Drug taken by millions may trigger OBESITY - exposure increases risk by 20 per cent, study shows
Taking a common infection-fighting medication as a toddler can raise the likelihood of obesity in later life, a new study has found.
Researchers in Finland discovered children who took antibiotics before the age of two were 20 per cent more likely to have a body mass index in the obese category by the age of 12, compared to kids who didn't touch the medicine.
Children given antibiotics under two were also 10 per cent more likely to be overweight by the time they left primary school.
The study authors, from the University of Oulu, urged GPs to 'be cautious about prescribing antibiotics for young toddlers, especially unnecessary prescriptions for upper respiratory tract infections.'
Nearly 4 million prescriptions for antibiotics are given to children aged under 14 every year in the UK, official data shows.
The medicines are commonly dispensed to treat suspected bacterial infections such as strep throat, pneumonia and gastroenteritis, as well as skin and ear infections.
However experts have previously called for a limit on antibiotics, warning that over-prescription is causing the pills to lose their power and making common infections harder to treat.
Now, the Finnish scientists say there is another health risk of taking the medicine to keep in mind.
Researchers found that children exposed to antibiotics in the first two years of life had a 0.067 higher BMI and are nine per cent more likely to be overweight. They are also at a staggering 20 per cent greater risk of being obese
'Antibiotic exposure in the first 24 months of life was associated with a higher BMI at two years of age, compared to unexposed ones, and the same was seen in the long-term analysis until the age of 12 years,' the researchers said.
This could spell problems for later life.
A recent analysis found that 55 per cent of children living with obesity remained so into adolescence, while 80 per cent of obese adolescents carried the extra weight into adulthood.
For the study, experts followed 33,095 children in Finland from birth to the age of 12, and tracked antibiotic exposures in the first two years of life.
Researchers set out to compare the effects of antibiotic exposure before pregnancy, during pregnancy, at birth, and in childhood on the subsequent overweightness and obesity in children.
The mothers of 39 per cent of children were exposed to antibiotics one year before pregnancy, 27 per cent of mothers during pregnancy, and 68 per cent of children in the first two years of life.
The study measured overweightness and obesity twice—once at aged two and once at 12.
They found taking the drug before pregnancy, during pregnancy, or around the time of birth made no difference to their baby's weight throughout childhood.
Childhood obesity is an increasing challenge worldwide, with over 159 million school-aged children diagnosed with obesity in 2022
But researchers found taking the drugs in the first two years of life did make a significant difference to the risk of obesity and significant weight gain.
Experts have long known about the potentially detrimental impact of antibiotics on the vital microbes in our gut that help to maintain a healthy weight.
Scientists say that these powerful drugs can kill off important bacteria that would normally feed on some of the food eaten, which frees up more food for the body.
Some studies have shown that killing certain gut bugs with antibiotics may also increase appetite.
Childhood obesity is an increasing challenge worldwide, with over 159 million school-aged children diagnosed with obesity in 2022.
Data from 2023 showed a quarter of four and five-year-olds were overweight or obese, and for ten to 11-year-olds the figure was one in three.
