Children being prescribed antibiotics before their first birthday is not at all an unusual occurrence.

Most of these antibiotics are used to treat ear infections, and it saddens me deeply to see this as preventing ear infections in children is incredibly simple.

One of the most common reasons why ear infections occur is a reaction to pasteurized milk. Over 50 percent of ear infections are resolved by simply removing pasteurized milk. Raw milk will typically not cause ear infections.

If restricting pasteurized dairy does not work the next step would be to remove all wheat products and forms of processed sugar like fruit juices.

Once these simple dietary modifications are addressed it is very rare for ear infections to recur again. There is rarely a need for ear tubes, as they typically do not help and can contribute to long-term hearing loss.

Even if it weren't easy to prevent ear infections, most ear infections clear up without antibiotics. If your child does develop an ear infection please review my practical alternatives, which are very effective in my practice.

Interestingly, the Canadian researchers believe exposure to antibiotics is only a part of the cause of the asthma, citing the hygiene hypothesis -- the argument that children not exposed to viruses and bacteria factors won't build the natural immunities that protect them from disease later on -- as a likely contributor.

Fact is, the fear that your baby will get sick at all may make them sicker in the long run. Children aren't meant to be isolated from life in a sealed room. They're designed to run, play and, on occasion, get dirty.

There are certainly times when they are necessary but antibiotics are typically widely overused. I am not opposed to their use in every circumstance, only to the reliance on them in situations where they are obviously of little or no use. In my experience that is well over 95 percent of the time they are prescribed.