Scientists have found that using antibiotics at an early age dramatically increases the chances of getting allergic diseases in the future.
The results of the new research can be found in the EurekAlert! Within the framework of it, scientists analyzed 22 scientific works made during the period 1966-2015. These studies focused on how the use of antibiotics in the first few years of a person's life is associated with the risk of developing diseases later. The researchers, in particular, were interested in diseases such as dermatitis and hay fever, also known as hay fever. The first is an inflammatory skin lesion that occurs as a result of exposure to damaging factors of a chemical, physical or biological nature. As for hay fever, this is a seasonal disease caused by an allergic reaction of the body to pollen.
The risks of dermatitis were studied on the example of 395 thousand people, and hay fever - on the example of more than 257 thousand. Scientists also examined 65 thousand people suffering from both diseases. It was found that taking antibiotics at an early age increased the chances of dermatitis by 15–41%. In the case of hay fever, the risks increased by 14–56%.
As the cause of allergic diseases, scientists call the death of microorganisms living in the intestine, which is caused by the intake of antibiotics. This leads to a suppression of the person's immune system, which makes them more vulnerable to allergies.
An antibiotic is a substance that can inhibit the growth of a number of microorganisms or destroy them. Antibiotics are used as drugs, causing relatively little damage to the cells of the macroorganism. Such substances can be of microbial, animal or plant origin.
Earlier, we recall, another group of researchers came to the conclusion that the use of antibiotics in childhood can cause asthma and obesity. The reason for this is their negative impact on the intestinal microflora.
