Use of Antibiotics

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE 101: HOW ANTIBIOTIC MISUSE ON FACTORY FARMS CAN MAKE YOU SICK

 I found this article eye-opening. It does deliver the critical point that we are in danger because of the overuse of antibiotics. By using low doses in industrial farming, we primarily train bacterias to resist antibiotics. To me the process is somewhat similar to vaccination: we use small doses of microbes or viruses so our organism can fight them and build an immune response. 

After watching the module videos and reading the article, I came up to a conclusion that we are obsessed by the idea of "sterilizing" and killing microbes. Why did we become so overly concerned about infections and why do we use antimicrobial and antibacterial products so often? As it was stated in the article, we even overuse antibiotics in farming. We definitely need to reconsider the use of antibiotics. Where are our faith in nature and our immunity?

NEARBY LIVESTOCK MAY RAISE 'SUPERBUG' RISK

As a doctor, I know all the danger and health risks of Staphylococcus aureus. It can cause some illnesses from skin infections to pneumonia. The fact that we are getting close to the time when diseases caused by such a banal microbe will be untreatable is quite scary! 

SCIENTISTS DISCOVER THAT ANTIMICROBIAL WIPES AND SOAPS MAY BE MAKING YOU (AND SOCIETY) SICK

 This article I found simply terrific! It was twice more interesting for me to read because it is my chosen topic for the literature review. I agree that the wold became overly concerned about contamination. Most of us do not suffer from immunodeficient conditions and our organism can fight many infectious agents we contact on a daily basis. 

My currently pregnant sister in law is using antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizers all the time even when she's at home. She perfectly illustrates those "people who wipe the world around them", as it was stated in the article. In fact, we live in a world that is far from being sterile and there is no point of trying to kill all microbes. 

 

A REPORT ABOUT THE NEW PRACTICE OF INCORPORATING ANTIMICROBIALS INTO THE MANUFACTURE OF HOSPITAL FURNISHINGS

I hope we will find the way to reduce healthcare-associated infections. These infections are quite resistant to antibiotics and hardly treatable. Yet we do need to consider all the pros and cons of using new products with antimicrobial properties. What if by using it we can decrease the number of in-hospital infections? What if this is the way to reduce resistant infections?

 

Dancer, S. J. (2014). Controlling hospital-acquired infection: focus on the role of the environment and new technologies for decontamination. Clinical Microbiology Reviews, (4), 665. https://doi.org/10.1128/CMR.00020-14

Retrieved from https://cmr.asm.org/content/27/4/665