[Warning] Asthma Treatment Has Deadly Consequences
Dear Reader,
I’m thankful none of my boys ever had to deal with asthma. But I was always shocked by how many other kids on their sports team were burdened with this condition.
Maybe you have a grandchild with asthma… and, if so, you’re not alone.
Right now, 6.2 million kids under 18 currently have asthma, a sad product of our toxic air outside, and spending too much time inside. Dust, mold, and pet dander all can trigger an attack or make symptoms worse.
No kid should have to deal with the suffering and anxiety that comes from struggling just to breathe.
But as it turns out, doctors could be taking a bad situation and making it worse. Recent research shows that doctors are giving these children the wrong drugs—and it’s having a devastating impact on their health.
According to a recent analysis of over a million children, kids with asthma are MUCH more likely to be prescribed antibiotics… even though they don’t need them.
The reasons why are even more maddening. Turns out doctors are mistaking the symptoms of asthma for the symptoms of a respiratory tract infection.
One requires antibiotics… the other doesn’t.
The other reason these kids are getting drugs they don’t need? Some docs are handing out antibiotics for prevention.
Antibiotics for PREVENTION? Any doctor who would do such a thing should have his license revoked.
This isn’t some uncharted disease we don’t know much about. There are guidelines for the use of antibiotics.
And even the INTERNATIONAL guidelines make it very clear that using antibiotics to deal with asthma symptoms is a big fat no-no.
The fact that these kids are getting drugs that aren’t going to do a darn bit of good is just a small part of the problem. The much bigger problem is that this type of irresponsible behavior on the part of doctors is contributing to the rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.
These superbugs make even the worst asthma attack seem like a walk in the park. Because while asthma deaths are rare, these superbugs kill about 700,000 people every year. And as these bugs get stronger, that death toll is only going to go up.
Doctors’ irresponsible behavior has taken one of the greatest medical advances of the past century and is about to render it useless.
By prescribing these kids antibiotics they don’t need, not only is it placing the kids themselves at an increased risk of getting a difficult-to-treat infection in the future—it’s placing the entire population at risk.
I’m not saying antibiotics are bad; I’m saying they are overused.
If you have a grandchild with asthma… and he’s being prescribed antibiotics… find out exactly why. You could end up preventing a tragedy down the road.
To a brighter day,
Dr. Richard Gerhauser, M.D.
