal study comparing 13,116 children suggests that children treated with antibiotics in their first year of life appear to have a significantly higher risk of developing asthma by age 7 compared with babies not given antibiotics. The risk of asthma was highest in children receiving more than four courses of antibiotics. The risk doubled in kids receiving antibiotics for non-respiratory infections, as well as for those who did not live with a family dog before their first birthday. Dogs expose a child to germs, and it is suspected that this exposure is helpful for the infant's immune system to develop normally. Last year, a University of British Columbia analysis of 7 studies involving more than 12,000 children found a similar doubling of risk.

When the researchers looked at reasons for antibiotic use, it appeared asthma at age seven was almost twice as likely in children receiving an antibiotic for non-respiratory tract infections compared with children who had not received the drugs.

A variety of homeopathic, nutritional and herbal alternatives to antibiotics are available. Probiotics, oregano oil, garlic, bee propolis, tea tree oil, and aloe vera can strengthen your immune system naturally, protect your natural ‘friendly bacteria’, and fight infection without antibiotics.

Reference: Kozyrskyj, A., Ernst, P. & Becker, A. (2007) “Increased risk of childhood asthma from antibiotic use in early life,” Chest. 131.