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Overuse of Antibiotics
Stop buying soaps, handwipes and cleaning agents whose vendors lure you with the label "antibacterial"
Reading a recent issue of Public Citizen's excellent Health Letter titled "Know When Antibiotics Work," I recalled the recent tragic loss of a healthy history professor who was rushed to a fine urban hospital, with a leading infectious disease specialist by his side. No antibiotics could treat his mysterious "superbug." He died in 36 hours.
Wrongful or overuse of antibiotics has a perverse effect-causing the kinds of bacteria that these drugs can no longer destroy. The World Health Organization has cited antibiotic resistance as one of the three most serious public health threats of the 21st century.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes that just in hospitals, where between 5 and 10 percent of all patients develop an infection, about 90,000 of these patients die each year as a result of their infection. This toll is up from 13,300 patient deaths in 1992. Some percentage of these people have problems because of antibiotic resistance.
No matter how many national and global public health organizations warn about this silent, deadly epidemic, no matter how many official recognitions and definition of the problems and demands for local and international action, the fatality toll and the economic costs keep growing.
As Dr. Sidney Wolfe, editor of the Health Letter says: "We've known about this problem for and the needed solutions for well over 30 years but almost nothing is being done about it!" The drug companies keep pushing these drugs while investing too little in truly new antibiotics that can overtake resistant bacteria. Too many doctors still prescribe antibiotics for viral infections that should not be treated with antibiotics. They don't work on viruses. These include, says Dr. Wolfe, "colds, flu-in the absence of bacterial complications, most coughs and bronchitis, sore throats (except those resulting from strep throat) and some ear infections.
Doctors say that patients demand antibiotics-its part of the culture. But Doctors should be there to inform patients in those instances when antibiotics are inappropriate.
The CDC states that "many infectious diseases are increasingly difficult to treat because of antimicrobial-resistant organisms, including HIV infection, staphylococcal infection, tuberculosis, influenza, gonorrhea, candida infection and malaria."
Dr. Wolfe writes that "drug resistant infections also spread in the community at large. Examples include drug-resistant pneumonias, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and skin and soft tissue infections."
Let us pause for a puzzling question. How many elected representatives, whose chore they say is America's safety, spend any time on this devastating taking of lives because of preventable antibiotic resistant infections, compared to the daily focus on terrorism and the trillions of dollars spent on arms, surveillance, searching of tens of millions of Americans (at airports, for example) and sending soldiers all over the world to kill and be killed?
"Smart use of antibiotics," says Dr. Wolfe, "is the key to controlling the spread of resistance. Too many types of bacteria have become stronger and less responsive to antibiotic treatment when it is really needed. These antibiotic resistant bacteria can quickly spread to family members, schoolmates and co-workers-threatening the community with a new strain of infectious diseases that is more difficult to cure and more expensive to treat."
The veterinary medical community as well is showing a growing concern of too many antibiotics in domesticated animals which enter the human food supply.
"Repeated and improper uses of antibiotics are primary causes of the increase in drug-resistant bacteria," says the Public Citizen Health Letter, adding that bacteria that survive an antibiotic change so as to "neutralize or escape the effect of the antibiotic" then multiply rapidly.
There are lots to be done by many participants in the production, prescription, sale and use of these drugs. You can start by questioning your doctor and not buying soaps, handwipes and cleaning agents whose vendors lure you with the label "antibacterial."
For more about what you can do, visit citizen.org/hrg.
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100 Comments so far
Show AllAh, ThomasJefferson talking crap out of his ass again, after rambling around without knowledge on population growth.
"Both the AMA and the New England Journal of Medicine are physician organizations who have advocated for thirty years "Five servings of raw fruits and vegetables a day". The only reason doctors don't lecture on proper nutrition in the clinic is because Doctors are under the gun of big HMO's not to spend more than a few minutes with each patient. "
Wrong. The AMA has advocated for 30 years that dietary fat is evil, don't eat fat, and protein is not necessary, just eat more rice and bread and pasta. It took decades for them to admit that their prescriptions of more carbohydrates, more, more, more more bread, more rice, might just be wrong, and might have contributed to the increasing rates of type 2 diabetes. It wasn't that long ago that the idiots claimed that eating eggs would kill you.
"The problem of diabetes was rare in the US until food processing monopolies black-balled small producers who wouldn't put their poisons like hydrogenated oils and high fructose corn syrup in everything. Indeed it's so bad now, that a citizen can't find anything at all healthful in a big-chain grocery store since all the produce is genetically altered, pesticide leaching, "roundup ready" seed stock. Cancer is in the cards for anyone who keeps eating big "pretty" produce with no bugs or black spots. In studies with rats, about a third of them developed chromosome damage fed on a high dosage GMO diet."
