The Experience Miracles Podcast

Q&A: The Overuse of Antibiotics: What Does It Mean for Our Kids?

Nov 21, 2025

Why Kids Are Overmedicated with Antibiotics, and What Actually Fixes Ear and Respiratory Infections

Episode 158, Experience Miracles Podcast | Host: Dr. Tony Ebel, DC, CACCP, Pediatric Chiropractor & Founder of PX Docs | Published: November 21, 2024 | Duration: ~14 min

Key Takeaways

  • 30% of antibiotics prescribed to children are unnecessary, according to CDC research, and Dr. Tony Ebel, DC, CACCP, argues the real number is likely much higher based on nearly two decades of clinical experience in pediatric practice.
  • The majority of ear infections, sinus infections, and respiratory infections in children are viral, not bacterial, meaning antibiotics provide no benefit while still disrupting the gut, immune system, and nervous system.
  • Every round of antibiotics increases a child’s risk of repeated respiratory infections, and is strongly linked to asthma, allergies, ADHD, anxiety, and autoimmune conditions, especially when given before age 12 months.
  • Antibiotics disrupt the gut microbiome, reduce neurotransmitter production (serotonin, dopamine), and impair Vagus Nerve function, the nerve responsible for regulating rest, digestion, inflammation, and mood.
  • Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care addresses the actual root cause: a stressed, subluxated nervous system that impairs the body’s natural drainage and immune response, the real driver behind recurring ear and respiratory infections.

Why Are Children’s Ear and Respiratory Infections So Often Treated with Antibiotics?

According to Dr. Tony Ebel, the answer comes down to a broken system, one that knows better but rarely acts accordingly. The CDC reports that 30% of antibiotics prescribed to children are unnecessary, and Dr. Ebel, drawing on nearly two decades of pediatric clinical practice, says the real figure is almost certainly higher. A landmark study by the American Academy of Pediatrics found that 85% of practicing pediatricians agreed that a “watch-and-see” approach was the right clinical standard for ear infections, because most are viral, temporary, and self-resolving. Yet only 33–35% of those same pediatricians actually followed that guideline.

The core problem is that the majority of childhood ear, sinus, and respiratory infections are viral, not bacterial. Antibiotics only work on bacteria. Prescribing them for a viral infection does nothing to resolve the illness, but does significant damage to the child’s gut, nervous system, and long-term immune health. Dr. Ebel describes this as a “plumbing problem,” not an antibiotic deficiency. When the nervous system is functioning well, the body drains fluid through the eustachian tubes, sinuses, lymphatics, and into the gut, where the immune system neutralizes it. When that drainage pathway is blocked due to nervous system stress and subluxation, fluid backs up, infections develop, and the cycle repeats.

For parents navigating repeated rounds of antibiotics for their child, understanding this distinction changes everything. The goal is not to suppress symptoms with medication, it is to restore the nervous system function that allows the body to drain, regulate, and heal on its own.

The 30% Problem: What CDC Research Reveals About Antibiotic Prescribing [00:01:00 – 00:05:00]

Dr. Tony Ebel: All right, parents. You want to know something wild, crazy, and absolutely frustrating? 30% of antibiotics prescribed to kids are done so unnecessarily. This is actually research from the CDC’s website. So anytime you look at medical research about a medical intervention that we absolutely know is overused and misused, you’ve got to understand it’s probably a lot worse than the actual 30% number.

I’ve been in practice for nearly two decades specializing in pediatrics, and I can tell you it absolutely is. The amount of times that kids are put on antibiotics unnecessarily is a huge deal. These are not just harmless substances like a multivitamin, not a “let’s see if this works” situation.

Antibiotics have multiple issues with them individually. For the child, they absolutely disrupt the microbiome. They disrupt the gut, immune, and neurological systems. They even get into the nervous system and wreak havoc there. A child who is prescribed antibiotics unnecessarily, and actually even if it’s a true bacterial infection, we know that every round of antibiotics increases their risk of repeated respiratory infections later on, and actually increases their risk of autoimmune and chronic inflammatory diseases like asthma, allergies, and even obesity, ADHD, and anxiety.

