Antibiotic Resistance

Posted in: Healthy knowledge in huanying's Blog

Antibiotic drugs can save lives. But
some germs get so strong that they
can resist the drugs. This is called
resistance. The drugs don’t work
as well. Germs can even pass on
resistance to other germs.
Antibiotics normally work by killing
germs called bacteria. Or they
stop the bacteria from growing.
But sometimes not all of them are
stopped or killed. The strongest
ones are left to grow and spread. A
person can get sick again. This time
the germs are harder to kill.
The more often a person uses an
antibiotic, the more likely it is that
the germs will resist it. This can
make some diseases very hard to
control. It can make you sick longer
and require more doctor visits. You
may need to take drugs that are
even stronger.
Two main types of germs
Bacteria and viruses are the two
main types of germs. They cause
most illness. Antibiotics can kill
bacteria, but they do not work
against viruses.
Viruses cause:
• Colds • Coughs
• Sore throats • Flu
• Bronchitis • Sinus problems
• Ear infections

Bacteria live in drinking water, food,
and soil. They live in plants, animals,
and people. Most of them do not
hurt people. Some even help us
to digest food. But other bacteria
cause bad diseases like tuberculosis
(TB) and lyme disease.
Does this affect me?
If you have a virus, taking antibiotics
is not a good idea. Antibiotics
don’t work against viruses. The
medicine will not help you. It might
even harm you. Each time you take
one, you add to the chances that
bacteria in your body will be able to
resist them. Later that could make
you very sick. Finding the right
treatment could be a problem.
What common mistakes do
patients make?
• Patients ask for antibiotics they
don’t need. For example, they ask
for antibiotics to treat a cold.
• They don’t take antibiotics the
way the doctor says. For example,
they stop taking the drug before
all the pills are used. That can
leave the strongest germs to grow.
• They save antibiotics and