Whenever a doctor prescribes an antibiotic they will tell you to be sure and finish the whole prescription, even if you are feeling better. But why? And what about all those antibiotics that they give to, or spray on, animals on farms. Science Daily serves up a new study to explain the dilemma.
After you read the article add your thoughts in the comments section below.
ScienceDaily (2010-02-12) — A new study by biomedical engineers indicates that treating bacteria with levels of antibiotics insufficient to kill them produces germs that are cross-resistant to a wide range of antibiotics.
Read the full article here.
Update: After reading some of the comments below I thought I’d add a poll. Please vote after you read the above article.
Loading ...27 Responses to “Antibiotic Misuse Causes Superbugs”
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While this is interesting, it really isn’t anything new. I doubt that the creation of better antibiotics will help much considering that most of the mutations are due to human error, and not because there is a flaw in the antibiotics. I think that an increased awareness to how improperly prescribing or using the antibiotics is the only way to truly help prevent more “mutants.”
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I found this article interesting, for I did not know that not finishing perscriptions would cause adverse affects in this way. I always just figured that one should finish the perscriptions just in case the bacteria was still there, even if the symptoms were not. I agree with Monica on the point that the major error is the human error in not finishing there perscription. However, I found it ironic that doctors, who are supposed to be medical experts, perscribe low doses of antibiotics that can cause this negative affect. This information needs to be shown to more people so that everyone knows the effects of what not finishing a perscription can do. Also, I think that creating new antibiotics would be a good idea because then people who get drugs and are ignorant to the necessity of finishing the perscription won’t get the adverse repercussions. The new antibiotics will be more efficient; however, is it worth the money and research if the problem can be solved by increasing awareness?
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Interesting, I might agree with Monica here. I’m not sure that a ‘new’ antibiotic would do much good since life is always adapting. And while this is “nothing new” as far as advice goes, now there are studies to prove it.
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At the end of the article, it mentioned that they were working on making a new treatment where a lower dose of antibiotics would work without all the problems lower dose treatments have now. I think that would be really good if they could make that work. However, I think that it is more important for people to know that they should finish their prescription and why.
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I thought this article was cool because it reminded me of whenever i take medicine, usually antibiotics, i feel after i feel better i do not have to take it anymore, but i guess after reading this i was wrong. It was interesting to know that if the prescription is not fully taken and the bacteria is not killed, the bacteria can often mutate and become stronger and possibly resistant to some antibiotics. In respect to the idea to improve antibiotics so that it could prevent the emergence of multi-drug resistance and could allow a smaller dose to be taken and still kill the bacteria is a great one. It would help, but not “solve” the problem talked about in the article. If patients/users still do not take the full prescription than all the improvements pretty much mean nothing, cause the bacteria is not being fully destroyed. Letting patients/users know that by not finishing their prescription they are making things harder for themselves by allowing the bacteria to get stronger is a must.
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I found this article interesting and very informative. My doctors would always tell me to finish my prescriptions, but I never understood why.
In the article, Collins, Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator states the “need for tighter regulations on the use of antibiotics, especially in agriculture; for doctors to be more disciplined in their prescription of antibiotics; and for patients to be more disciplined in following their prescriptions.” I think that his statement pretty much sums up the solution right there.
Interestingly, the issue of farmers providing their agriculture with antibiotics in order to bring them to market sooner has been in the news a lot recently. The lower resistance of people to these antibiotics has caused many to become ill. It’s not new antibiotics that would change this, but a new way of thinking. That way, millions of people do not become infected.
I agree with what many others have said as well, that increased awareness (not ‘newer’ drugs) will solve the superbug problem.
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While it’s important to discuss the effects of antibiotics on our bodies the few times every year that we get sick, there is a much more important antibiotic issue that I feel is even more important. We are putting these same antibiotics into our bodies every single day, sick or otherwise, when we make certain food choices.
Since there are so many emotional connections to food in every culture, the discussion about where our food comes from is consistently ignored, but the weird, cruel and unnatural ways in which we raise animals in our country neccescitate that we pump ridiculously high levels of antibiotics into cows, chicken and pigs to simply keep them alive in such conditions.
Since people take in these types of antibiotics every day, sick or otherwise, I feel that the threat to human health lies much more with food producers in our country than with our doctors… which is why vegetarianism and buying organic are important choices that seriously need to catch on.
Also, I agree with the majority in that I can’t see more, stronger antibiotics solving this problem.
