Well, you can't argue with success. According to a study done by Medco Health Solutions Inc., there's been a tremendous surge in relief provided to children suffering from various gastrointestinal ailments.

This just in... analysis of prescription data indicates that more than 2 million U.S. children 18 and under used drugs for tummy issues last year. The analysis found specifically:

- 557,259 infants and children up to age 4, or about 3 percent of youngsters in that age range, were taking these drugs last year. That's a 56 percent increase from 2002;
- There was a 31 percent increase among children aged 5 to 11, climbing to an estimated 551,653 children, or 2 percent in that age group in 2006;
- Almost 1 million children aged 12 to 18 had prescriptions for the drugs last year, up 6 percent over 2002.

Dr. Renee Jenkins, president-elect of the American Academy of Pediatrics said: "Heartburn is a common complication of being overweight and the surge happened during the nation's rising obesity epidemic. Today, more than 10 percent of U.S. preschoolers and 30 percent of older children are considered overweight."

But Jenkins added: "Heartburn and acid reflux are also extremely common in infants and young children. Many of them outgrow it and drug treatment often isn't needed, so the increase raises concerns about whether these drugs are sometimes being used unnecessarily."

Dr. Benjamin Gold, an Emory University specialist in children's digestive diseases added a poignant perspective, "Some of these drugs, including Prevacid, were approved for use in children during the study period, which likely contributed to the prescription surge. Still, parents increasingly are demanding that doctors prescribe drugs because of direct-to-consumer marketing."

High fives all around, right?