Australian children have one of the highest rates of antibiotic use in the world. More than half have received at least one course by their first birthday.

While antibiotics are one of the miracles of modern healthcare, they have some drawbacks. The overuse of antibiotics increases the risk of bacterial resistance in the wider community. For individual children, antibiotics may have side effects, particularly if used inappropriately.

We also have some research about the effects of antibiotic use in early life on longer-term health, such as in increasing the risk of asthma, inflammatory bowel disease like Crohn’s disease, and obesity.

New research from New Zealand has found children given antibiotics in the first 1-2 years of their life may be at a greater risk of having a higher BMI or becoming obese by the age of four or five.