This is a big deal for the child who may be getting these antibiotics unnecessarily. And it’s a big deal for all of us because of the rampant overuse of antibiotics, not only in humans and kids, but also with livestock. We now have this massive global issue with antibiotic resistance and superbugs.

I remember early in my career, I opened my practice in 2007, and just a year or two before that, a huge study had come out by the American Academy of Pediatricians. They found that 85% of practicing pediatricians agreed that when it comes to ear infections, they should use a wait-and-see approach, since most of them are viral, most of them are temporary or transient, and the body will get over it and actually become stronger as a result. So 85% of pediatricians said, yep, that should be our clinical guideline and our standard.

And they actually adopted that policy. That is literally the guideline doctors are supposed to follow: watch and wait. Now there’s been slight improvement, but very little, because the study went on to find that only 33–35% of those surveyed actually follow that guideline and policy. How frustrating, how disheartening, they know what not to do, but they still don’t. Because that’s what it is. It’s a system. The collective system, third-party payers, all that, they force forward this on our kids.

“30% of antibiotics prescribed to kids are done so unnecessarily. Anytime you look at medical research about an intervention we know is overused and misused, you’ve got to understand it’s probably a lot worse than the actual 30% number.”

How Antibiotics Disrupt the Gut, Brain, and Nervous System [00:05:00 – 00:09:00]

Let’s break down what’s actually happening. Antibiotics save lives, I want to be clear about that. Every single medical intervention has its place. But like every medication, antibiotics have side effects, and they are significant and often severe. Some kids have had anaphylactic reactions to antibiotics. That’s not being dramatic, that’s being truthful.

The one we really want to talk about here is the disruption of the gut microbiome and the gut-brain connection. The master control system of the body, by far the boss, is the brain and the nervous system. The nervous system controls the gut, the immune system, inflammation, the endocrine system, all of it. But everything cross-talks. The gut and the immune system, the gut and the nervous system and brain, they all communicate.

What antibiotics do is enter the gut and wipe out everything, the bad and the good. It’s not a smart bomb. It eliminates our good bacteria, which are already low in today’s world because of birth interventions, higher rates of C-section deliveries (where gut colonization doesn’t happen naturally), and the widespread use of antibiotics in food systems. Our kids already have compromised guts, and antibiotics create what’s called dysbiosis, a serious imbalance in gut bacteria.

This is strongly linked to autism, ADHD, and anxiety on the neurological side, and to allergies, asthma, obesity, and PANDAS/PANS on the autoimmune side.

The other critical connection: the gut is where important neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine are created and absorbed. When the gut is disrupted, neurotransmitters go out of balance, and the nervous system becomes chronically overstressed.

The Vagus Nerve, connected to and running through the gut, is also directly affected. The vagus nerve is the most important nerve in the body. It controls rest, relaxation, digestion, regulation of emotions, behavior, and mood. It also regulates inflammation. When antibiotics disrupt the gut, they impair vagus nerve function, leaving the entire system, gut, nervous system, immune response, more suppressed, more dysregulated, and more imbalanced with every round.

We know that antibiotics given to a child under 12 months, and even more critically, under age three, create significant lifelong health challenges and are a major contributor to the rise of chronic illness in this generation.

“The master control system, by far the boss, the mom of the body, is the brain and the nervous system.”

The Root Cause: Ear and Respiratory Infections Are a Plumbing Problem [00:09:00 – 00:12:00]

All of that science is real, it’s documented, and it’s been known for decades. So what can parents do differently?

The path forward is care that addresses the root cause of these respiratory infections, and that’s what Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care does. It’s completely different from medicine. We’re not trying to treat a condition, suppress symptoms, or do the job for the body. Instead, chiropractic adjustments accomplish three specific things.

Number one: relax the stressed-out nervous system. When children are what’s called subluxated, carrying tension and stress in the nervous system, especially in the neck, traps, and skull areas from birth interventions like forceps, vacuum extraction, or C-section, the result is a chronically overstressed, sensory-overdrive, stuck nervous system. There is a documented connection between repeated ear infections and conditions like torticollis, plagiocephaly, colic, sensory issues, and ADHD and autism later on. The neurology is the same. It all originates from this stuck, overstressed Sympathetic Dominance, fight-or-flight activation that also limits drainage.

