Originally printed in To Your Health

More and more people are suffering from asthma these days, even though research shows that outdoor air pollutants are decreasing. What’s the explanation for this disturbing trend? One possible answer may be just as disturbing.

A recent study published in the Journal of Clinical and Experimental Allergy examined the potential for antibiotic use in childhood to contribute to the development of asthma. A survey mailed to the parents of 612 grade-school students(5-10 years old) asked questions about antibiotic use and history of asthma in their children.

Results showed that children given antibiotics in their first year of life were over four times more likely to develop asthma symptoms than children who had never taken antibiotics. This increased risk was evident even after the researchers accounted for potential variables such as gender, ethnicity, family size, family history of asthma and parents’ smoking habits.

If asthma is linked to antibiotics, then it’s just another of many risk factors associated with antibiotic use. As a parent, you may want to think twice before giving antibiotics to your children, especially if they’re not specifically required. Always find out why your doctor is prescribing a particular medication, and ask if there are acceptable non-pharmacological alternatives available. And get a second opinion — from your chiropractor.

Reference:

Wickens K, Pearce N, Crane J, et al. Antibiotic use in early childhood and the development of asthma. Journal of Clinical and Experimental Allergy, 1999: Vol. 29, pp766-71.

A review published online on March 13, 2008 in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood concluded that vitamin D supplementation in infancy may be protective against the development of type 1 diabetes.

For the current review, C. S. Zipitis, of the Stockport NHS Foundation Trust in Stockport, and A. K. Akobeng, of Booth Hall Children’s Hospital in Manchester, England selected four case-control studies and one cohort study, involving a total of 6,455 children. Of these children, 1,429 developed type 1 diabetes. Analysis of the case-control studies determined that infants who were supplemented with vitamin D had a 29 percent lower risk of developing diabetes than those who were not. Data from the cohort study supported this conclusion. Increased dosages of the vitamin were associated with a greater reduction in diabetes risk than lower doses.

In one study included in the review, those who received vitamin D from cod liver oil between the ages of 7 and 12 months experienced a lower risk of developing type 1 diabetes than infants supplemented between 0 and 6 months. Other forms of the vitamin were associated with similar results

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Since type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disorder in which the beta cells of the pancreas that produce insulin are destroyed, a protective effect of vitamin D on the immune system as well as on pancreatic beta cells may be mechanisms by which vitamin D helps prevent the disease. Both types of cells have receptors for the active forms of the vitamin.

“Vitamin D supplementation in early childhood may offer protection against the development of type 1 diabetes,” the authors conclude. “Adequately powered, randomised controlled trials with long periods of follow-up are needed to establish causality and the best formulation, dose, duration and period of supplementation.”

For more info, visit the Life Extension Foundation website.