Wholistic INSIGHTS – Bacterial Infections in Infants – Your Health Detective

This investigative report begins a series of quick, to-the-point reports that many of you have requested. They will be interspersed among my regular blog broadcasts. 

SUBJECT: Infants suspected of serious bacterial infections benefit from Zinc supplementation. For years, serious infant bacterial infections were mostly in under-developed countries – not anymore. We are seeing more and more infants die simply because the conventional medical establishment refuses to see the benefit in minerals and probiotics that must accompany any treatment with antibiotics.

FACT: Serious bacterial infections are a major cause of death in early infancy, especially in developing countries.

STUDY: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted that enrolled infants from 7 to 120 days old with serious bacterial infection at three hospitals in New Delhi, India. The researchers randomly assigned infants in blocks of six, segmented by whether they had diarrhea and/or were underweight. They received 10 mg of zinc or a placebo orally every day in addition to conventional antibiotic treatment because of the age of the infants and severity of the infection.

RESULTS in Brief: Significantly fewer treatment failures occurred in the zinc-supplemented group. Ten infants receiving the zinc along with antibiotics recovered, while seventeen who were given the placebo along with antibiotics died.

CONCLUSION: Zinc could be given as adjunct treatment to reduce the risk of treatment failure in
infants from 7 to 120 days old with serious bacterial infections.

The Way I See It…

Zinc is an essential trace element for humans, animals and plants. It is vital for many biological functions and plays a crucial role in more than 300 enzymes in the human body. The adult body contains about 2-3 grams of zinc. Zinc is found in all parts of the body: it is in organs, tissues, bones, fluids and cells. Muscles and bones contain most of the body’s zinc (90%). Particularly high concentrations of zinc are in the prostate gland and semen.

Additionally, I have concern that infants are NOT being given probiotics, especially after antibiotics…leaving them even more vulnerable to another infection that could be life-threatening.

In my next blog I will provide all the health benefits of zinc and the recommended amounts.

Your Partner in Health,

Dr. Gloria

Resource:

Bhatnagar S, et al. Zinc asadjunct treatment in infants aged between 7 and 120 days with probable seriousbacterial infection: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. The

Lancet. 2012 June;379 (9831): 2072-2078.

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