Antibiotics, also known as miracle drugs, are undoubtedly saving tons of lives every year. However, as the famous proverb goes, every coin has two sides.
Similarly, this medical miracle is no different, and with time, they are posing a grave threat to public health. And the less effective they become, the more difficult it will be to stave off infections.
In fact, the World Health Organization (WHO) has already warned that antibiotic resistance could render our most powerful antibiotics completely ineffective. Ultimately, turning routine infections into life-threatening ones.
Scary, right?
However, don’t lose hope just yet. Follow the top eight ways to deal with antibiotic resistance, as detailed below, and you will know how to take a proactive stance against the global health threat.
1. Explore the Alternative Treatments
Although antibiotics are superheroes in their own right, it’s best to have a few alternatives on hand. This does not mean that you must ditch antibiotics altogether. It’s just best to opt for alternative treatments if they can get the job done just as well.
As a result, you will not be overloading your system with antibiotics.
And guess what? You can easily discover these alternatives through a free clinical trial database. These trials are testing grounds for scientists and doctors to research and experiment with new treatments like probiotics (good bacteria that battle the bad bacteria), phage therapy (viruses that attack the bacteria), and certain kinds of herbs.
2. Complete Your Antibiotic Course
Suppose there is an ongoing battle (your sickness) that you need to fight off and win. You send in your best troops, but instead of completing the battle, you ask them to leave the battlefield midway. The invaders regroup and obviously come back stronger to try and defeat your army. The same thing happens when you don’t complete your antibiotic course.
Many of us stop taking our prescribed antibiotic medications once we start feeling better. We think that our body has completely recovered, so why take more pills?
This is where things start going downhill.
Because we never completed our treatment, the surviving bad bacteria become resistant to the antibiotics and learn to defeat your immune system.
Therefore, it’s important to always follow your doctor’s instructions and stick to your prescription, finishing the entire antibiotic course. Doing so will ensure that there are no more traces of the bad bacteria in your body.
3. Practice Good Hygiene
Practicing good hygiene is the first line of defense against antibiotic resistance. After all, if you keep yourself clean and free from harmful bacteria, then how will they attack you in the first place?
So, make sure to wash your hands properly and cover your mouth when you feel the urge to cough or sneeze. These simple maneuvers can go a long way in keeping e germs at bay, and most importantly, they will decrease the need for antibiotics.
4. Don’t Take Antibiotics Unnecessarily
Let’s say you caught a cold and have a runny nose that just won’t go away. As a result, you might think that you need antibiotics from your doctor, hoping for a quick fix.
Here’s the catch: antibiotics are made to fight off bacterial infections. Meaning, they are totally powerless when it comes to viruses, like the common cold. Therefore, it’s important to only take antibiotics when absolutely necessary.
Just because you want a quick recovery doesn’t mean antibiotics are the answer.. Besides, every time you take them, you will be making the bad bacteria stronger and the antibiotics less effective in the long run.
How can you avoid this situation?
Well, the next time you are feeling sick, let your doctor decide if antibiotics are really necessary or not, depending on your health condition.
5. Get Vaccinated
Getting vaccinated works like a protective shield against infections, ultimately reducing the need for antibiotics.
How do they do this?
Vaccines train your immune system to detect and battle off particular pathogens. So, whenever you are vaccinated against diseases, such as the flu, pneumonia, or f meningitis, your body will be ready to fight and prevent these pathogens from infecting you in the first place.
This will shorten your illness and will help you fight off the infection, rather than solely relying on antibiotics. Plus, when a large portion of the population gets vaccinated, it becomes pretty hard for the diseases to spread. In other words, vaccines are like a superhero capes for our immune system.
6. Avoid Antibacterial Products
Antibacterial products?
Yes, you are seeing this right.
Nowadays, there are several kinds of hand soap and cleaning agents that are available in the market and claim to eradicate 99.9% of germs.
We all see ads like this every then and now. You may not believe it, but antibacterial products play an important role in antibiotic resistance.
This kind of product mainly contains triclosan and triclocarban, which are quite similar to antibiotics. Overusing these compounds can lead to the growth of superbugs that are resistant to antibiotics.
These superbugs then move into your environment, ultimately posing a risk to public health.
To avoid this, opt for regular soap when washing your hands. Not only will it clean your hands properly, but it will also discourage the production of superbugs.
7. Practice Safe Food Handling
Another contributing factor to antibiotic resistance is mishandling food.
Contaminated meat and produce can contain a good amount of antibiotic-resistant bacteria. If you are not careful, they can end up on your plate. Whenever you are in the kitchen, make sure to properly clean your space and continuously wash your hands and utensils while preparing food.
After, cook each item for long enough and at a high enough heat that it kills any lurking bacteria. Also, make sure to use separate cutting boards and knives for meats and vegetables. Doing so will avoid the chances of any cross-contamination.
8. Public Awareness Campaigns
he ultimate goal is to inform, educate, and empower people. As we all know, people have an easier time remembering information when they see something impressive, unique, or something that relates to them.
So, if you can grab people’s attention, you can help inform lots of individuals who will eventually make smarter decisions about antibiotics.
Wrapping Up
There you have it – the top eight ways to deal with antibiotic resistance.
Antibiotic resistance may seem like a frightening challenge, but with the right information and steps, you can certainly help mitigate this global health threat.
After all, it is not just about personal health, it’s about maintaining antibiotic use for future generations.
Time to make a difference!
