A new  study, published in Medical Hypotheses, (2005 64, 312–315) examines 206 children under the age of 3 diagnosed with autism, and comes up with a connection between ear infections and the antibiotics prescribed for them..

This is such sad information.  As a wholistic nutritionist, I have been warning parents for 20 years that ear infections are not visited on their children  from above, but are almost always an avoidable consequence of improper nutrition.  Read my article here.

Being a Grandmother has its down side, when one is an advocate for natural treatment, and the parents are not!  When my Granddaughter ran a fever recently, I had no luck explaining the function of fever, and why treating it with baby aspirin was not the answer.

Granted this story of a little girl who tragicallly lost her sight through a similar action/reaction is a rarity. However, the basic truth is the same.

Pain and fever serve a function, and chemically short-circuiting them can lead to unexpected consequences. I urge you to read Dr. Mercola's comments on this event, which follow the article itself at this link.

Over the Counter drugs have their own risks, which can sometimes be extremely serious  Consider Tylenol. 

My position has always been that pharmaceutical drugs have their place in the management of disease, but only to bring the situation under control so that the REASON for the imbalance could be discovered and corrected. 

Recent developments with vioxx and others have certainly strengthened that opinion.

But are ANY drugs safe for pregnant women?  Should other avenues be explored first, before a prescription is issued, particularly for non-life threatening conditions? Recollect, Omega 3 fatty acids, among them DHA, are connected not only with help for depression, but calmer babies, with higher intelligence and better eyesight!

Read this information about the influence of anti-depressants on children, and tell me what you think!

Supplements Benefit Children with ADHD... According to research in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition (2004, vol.23: 545s-548s), children suffering from attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may benefit from supplements of magnesium and vitamin B6. ADHD is characterized by inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity and usually appears during preschool and early school years.

 Magnesium deficiency has previously been reported in children with ADHD and supplementing with the mineral has been shown to decrease hyperactivity. This study examined 52 children with ADHD under age 15. Though exact dosages were not clear in the study abstract, the children appeared to receive a combination of six milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day of magnesium and 0.8 milligrams per kilogram of body weight per day of vitamin B6 for a period of one to six months. By the end of the study, significant improvements were seen among all participants in hyper-excitability symptoms.