Hint, there is more to the world than the US. Type 2 diabetes is increasing in a whole bunch of wealthy / wealthish countries, including ones where mega corporations do not necessary have much presence, where people do not use HFCS.
Another hint: go take some basic science classes, bone up on insulin, glucagon, blood sugar, the pancreas. Otherwise you just sound like a loudmouthed fool who doesn't even understand the most basic of human anatomy and physiology.
"But go ahead, pretend that shareholder and CEO return are not job number one at BIG AG! When faced with offering long shelf-life or nutrition, pretend they will have your best interest at heart. Or, be smart and ask yourself when was the last time you bit into a worm eating an apple? "
Where pray tell, did I pretend this? You not only need lessons in basic anatomy and physiology, you also need basic lessons in reading comprehension. As usual, you ramble, and ramble, attacking strawmen, unable to form a coherent argument.
rfloh,
You are a real piece of work!
I think you are confusing propaganda you read in the popular press distributed by the government's counsel on health that promoted the phony food pyramid advocating pasta and bread as the bulk of dietary intake. That was a government-sponsored corporate food pyramid you were fixating on, whilst you never bothered to read medical journals which advocated fruits and vegetables.
The AMA had dozens of publications that did not advocate the government line. I have copies of "The Aviation Medical Bulletin" from 1981-1985 which advocated eating a majority of fruits and vegetables as the bulk of consumption in order to maintain a robust immune system. Their source was the New England Journal of Medicine.
You eternal-growth corporate drones think nothing's wrong with an exploding human population pumped up on junk food. The North pole melts and you think it won't affect global weather and, in turn, food supply, and in turn: individual human health. You call it rambling, since your mind can't make advanced correlations at the college level.
Here rfloh said:
"Hint, there is more to the world than the US. Type 2 diabetes is increasing in a whole bunch of wealthy / wealthish countries, including ones where mega corporations do not necessary have much presence, where people do not use HFCS."
Name one "wealthish" country (that's not a word, Oh self-proclaimed Scholar!) where "corporations do not necessary (sic) have much presence..."
Great grammer! The primer that rolls off your keyboard rfloh, betrays a serious lack of education. Where did you go to school anyway? Texas?
I think you should seriously consider trying to get your tuition back!
TJ
There is no such thing as any "bacteria gene that leaches pesticide" in apples.
There are no worms in apples because of the way we handle the coddling moth, which lays it eggs in apples and causes worms. University researchers isolated the pheromone that the moths use to attract one another in mating. Small amounts of that molecule released in the orchard confuses the moths and prevents them from mating, therefore no eggs, hence no worms.
Two Americas January 26th, 2011 11:24 am said:
"There is no such thing as any "bacteria gene that leaches pesticide" in apples."
TJ says:
"Two Americas", when I use Google and search "bt use in apple orchards" I get thousands of farmers and industry incidences using it on Apple Orchards all over the world.
So, you are completely wrong that "there is no such thing." Bt is used in place of conventionally sprayed pesticides and it works to kill the codding moth by inserting a bacteria gene genetically spliced into the dna of the crop. Developed first on corn and tomatoes, now it appears to be used on just about everything, whether approved or not.
http://www.google.com.ph/
#hl=en&biw=1016&bih=586&q=
bt+use+in+apple+orchards&aq=
f&aqi=&aql=&oq=&fp=
10785dcaf6fea05a
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a common soil bacterium that produces crystals containing proteins that are toxic to certain insects.
[For background: The first GM food product to receive regulatory approval, in 1990, was chymosin, an enzyme produced by genetically engineered bacteria.
It replaces calf rennet in cheese-making and is now used in 60% of all cheese manufactured. Its benefits include increased purity, a reliable supply, a 50% cost reduction, and high cheese-yield efficiency.]
To be truly educated in unlabeled Trans-genetic crops read Industry Watchdog Jeremy Rifkin's "The Biotech Century" c. 2000, which details just how wild the abuses were with chemical companies who took over our food production at the turn of the century. It is still largely unregulated as the FDA rubber-stamped everything that DOWn, monINSANEto, DupUnt etc wanted to cook up in their Franken-Food Laboratories.
No surprise that Leukemia is way up in the US now.
TJ
You are extremely confused and you are confusing others.
GMO experiments and testing are being done on fruit, yes. I strongly oppose that.
