Antibiotics — Too Much of a Good Thing?

April 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment

Alexander Fleming’s discovery of penicillin is one of the greatest breakthroughs of our civilization. If not for this discovery, certain types of bacteria would undoubtedly get the best of us. However, as with most things, antibiotics fall under the category of “too much of a good thing is not good.” Currently antibiotics are being over utilized as a “cure all” for any sniffle, cough, or discolored mucus. This is a dangerous trend that creates drug resistant bacteria.

Bacteria, both good and bad, reside in our bodies usually posing very little problems. In fact, most common conditions (like colds, the flu, most coughs, bronchitis and sore throats) are caused by viruses which are routinely treated with prescription antibiotics despite their ineffectiveness on viruses. Bacteria are one of the fastest reproducing organisms in existence which enables them to easily mutate their genes to resist antibiotics. Therefore, over prescribed antibiotics will not only destroy beneficial bacteria in our bodies but weak bacteria, thus, leaving the drug resistant bacteria (super bugs) to reproduce. So, the next time you come down with a sniffle be judicious with your use of antibiotics. Strengthen your immune system instead with proper nutrition, adequate exercise, and optimal nerve function by getting chiropractic adjustments.

Chiropractic Care for Ear Infection?

April 9, 2009 | Leave a Comment

“By the age of three years, more than 70 percent of children will have had at least one episode of earache and about a third will have had more than three episodes.” This alarming statistic reported by Dr. Peter Fysh D.C. in his article “Kids Need Chiropractic Too” demonstrates a real concern. Typical treatments include antibiotic prescriptions and surgeries performed by medical doctors, both of which can have side effects. Chiropractic is a perfect alternative. “Children with ear [infections] attending the chiropractor will usually respond within about 3 visits” without the possible side-effects that pharmaceutical drugs and surgery carry.

The anatomy of a child’s ear is quite different than an adult. In children, the eustachian tube (drainage tube) is more horizontal making drainage difficult and an ideal medium for infection. Compounding this issue is the trauma to the delicate spine that a new born endures during delivery and the rough and “tumble” world of being a baby and a toddler. When the upper spine of a baby becomes misaligned the fragile nerves that exit at those levels will be affected. This results in muscle spasm in the infant’s neck restricting drainage from the ear. So before you or someone important to you takes an infant in for another round of antibiotics or surgery make an appointment with a chiropractor instead.