Reassurance about your babies who have had antibiotics

[Ivyleaf72]

Hi,
My 8 week old is on antibiotics for a finger nail infection which feels unnecessary but trusting in the medical processionals. He is exclusively breastfed. I feel awful that he’a taking them as such a small baby 😣. Please can you tell me about your children who have had antibiotics as babies - has it caused any problems.

My eldest had antibiotics twice whilst a baby. There were no side effects and the infections cleared up. It was very much okay.

Mine had 48 hours of IV antibiotics immediately after birth.
She's 18 now and trying to pick which medical school to go to out of the three offers she has.

Many many babies have antibiotics and the benefits outweigh the risks.

I would however look up good gut health (breastfeeding is the best thing here but probitoics won't hurt) and review the latest info about early introduction of allergens, as links have been made between antibiotics and allergies.

I would rather have my allergic kid than the alternative if they'd not had shedloads of ABs as an infant of course.

Hope they recover quickly

It’s amazing to have antibiotics available, how lucky we all are to be able to rely on care like this for our babies. My children had them very young when they got pneumonia.
My son recently got cellulitis at the base of his thumbnail, it’s not as trivial as you’d think.

I really recommend probiotics to go with the antibiotic. It just helps balance out the gut again, especially if your baby gets diarrhoea on the ABs

Same here....my son had to have AB as a little baby. He's a lovely happy bright 8 year old now!

Mine had them very young (I think three weeks) for a fingernail infection and is now a healthy six year old. Those infections can take over a tiny baby very quickly, you've done the right thing.

My 7mth old baby has received 4 courses of antibiotics so far, the first of which was administered just hours after birth.
She keeps getting respiratory infections.
I feel privileged to live in a part of the world that has access to such advanced medical care but equally, I worry about allergens and gut health as other have previously stated. I too would encourage high quality pro and prebiotics

One of my dc was on iv antibiotics the moment he was born and he had gut and wind issues until 2.5. My other dc wasn't on ab and never had any gut issues. I'm still thankful for the person who found them though!

My relatives baby had antibiotics at birth and then diagnosed with lactose allergy months later - quite possibly linked however infections can take hold quickly in little babies so absolutely trust professionals if they say that on balance abs are best

My son had iv antibiotics at birth for several days. He’ll be fine. Certainly better than if you let his tiny body be ravaged by bacteria he can’t fight alone.

Doctors do know what they are doing OP. They wouldn’t just prescribe medicine willy nilly if it could harm them. If your child has an infection he will become very poorly very quickly. Whatever the doctor has prescribed will have been tailored to his young age.

My son was born with a dodgy kidney so was on daily antibiotics pretty much from birth until he was about 15 months and had surgery on it.

He does have some allergies, and my MIL was insistent the antibiotics would damage his teeth, but his teeth are perfect and a few allergies seem a small price to pay for something that undoubtedly saved his life.

My daughter also had kidney issues and was on a prophylactic dose of antibiotics daily from a few weeks old to about 6 years old! She is now 18 and okay!

Mine had IV antibiotics as soon as he was born, and then for 5 days. He then also had months of antibiotics from about 6 months to 18 months, and at least one course a year till he was 6 and grew out of his lung issues. He's 18 now, at uni and a strappy 6'5 who is never ill, no allergies