Excessive use of antibiotics and drug resistance

• May 2, 2024

If you are one of the people who take antibiotics at the slightest symptom of flu or burning in the throat and you do not see that they take effect immediately, it could be because of this:

A study from the University of Bristol (England) published in the British Medical Journal, ensures that patients who take antibiotics excessively can develop a drug resistance of up to one year, which would create a risk for them and the community when more serious treatments are needed.

As more antibiotics are indicated for coughs, influenza, or urinary tract infections, the bacteria become more resistant, in a kind of vicious circle. "

The effect is greater in the month immediately after treatment, but it clarifies that this could last up to a year, and the residual effect could be a trigger for high levels of resistance in the community.

Antibiotics in cancer

The study has shown that overuse of antibiotics in Europe, the United States and other wealthy regions is creating widespread resistance and threatening life-long treatments, from hip replacements and cancer therapies to intensive care.

This problem of antibiotic resistance is often ignored by specialists, despite the fact that 80% of the prescriptions come from family doctors.

Take into account that the more medications you are prescribed, the bacteria become more resistant. And the only way to turn that vicious circle into a virtuous one is to indicate them only when absolutely necessary.

Watch your health!

Video Medicine: What causes antibiotic resistance? - Kevin Wu (May 2024).