Does childhood medicine cause allegies and asthma?

Take a closer look at the results of independent scientific studies, and you’ll notice that there may possibly be a link between the medicine we give our children and the rise in health problems that children are experiencing later in life—namely allergies and asthma. Of course, the federal government denies any such data, nor will the media talk about it. But they should, because the well-being of our nation’s youth could be at stake.

So, what’s really causing the rise in childhood allergies and asthma?

In one circle of health reporting, doctors in the media blame a rise in youth health problems on the hygiene hypothesis. This idea suggests that because more children are growing up in cities and suburbs, away from country farms and wildlife, their immune systems are unable to build up a tolerance to allergens, and therefore are becoming susceptible to many more immune disorders than ever before—namely allergies and asthma.

Another possibility for the rise in childhood health problems was delivered in mid-March 2006. Researchers from the University of British Columbia reported a possible link between antibiotics and asthma. Scientific data from seven studies suggests that infants under one-year in age, who had been given antibiotics—may be more likely to develop asthma when they get older.

Here’s one more possibility—vaccines. Some researchers believe that a child’s immune system needs to be exposed to the real allergen—not a smaller, controlled version of the allergen, as is administered in vaccines. The lack of exposure to the real thing could “confuse” the body’s immune system, causing it to attack its own tissue, which could lead to allergies, asthma and many other autoimmune disorders like juvenile diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and possibly even autism.

Again, the government and the media are not talking about these types of reports and the theories developed from the research. But we can’t overlook it, especially when our government suggests that all children receive a particular vaccination—like the MMR inoculation against measles, mumps and rubella—and shortly thereafter a major decline in childhood health occurs. Things aren’t measuring up. Maybe the truth is that medicine is trying to solve a problem that medicine created in the first place.

[Source: National Vaccine Information Center, www.nvic.org]

Give Your Kids the Gift of a Healthy Spine

The health of a child’s spine needs to be taken very seriously. A healthy spine will decrease their chance of injury, improve their posture, improve their overall health and help to avoid spinal problems such as scoliosis. in fact, studies have shown that children who receive regular chiropractic care are less frequently sick, are able to concentrate better and are generally healthier. As parents, this is what we want for our kids, right?

Here are three things that you can do today to help improve your child’s spinal health:

• Regular chiropractic care. Just as children need good hygiene, dental care and sound nutrition, they also need regular chiropractic care. Chiropractic care will help to restore and maintain normal spinal function, allowing a child’s body to develop optimally.
• Limit backpack weight. One common source of spinal injury for children is their heavy backpacks. Limit the weight of their backpacks to 10% - 15% of their body weight. For example: A child weighing 50 lbs. should carry no more than 7.5 lbs, and a child weighing 80 lbs. should carry no more than 12 lbs. If children carry more than this, they have an increased risk of injuring themselves.
• Keep kids active. There is an epidemic of childhood obesity in this country as more and more children spend their day in front of the television and playing computer games. This not only increases their risk of developing diabetes and heart disease early in life, it is also very stressfull on the spine. More and more children suffer from back pain and headaches simply because they don’t get enough exercise.

Every child is different and has unique needs. Your Doctor of Chiropractic is trained in evaluating and treating the spines of all ages. Give your kids the gift of a healthy spine by getting them regular chiropractic care.

Chiropractic Care Can Help...
Our goal is to adjust the spine and help stimulate your body's natural healing process.