But there is not Bt in apples being commercially produced now, so no people will not be ingesting pesticide in apples as you claimed. The links to the use of Bt in (organic) orchards in Europe refer to a different issue entirely.
For those not knowledgeable about this, and liable to be confused by the other poster, Bt is bacillus thuringiensus, a commonly occurring bacteria that lives in the soil. It exudes a chemical that binds the intestines of lepidoptera larvae - caterpillars. It has long been used as a safe control for pests on farms, especially on organic farms.
"Bt corn" (and soy and other crops) is GMO - the splicing of genes from that bacteria into food crops. I oppose that.
Are the American people - of all political persuasions and opinions - losing their minds? How can you oppose GMO when you don't know what you are talking about? Why would anyone attack a knowledgeable opponent of GMO and how misinformed and confused and blinded by emotionalism and fanaticism must they be in order to be unable to distinguish friend from foe, and go of on some aggressive attack against a knowledgeable person? I personally know thousands of small apple growers. There are no GMO apples being grown. Of course, it can change quickly. But let's be knowledgeable and intelligent in out opposition to that. Is that too much to ask?
"Two Americas",
You do not appear to me to be "a knowledgeable opponent of GMO". You appear to be a delusional apologist for Big Ag. Claiming that no orchard farmer out of thousands would use GMO bt on Apples is simply unbelievable.
But first you seemed to claim only "phermones" were used. Then, you changed you story to admit that Bt was used on Apple orchards.
You said:
"There is no such thing as any "bacteria gene that leaches pesticide" in apples.
There are no worms in apples because of the way we handle the coddling moth, which lays it eggs in apples and causes worms. University researchers isolated the pheromone that the moths use to attract one another in mating. Small amounts of that molecule released in the orchard confuses the moths and prevents them from mating, therefore no eggs, hence no worms." UNQUOTE
I provided thousands of examples where farmers were using Bt, GMO in their orchards.
Here is National Geographic's report on modifying Apples:
Genetic engineers can pull a desired gene from virtually any living organism and insert it into virtually any other organism. They can put a rat gene into lettuce to make a plant that produces vitamin C or splice genes from the cecropia moth into apple plants, offering protection from fire blight, a bacterial disease that damages apples and pears. The purpose is the same: to insert a gene or genes from a donor organism carrying a desired trait into an organism that does not have the trait.
The engineered organisms scientists produce by transferring genes between species are called transgenic. Several dozen transgenic food crops are currently on the market, among them varieties of corn, squash, canola, soybeans, and cotton, from which cottonseed oil is produced. Most of these crops are engineered to help farmers deal with age-old agriculture problems: weeds, insects, and disease.
Farmers spray herbicides to kill weeds. Biotech crops can carry special "tolerance" genes that help them withstand the spraying of chemicals that kill nearly every other kind of plant. Some biotech varieties make their own insecticide, thanks to a gene borrowed from a common soil bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt for short.
Bt genes code for toxins considered to be harmless to humans but lethal to certain insects, including the European corn borer, an insect that tunnels into cornstalks and ears, making it a bane of corn farmers. So effective is Bt that organic farmers have used it as a natural insecticide for decades, albeit sparingly. Corn borer caterpillars bite into the leaves, stems, or kernels of a Bt corn plant, the toxin attacks their digestive tracts, and they die within a few days.
Other food plants—squash and papaya, for instance—have been genetically engineered to resist diseases. Lately scientists have been experimenting with potatoes, modifying them with genes of bees and moths to protect the crops from potato blight fungus, and grapevines with silkworm genes to make the vines resistant to Pierce's disease, spread by insects.
With the new tools of genetic engineering, scientists have also created transgenic animals. Atlantic salmon grow more slowly during the winter, but engineered salmon, "souped-up" with modified growth-hormone genes from other fish, reach market size in about half the normal time. Scientists are also using biotechnology to insert genes into cows and sheep so that the animals will produce pharmaceuticals in their milk. None of these transgenic animals have yet entered the market.
Q: Are biotech foods safe for humans?
A: Yes, as far as we know.
"Risks exist everywhere in our food supply," points out Dean DellaPenna. "About a hundred people die each year from peanut allergies. With genetically engineered foods we minimize risks by doing rigorous testing."
According to Eric Sachs, a spokesperson for Monsanto, a leading developer of biotech products: "Transgenic products go through more testing than any of the other foods we eat. We screen for potential toxins and allergens. We monitor the levels of nutrients, proteins, and other components to see that the transgenic plants are substantially equivalent to traditional plants." UNQUOTE
TJ says:
But this monINSANEto plug is a complete lie. None of the original GMO products put to market were in any way tested any length of time for adverse human reaction. Quite the opposite was true. Anti-mold peanut genes were put into tomato crops without consumer's knowledge, with no labeling, and caused multiple deaths among those allergic to peanuts.
