A study conducted at Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, Michigan shows that children given antibiotics in their first six months of life have an increased risk of allergies to ragweed, pets, grass, and dust mites. They also have an increased risk of asthma. Christine Cole Johnson, Ph.D., the study's lead author and senior research epidemiologist for Henry Ford's Department of Biostatistics & Research Epidemiology, says that she is not against children receiving antibiotics, but believes that prudence is necessary before prescribing them for children at such an early age.
Many antibiotics have been prescribed unnecessarily, especially for viral infections like colds and the flu when they would have no effect anyway. Data was collected on 448 children from before birth until seven years of age. Almost half (49%) of the children received antibiotics within the first six months of life. Children given antibiotics once in the first six months of life were 1.5 times more likely to suffer from allergies and 2.5 times more likely to have asthma than children who were not given antibiotics. If the mother had a history of allergies, the children given antibiotics were twice as likely to develop allergies as the non-antibiotic group. If the child was breast-fed and given antibiotics, the chance of developing allergies was four times greater than the non-antibiotic group. Breast feeding did not increase the incidence of asthma. Dr. Johnson postulates that the antibiotics may alter the immune system by affecting the GI tract.
WholeHealthAmerica March 2016
Over use of these antibiotics have heavily contribute to Leaky Gut Syndrome for a lot of children too. What is Leaky Gut Syndrome? Think of the lining of your digestive tract like a net with extremely small holes in it that only allow specific substances to pass through. Your gut lining works as a barrier keeping out bigger particles that can damage your system.
When someone has leaky gut (often referred to as increased intestinal permeability), the "net" in your digestive tract gets damaged, which causes even bigger holes to develop in your net, so things that normally can't pass through, are now be able to.
Some of the things that can now pass through include proteins like gluten, bad bacteria and undigested foods particles. Toxic waste can also leak from the inside of your intestinal wall into your bloodstream causing an immune reaction.
This leads to inflammation throughout your system and can cause symptoms, such as:
- Bloating
- Food sensitivities
- Thyroid conditions
- Fatigue
- Joint pain
- Headaches
- Skin issues like rosacea and acne
- Digestive problems
- Weight gain
- Syndrome X
So how do you diagnosis Leaky Gut?
Blood work with multiple food sensitivities is typically how I find them. This is why we run the sensitive 7 at our office. 80% of your immunity is through your gut. If you don't heal the gut first, you won't conquer other health problems.
Dr. J