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I also found this article interesting because I always thought you just would still be sick if you did not finish your prescription. I never knew that you could be making in harder to treat future illnesses that you would get. I think that it is important for more people to become aware of this effect so they will be more diligent in taking their medication. However, I do not think that a new antibiotic will necessarily work because people will continue to stop taking their medication as soon as they feel better unless they know why they should continue to take it.
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This was definitely an interesting read because it was an article that anybody who has ever been sick can relate to. I know from my own experiences that, after a day or so of taking the prescribed antibiotics, I feel well enough that I can miss a treatment here and there. But, this article showed me that doing that isn’t exactly the best thing I can do for my own body. To think that I could become sick again with an even more resistant virus is mind blowing in a sense and made me realize I should probably complete those prescriptions from now on. Additionally, I think newer drugs could very well work, but only with the increased awareness among the people taking said drugs.
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This article really makes you think about all the antibiotics that doctors have given us over the years. It also shows how not everyone listens to their doctors and shows people that think they know enough to know when they should stop taking pills that they’ve gotten from their doctor really DON’T know what they’re talking about. This article also is really interesting because I think it shows what our next medical obstacle will be in the future: taking down the superbugs. It also shows that doctors should be specific in what they give patients so we can prevent these superbugs from running rampant.
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This was interesting article since I sometimes do not take all of the antibiotics since i start feeling better. It shocked me that I could be making it harder for me to get better by having more resistant bacterias. I do not think that new medications would help since majority of people do not take all of the antibiotics prescribed to them.
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I didn’t really find the article to be interesting but I do have some thoughts about it.
I don’t believe that by makinganitibiotics that will stop the infection’sself healing process will automaticaly take care of the problem. It just seems that many strong viruses seem to always have a way to get around substances that doctors and reseacher put in peoples bodies. I feel that many of the
problems that a person has with fighting off infections comes from their DNA.
I see a lot of the problem being human nature. I think that by making another drug when there is already a perfectly working one on the market is a waste of money. It doesn’t seem to be reasonable to basically cater so othersirresponsiblities. I feel if a person doesn’t have sense to listen to the
doctor concering their health then there is really no point in wasting others time.
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This article was very eye opening to me, now I understand why my doctor emphasizes that I should always finish my antibiotics even if I start to feel better. However I doubt that the new antibiotics will fix this problem because people will continue to ignore their doctors and stop their taking their medicines before they are supposed to, so unless people start listening to their doctors this problem will not be solved.
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I honestly don’t think that newer antibiotics will ultimately solve the problem mentioned in the article since the rapid reproduction of bacteria produces resistance over time to antibiotics due to mutations and genetic recombination. Even if scientists keep developing “new and improved” antibiotics, bacteria will continue to develop resistance to them because it is in their nature to adapt to these new challenges. I think the best thing to do, as mentioned in the article, is to regulate the use of antibiotics in order to slow this evolution.
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The article really just reinforced what I discussed with my doctor on my last checkup. We both agreed that people are becoming too dependent on medication and the consequence, proven in these studies, is that we become immune to these antibiotics. I have only been on an antibiotic once in my life and it was extremely effective; so no, I do not think “new and improved” antibiotics are going to solve this problem. I believe solving the problem stems from the cause of the infections, not making stronger medication (which put strain on our bodies the more we use them) to fight them. Obviously, we cannot avoid every infection; however, if we became more aware of what we eat and our lifestyles, maybe our immune systems wouldn’t be so poor. We constantly consume processed foods and our livestock and harvest products are loaded with antibiotics that we inevitably ingest everyday. Am I the only one that thinks we need to start going back to more natural, organic foods? Stronger, higher-dosage medications are not the answer. We need to become healthier people and not take the medications that we do have for granted.
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No, you are not the only one. We mostly know the answer to living a healthier life – it is actually doing it that is the difficult part. It is easier to let technology do it for us. On the other hand, advanced in technology in health-care and in farming have allowed us to save many lives and feed many more people. So the debate continues…
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I agree with Abbey completely. It is not really necessary to develop a new, stronger antibiotic. There will most likely always be a chance that the bacteria will mutate and build up a resistance to it. Instead of spending their time inventing a new drug, doctors should explain to all of their patients why it is so important to finish the prescription. They should also be sure to prescribe a high enough dosage, in order to not increase the problem they are trying to avoid.
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Part of the problem though is that it IS necessary to develop new antibiotics because there are some bacteria that we currently can’t stop. (or, at least, it is incredibly difficult) But I think it is what we DO with these new antibiotics that is important. We can’t use them indiscriminately, like we have with the ones that we currently have. Combine this with Olivia’s comments about living healthier and we might actually get some significant results.
