Why antibiotics should not be given to kids below 2

New York, Nov 16 : Antibiotics administered to children younger than two are associated with several ongoing illnesses or conditions, ranging from allergies to obesity, warn researchers.
For the study, published in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings, the research team from Mayo Clinic in the US analysed data from over 14,500 children.
About 70 per cent of the children had received at least one treatment with antibiotics for illness before age 2.
The findings showed that children receiving multiple antibiotic treatments were more likely to have multiple illnesses or conditions later in childhood.
Types and frequency of illness varied depending on age, type of medication, dose and number of doses. There also were some differences between boys and girls.
Conditions associated with early use of antibiotics included asthma, allergic rhinitis, weight issues and obesity, food allergies, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, celiac disease, and atopic dermatitis.