Kids Using CAM Don’t Skip Asthma Drugs

Children with asthma who use non-traditional treatments don’t skip their regular asthma medicines more often than others, a study finds. The study included 187 children with asthma. Their families were part of a larger health survey. The survey gathered information from parents each year for 3 years. They were asked about what medicines their children took. Parents were asked how often the children missed doses. They also were asked about complementary and alternative (CAM) treatments. These included herbs, supplements, chiropractic care and other non-traditional treatments. On average, parents said their children missed about 7% of the medicine doses their doctors prescribed. There was no difference between children who also used CAM treatments and those who did not. The journal Pediatrics published the study online April 9.