Now let me step away from the nerdy neurology for a second. Here’s the Iowa farmer version: ear infections, sinus infections, respiratory infections are primarily caused by poor plumbing.

When the nerves are working right, the muscles and joints work right. They move the eustachian tubes. They move the sinuses, the lymphatics, the respiratory system. When a virus or bug gets in, it’s supposed to get trapped in mucus and the lymphatic system, that built-in plumbing, and drain from the ears, nose, and throat into the stomach and into the gut. The gut’s immune system, the army, the navy, the marines, kills everything off and sends it out.

That’s the design. And it’s brilliant. But when the nervous system is subluxated and stuck, that drainage fails. Fluid backs up. Infections set in. And the child gets put on antibiotics, which make the whole system worse.

Number two: get fluid moving. Chiropractic adjustments release nervous system stress and restore proper drainage through the eustachian tubes, sinuses, and lymphatic system.

Number three: address lifestyle factors. Pediatric chiropractors help families understand inflammatory foods and lifestyle interventions, including resources like Dr. Ebel’s “Nature’s Medicine Cabinet” guide.

“Ear infections, sinus infections, respiratory infections are primarily caused by poor plumbing.”

Dr. Tony’s Family: Four Kids, Zero Antibiotics, Zero Ear Infections [00:12:00 – 00:13:00]

Dr. Tony Ebel has four children, collectively representing 30 to 40 years of childhood. Not one of them has ever had an ear infection, sinus infection, or respiratory infection. Not one has ever been given an antibiotic or any medication.

The difference wasn’t anatomically superior eustachian tubes. It wasn’t genetic immunity to viruses. It was three things: consistent chiropractic adjustments to keep nervous system stress low and drainage functioning, an understanding that it’s not about avoiding exposure, it’s about building the capacity to get over it, and a healthy lifestyle that supports immune function.

“It’s not about being exposed to it. It’s about getting over it.”

Frequently Asked Questions

Are most childhood ear infections caused by bacteria or viruses?

The majority of ear infections in children are viral, not bacterial, a fact backed by decades of research. Because antibiotics only work against bacteria, they provide no benefit against viral infections. Yet they continue to be prescribed for them at high rates, causing gut and immune disruption with no therapeutic gain.

What does antibiotic overuse actually do to a child’s long-term health?

Every round of antibiotics disrupts the gut microbiome, reduces beneficial bacteria, impairs neurotransmitter production, and stresses the Vagus Nerve. This is strongly linked to increased risk of asthma, allergies, ADHD, anxiety, PANDAS/PANS, and obesity. The damage is greatest when antibiotics are given before age 12 months or before age three, and accumulates with each additional round.

Why do pediatricians keep prescribing antibiotics if they know most ear infections are viral?

A major American Academy of Pediatrics study found that 85% of pediatricians agreed that a “watch-and-see” approach was correct for ear infections, yet only 33–35% actually followed that guideline in practice. Dr. Tony Ebel attributes this gap to systemic pressures: insurance structures, third-party payers, and the inertia of conventional medical culture override what individual physicians know to be clinically appropriate.

What is the actual root cause of recurring ear and respiratory infections in children?

According to Dr. Tony Ebel, the root cause is a nervous system plumbing problem. When a child’s nervous system is subluxated, carrying stress and tension from birth interventions, the eustachian tubes, sinuses, and lymphatic drainage pathways don’t function properly. Fluid backs up instead of draining into the gut where the immune system can clear it. Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care addresses this by releasing nervous system stress and restoring natural drainage, targeting the actual cause instead of masking symptoms.

Can chiropractic care really help with ear infections and respiratory infections?

Yes, pediatric chiropractic care focused on nervous system function addresses the underlying drainage dysfunction that allows fluid and viral material to accumulate. By releasing subluxation, especially in the upper cervical spine, adjustments restore the neurological control of eustachian tube function, sinus drainage, and lymphatic flow. Dr. Ebel’s own four children have never had an ear infection or required antibiotics, which he attributes directly to consistent chiropractic care, drainage support, and a healthy lifestyle.

Where can I find a PX Docs chiropractor near me?

Use the PX Docs directory to find a trained Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care provider in your area: Find a PX Docs Office Near You.

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