Antibiotics & Your Child’s Immune System: What You Need to Know*

When do you use antibiotics? When your child has a fever? How about when they have coughs and colds? When these are caused by bacteria, antibiotics may have a role to play. However, did you know that frequent antibiotic use can also leave a child more vulnerable to infection? While they’re lifesavers, they can also affect your child’s developing immune system. Read on to learn more about how antibiotics usage can affect your child’s immunity and how to strengthen your child’s immune system.

Antibiotics for Kids: How They Help Against Infections

Antibiotics are a type of prescription medicine that either kills bacteria directly or prevents them from multiplying and causing illness^{1, 2}. Doctors prescribe antibiotics for kids with bacterial infections². 

However, antibiotics can also negatively affect a child’s immune system⁴. These medications can’t distinguish between beneficial and harmful bacteria inside the body. This means that antibiotics also kill beneficial bacteria inside the child’s gut. 

Antibiotics and the Immune System

There is a strong connection between gut health and immunity. 

The gut is home to a wide variety of bacterial strains, some of which are beneficial to the body, and others that are harmful. In addition, 70%-80% of the body’s immune cells can be found in the gut. 

Because of this, an imbalance between good and bad bacteria in the gut, such as those caused by antibiotics for kids, can potentially impact the body’s immunity⁶.

In the case of kids, their gut microbiome is still developing and changes more readily compared to that of adults⁷. This suggests that if their gut biome is not healthy, it may have an impact on their health and immunity later on in life⁸. 

Antibiotics for Kids May Cause Cycle of Sickness

This disruption in the bacteria inside the gut results in poor gut health or dysbiosis⁹.

Antibiotic-caused dysbiosis has been linked to an increase in allergies as well as a higher risk of infections¹⁰. This may also heighten the chance of another infection caused by poor gut health, which may then require another round of antibiotic use, making it a vicious cycle.

Fever in Children, and Other Effects

Dysbiosis can have short-term and long-term effects on kids. For example, young ones with poor gut health are also more likely to develop bronchiolitis¹¹ (Hasegawa, et al., 2016). Dysbiosis can also increase the risk of respiratory infections during the first year of life¹².(Reyman, et al., 2016)

The signs of bacterial infections¹⁸, such as those that may arise from poor gut health, include fever in children, nausea, vomiting, headaches, and soreness. 

However, your child’s immune system is adaptable. This means that even if your child has dysbiosis, there are still things that you can do about it. 

Breastmilk is Still Best

It is essential to know how to strengthen your kid’s immune system, especially when they have been given antibiotics. 

One key way of strengthening your child’s immune system early in life is through breastmilk.

Breastmilk is known as a complete food for the very young. It provides essential vitamins for a kid’s immune system, and nutrients that aid in growth and development and boost immunity¹³.

Among the immunity-boosting nutrients found in breastmilk are:

5HMOs or Human Milk Oligosaccharides

5HMOs, or human milk oligosaccharides, are components naturally found in breast milk that support the body’s immunity. These act as prebiotics that promote the growth of good intestinal bacteria. They also serve as a pathogen decoy and immunomodulator, helping to reduce infections and the likelihood of disease¹⁴.

Probiotic BB-12

Probiotic BB-12 is a bacterial strain that is naturally found in the gut and also in breastmilk. This strain increases the concentration of good bacteria to restore balance in the gut microbiome^{14, 15}.

Nucleotides

Nucleotides are molecules that are the basic building blocks of our DNA and RNA^16, and they can also be found in breastmilk. In terms of nutrition, dietary nucleotides can improve gut barrier function. 

Formula Milk for Kids Who Need Extra Immunity Boost

For kids who need extra support in strengthening their immune system against possible sickness, specialized formula milk containing appropriately high levels of 5HMOs, Probiotic BB-12, and nucleotides may help.

These ingredients help support a kid’s immunity by strengthening their gut health, especially if they have been using antibiotics. Other things a parent can do to support their kid’s immune system is helping them stay active through exercise and play, as well as getting enough sleep¹⁹.

Antibiotics have saved countless lives due to their ability to fight off bacterial infections. Despite this, antibiotics for kids can have some undesirable effects, particularly on their immune systems.

By knowing how to strengthen your child’s immune system through breastfeeding or by choosing the right formula milk as they grow older, the effects of antibiotic use can be managed. A balanced lifestyle for your growing kids, including a healthy diet, regular exercise, and adequate sleep, also plays a crucial role in boosting immunity. However, it’s essential to consult your pediatrician for personalized advice on antibiotic use and strategies to strengthen your child’s immune system. Remember, a healthy gut equals a healthy child!

References:
Antibiotics: What To Know, https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/16386-antibiotics, Accessed May 9, 2024

1. Antibiotic Resistance – StatPearls – NCBI Bookshelf, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK513277/, Accessed May 9, 2024
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3. The Dark Side of Antibiotics: Adverse Effects on the Infant Immune Defense Against Infection – PMC, https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7593395/, Accessed May 9, 2024
4. The Interplay between the Gut Microbiome and the Immune System in the Context of Infectious Diseases throughout Life and the Role of Nutrition in Optimizing Treatment Strategies – PubMed, https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33803407/, Accessed May 9, 2024
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9. Current understanding of antibiotic-associated dysbiosis and approaches for its management – Dhanasekhar Kesavelu, Pramod Jog, 2023, https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/20499361231154443#:~:text=Antibiotic%20exposure%20to%20infants%20causes,with%20a%20dysfunctional%20immune%20system.&text=Antibiotic%20use%20during%20childhood%20has,of%20allergies%20and%20various%20infections., Accessed May 9, 2024
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15. Nucleotide, https://www.genome.gov/genetics-glossary/Nucleotide, Accessed May 8, 2024
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