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Receiving antibiotics during the first two years of life is linked to a higher childhood body mass index (BMI), according to research presented during the Pediatric Academic Societies meeting in Honolulu last month. 

The study followed 33,095 vaginally born children in Finland. The children treated with antibiotics during their first two years of life had a 0.067kg/m² higher BMI after adjusting for age and sex than unexposed controls at two years of age. 

Antibiotic-treated children were 9 per cent and 20 per cent more likely than controls to be overweight and obese respectively at 12 years of age. No correlation emerged between childhood BMI and antibiotic use before or during pregnancy, or perinatally.

“Antibiotic exposure in the first two years of life has a stronger association with childhood weight gain than exposure during pregnancy stages or other early ages,” says study author Sofia Ainonen. 

“Providers need to be cautious about prescribing antibiotics for young toddlers – especially unnecessary antibiotics for upper respiratory tract infections.”