Medication is probably unnecessary for a young child sniffling from a common cold, a new study reported in the Journal of Pediatrics.
Dr. Nancy Hutton, a pediatrician at the John Hopkins University School of Medicine, and colleagues studied 96 children ranging in age from 6 months to 5 years old. The children were randomly selected when their parents brought them to a walk-in clinic because of cold symptoms.
The children were divided into three groups receiving either an antihistamine-decongestant, a dummy pill or no medication. After two days the researchers asked parents again about the symptoms and whether or not the child was better.
They found no difference in parental reports of whether the child was better among children receiving medication, the placebo or no treatment.
While several previous studies have cast doubt on the effectiveness of cold remedies, doctors routinely prescribe them either because they think they will help or because they are placating parents with medications that they regard as harmless.
“The results of the study do not support the common practices of prescribing an antihistamine-decongestant preparation for young children with common cold,” the report stated.
“Why waste money and risk an adverse reaction by giving young children medication when the cold really just has to take its course?” Dr. Hutton said. “Whether parents give medication or not, the child will usually feel better in a day or two. Cold remedies don’t make it happen any faster.”
The spinal column is the basic structure of the body and every muscle, bone, ligament or tendon is attached to it directly or indirectly. Thus it is the backbone, or brace, for all the body’s movements.
More important, however, it houses the central nervous system, which controls every other respiratory, immune, circulatory, lymphatic and endocrine in the body. That is why a spinal misalignment may cause symptoms like runny noses, coughs, sneezing, headaches, sinus problems, stomach ailments, and colic just to name a few.
Chiropractors realign the spine, remove the interference, and stand aside. The body’s own immune system knows what to do best.
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Chiropractic care starting at birth and continuing through childhood and chiropractic care for parents, at any age, may contribute to overall health by maintaining a properly developed spine and nervous system.
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