It's time to talk about antibiotics. I'll admit, it's not an easy topic. I haven't heard so many myths and fears about any other group of medications. We even started evaluating children's health based on how many courses of antibiotics they've taken in their lifetime. So, what are antibiotics, why are they necessary, and why should we try to use them as little as possible?

Antibiotics are natural or synthetic substances that destroy bacteria or inhibit their growth and reproduction. I would really like to highlight or repeat this definition several times, especially the part that indicates that antibiotics only destroy bacteria, not viruses. Therefore, antibiotics should not be prescribed for viral infections. They are not a panacea for all illnesses.

Finally, the weather has warmed up and summer has arrived (at least in my country, Lithuania). Once again, we begin to grumble about the weather: some complain that it's too cold, others that it's too hot, there's either too little rain or too much, and we impatiently wait for the holidays. We also have to remember the small unpleasant things – insects that can ruin trips to nature or night's sleep. There is a great saying: "If you think you're too small to make an impact, try sleeping in a room with a mosquito."

This time, let's talk about mosquitoes and their bites. The topic is very relevant, because when a child gets bitten by several mosquitoes and the bite locations swell a little, parents immediately start mentioning allergies. It's no secret that doctors, wanting to ease the situation, also say that the child is allergic to mosquito bites – and the parents calm down, and there's no need for long explanations. The only problem is that the prescribed antiallergic drugs, particularly antihistamines, don't really help...

No one has likely gone through life without experiencing bowel movement issues. Sometimes we face diarrhea, other times constipation. When a child is young and still in diapers, every mother monitors his stools. However, as the child grows and begins to use the toilet independently, this aspect gradually fades, and we no longer ask how often he has bowel movements, which means defecations. Especially when the child learns to flush the toilet and no longer calls out: "Mom, I'm done! Come and help me!" If there were no problems with bowel movements before, it is often assumed there won't be any in the future. Therefore, when I ask the mother of an older child about his bowel movements, she is surprised that this might be important.

Then I was a three-year-old girl. As usual, my parents took me to kindergarten every day. I don't remember being sick often. Well, at least I didn't hear my parents complain to others. My sister, who was more than a year older than me, got sick more often. I remember some miraculous doctor that my dad always mentioned - whenever one of us got sick, they always called her and somehow we would recover.