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Wow. This clearly explains why I should take my antibiotics after I start to feel better. Now, I know why the bacteria can mutate so easily. They are not fully killed, but are only weakened, and are allowed a chance to survive and mutate. I feel that if the doctor were to fully explain the reason of why we must take the full dose of our antibiotics, more people would be willing to finish their doses and our world would be ridden of the annoying pests.
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I am very much in agreement with the others. I had heard of this vaguely before, but never looked into it. It truly does explain why I should continue taking my antibiotics even after it seem unnecessary. I personally believe rather than creating a new drug for the problem, researchers should really try to perfect the correct dosage and that doctors should really explain why one should continue taking their medication, and make sure they are doing just that.
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I agree with Mike on the fact that doctors should explain why it is necessary for thier patients to finish the prescribed medication. I will be the first one to admit that I rarely ever finish the whole bottle of pills. I’m not a big medicine type of person and so naturally I stopped taking medication once I “felt” better. This article provides insight as to why I should actually finish my prescription, as the bacteria is not fully killed, but are only weakened, if I stop the medication midway. Therefore I will make a conscious effort to finish all prescribed medication in the future. However, I believe doctors should make the effort to inform patients why it is important to follow the prescription. I never recall my doctor ever telling me that I should consume all the pills given.
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Many doctors have told me that it is important to finish prescribed antibiotics, so that a virus or bacteria is completely eliminated. I feel that this problem can not be solved with the creation of a new drug stronger drug, but with patients finishing there prescription. I know for a fact that all of the patients at the Christiana Care Hospital are provided with a complete instruction packet on how to take their medicine. Therefore I believing the problem is not the doctors, but the patients who most of the time stop their antibiotics when they feel health. Many patients do not realize how vital it is to complete there antibiotics, if a antibiotic is not completed the body may build up a resistance, which will make it more difficult to treat the virus or bacteria. Antibiotics are designed very well the only flaw is the method of intake, if a antibiotic could be administered in one simple dose (injection),we would not have to worry about creating a stronger drug.
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Interesting point – many times doctors DO explain these things to their patients but people have a tendency not to follow directions. As a teacher, I am painfully aware of this
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omg, I didn’t finish my antibiotics for my strep throat last year!!!! I’m gonna die. Monica and many others said something like “I think that an increased awareness to how improperly prescribing or using the antibiotics is the only way to truly help prevent more “mutants.”” seriously? How many times has “increasing awareness” worked. This is about bacteria, Living, mutating, and sometimes killing, organisms. Even with a couple people that don’t correctly take antibiotics, the bacteria will get stronger and will eventually take out large populations. There is no way for us to combat these mutations with correctly taking drugs or even making new ones. New drugs we create practically breed stronger bacteria that eventually we will not be able to fight off with anything. The last paragraph of the article is really scary. You start creating stuff that messes with DNA, you start creating stuff that messes with you. Maybe in the short term, newer antibiotics could provide time to think of some alternative method that could perhaps “solve” the problem. But this isn’t a solution and we could be far from one, especially considering there are bacteria and virus’ that have survived millions of years!
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Yowsers, ease up there cowboy. Probably the biggest problem with “increased awareness” is when there is another group who is espousing the opposite point of view. HIV in Africa comes to mind – some try to educate (increase awareness) while others spread wild rumors and conspiracy theories. I think most people are ‘on the same page’ with this one and that increased education could help – look what it has done for all of you from this article
. But you are right that these bacteria will continue to mutate – it is all about evolution. So we do need to look for a different approach to this problem, as you said. Any suggestions?
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Steven is right on many points about bacteria. Bacteria is a living, growing, organism that replicates through mitosis. Every division exponentially increases the amount of bacteria, and with no surprise, there are certainly going to be a few if not a lot of errors, which lead to mutations. These mutations cause the bacteria to technically be ‘weaker’ than the original bacteria, losing some type of capability. However, losing one specific capability allows this bacteria to survive in otherwise uninhabitable conditions. Taking antibiotics will be helpful to fend off unwanted bacteria, and taking the prescription to the end is wise. Saying that antibiotics is a panacea to all bacteria, however, is quite dangerous to believe. Antibiotics can only go so far until the bacteria begins to mutate. There is a saying when a superbug is around which makes sense in a weird kind of way, “If you are sick from a superbug, go eat some dirt.”
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Why do these mutations have to “cause the bacteria to technically be ‘weaker’?” Isn’t the whole point of evolution that some of these mutations make them ‘stronger’? They don’t have to lose an ability in order to gain an ability. And I’m still working on understanding your ‘saying’.
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