Doctors’ Tips for Keeping Your Kids Healthy

Kids Don’t Always Need an Antibiotic

What the doctor wants you to know: “Viral infections, despite being very annoying, need to run their course. They do not get better with antibiotics, and using antibiotics when they are not necessary promotes resistant bacteria,” says Diane M. Straub, an associate professor of pediatrics and the chief of the division of adolescent medicine at the University of South Florida, in Tampa. “If you aren’t sure what your child has, check with her doctor before giving her any medication.”

Where she slacks off: “I don’t remember to give my daughter vitamins consistently at all.”