Antibiotics are commonly prescribed to young children to combat conditions such as ear infections and pneumonia. But the drugs may disrupt the digestive microbiome at a significant time in a child’s development.

According to previous research, early and repeated digestive microbiome disruption from antibiotic exposure could contribute to diverse, potentially harmful or disruptive conditions as a child ages. A Rutgers Health study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases explored this further by examining antibiotic exposure data from more than 1 million babies from the United Kingdom and analyzing diagnoses of chronic pediatric conditions through age 12.