Antibiotic Abuse

The year was 1928. A British bacteriologist accidentally made a discovery that promised to change to whole world. His discovery? He discovered penicillin. Before this discovery, the outcome of persons with any infectious disease was very grave indeed. Plagues upon plagues ravished the communities at will and with multiple casualties. Sir Alexander Flemmings discovery of penicillin (and the many more antibiotics discovered by others after this) held the promise of an end to all infectious diseases.

However, decades after, we are not any closer to this promise. Some strains of bacteria are now resistant to all known antibiotics. And many more are resistant to the more common and cheaper antibiotics.

To change this trend you have a role to play.

Without you knowing, due to your practice of constantly misusing and abusing antibiotics, you may actually be a major distributor of multi-resistant bacteria to your children and loved ones.  You can do the following to stop the evolution of drug resistance:

• The practice of collecting multiple capsules from chemists at the hint of any illness is a most dangerous one Never take an antibiotic without the prescription of a doctor
• Always finish the dose of antibiotic given you, even though you may feel better after a few days of use
• Don’t transfer your prescription to someone else who seems to have similar symptoms with yours thinking you must have the same disease. Even if you are correct and do have the same disease, the organism might not be susceptible to your own drugs
• Stop the common practice of using some antibiotics(e.g tetracycline, or “flagyl”) to stop diarrhoea. It is wrong and dangerous.
• Ask your doctor for questions and explanations on drugs and treatment you are receiving
• Always read the label on drugs
• Educate everyone you know to stop antibiotic abuse