In a paper consisting of six pages the problem of overmedicating children is examined particularly in terms of the overreliance upon antibiotics. Five sources are cited in the bibliography.
Name of Research Paper File: LM1_TLCoverM.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
of preventive and curative treatments. However, the ease with which these treatments are so effective and readily available has created a problem in and of itself: Todays children are
severely overmedicated. One treatment in particular that has caused a great deal of the problem is antibiotics, inasmuch as pediatricians often prescribe this so-called "cure all" medication without requiring
a culture. Perhaps doctors believe they are doing their clients a favor by granting them the prescription without the inconvenience of an office
visit, but what is actually happening is far more unhealthy - not to mention unethical - than what lies on the surface. For a doctor to fill an antibiotic
prescription without first visually seeing the child and taking a culture is against the very grain of healthful consideration, because he has absolutely no idea what it is he is
treating; as such, children are not only overmedicated, but they are oftentimes being treated with a certain type of antibiotic that does nothing for their current illness.
There are varying degrees of antibiotics that are made to treat myriad levels of illness; to prescribe a potent pill for a minor ailment only serves
to build up the bodys immunity so that if it is taken enough, it will no longer be effective when it is needed to fight a major illness. But
many parents do not want to hear all about that; what they want is an instant cure for their childs ailment -- and they want it now. This is
precisely how the use of antibiotics has become overly prescribed and abused by both doctors and parents. In most cases, antibiotics are a