But I'm sure you know all this. You're extremely dishonest with CD readers to first pretend this isn't done, and then secondly, pretend that it doesn't do severe damage to the human population when GMO apples, with no black spots, are marketed as "Organic" just for farmers bottom lines.
Shame on you sir!
http://environment.nationalgeographic.com
/environment/global-warming/food-how-altered/
TJ
re: "Nope.
You are correct, but only partially. It isn't simply an excess of processed sugars. It is an excess of fast digesting carbohydrates, whether those carbs are processed sugars, or bread, or rice, or pasta, combined with sedentary lifestyles."
* * *
So, why am I only 'partially' correct?
As you yourself quoted me, I wrote: "An excess of processed sugars...as well as *processed carbohydrates* (i.e. fast digesting.... bread, rice, pasta – generally the bad varieties are white bread, white rice, refined semolina etc).
I also said:
"The process can actually be reversed with changes to diet and lifestyle (i.e. exercise)"
re: "It is simplistic to blame it all on mega-corporations. "
It may be simplistic, but it's correct.
Hear, hear -
"Basically what I propose is the exclusive dependence on real, independently funded science to guide our legislation, not science led by, or interpreted by the industries the studies are meant to expose. The revolving door appointment policies that occur between our gov't and our regulations institutions must also be closed. These are the first steps, but a systemic shift within the wider medical community must also occur, led by the much needed reform taking place within our public institutions."
Well done. Thank you.
This is what is needed in agriculture, as well.
Thanks much, TA.
As much as I see an important role for mytholgy to play within the scope of human experience and expression, its high time for real science, and a far more accurate view of biological realities to take the fore ahead of reassuring falsehoods that drive our corrupt economic models based on a solipsistic pursuit of profit.
Most every classroom in public schools has a large dispenser of antibacterial hand cleaner, and kids are encouraged to clean their hands frequently to avoid the spread of cold and flu germs. At one school where I worked, the principal even handed out sample size hand cleaner to every teacher during a staff meeting.
It's everywhere, and its a known hazard. Yet, because it reinforces a false sense of security, Americans buy it and believe in it.
Where are our regulatory agencies? Serving their constituents of course – The self-same corporations they are supposed to be exposing and regulating!
.
.
.
Ahhh, The American Dream...
Can I please wake up now?
Last year at the beginning of the year and during the whole swine flu scare we teachers were given a spray bottle with a label that just said "Cavicide" and nothing else. Having worked in the central sterilization department of a major hospital decontaminating equipment to process for sterilization and having taken a course in decontamination and sterilization I knew that no one would have any clue how to use the product. I asked our school nurse how to use it and I knew that her instructions were wrong. It took me a bit of work but I finally had the district send out the proper instructions. Even then, I doubt that anyone used it correctly as it requires a "soaking" period and most teachers wouldn't wait.
But, hey you have to do something to protect the students, eh???? (turn off sarcasm)
"But, hey you have to do something to protect the students, eh".
Putting aside questions of pedagogy, how about a fully funded and stable education system with plenty of exercise and nutritious meals freshly prepared by cooks on site? The fund-raising junkfood vending machines, the crappy sub-contracted meals, the stagnant water fountains and the lack of a fresh air exercise period during the day probably cause a lot of harm. Exercise in the schoolyard at my sons' schools was often suspended because of fear of injuries, like skinned knees. And bathrooms where the sinks do not work and there is often no ordinary soap available are chronic problems in NYC. Health solutions like that cost money, require attention and do not promote fear and panic and quicky solutions to problems, so they are falling into disuse.
I went to a public school that served only a low-income housing project, so it was no bastion of privilege. At the time the building was much cleaner and more operational than public schools today's children attend. We have lost our senses.
Joe
My highest admiration goes to our enduring National Treasure, Ralph Nader! The man is a gift that keeps on giving. Thankyou for being you!
If you live in a state where there are naturopath doctors, go! Your symptoms are not insurgents to be bombed with drugs, and thus buried deeper in your system to rebel in stronger more damaging ways. Your symtoms are your friends reminding you to treat your body in a more creative, intelligent manner. Our misguided allopathic medicine and militarized foreign policy are cut from the same cloth. Bottom line-MONEY!
Excellent post, many good points from you and many others on the thread. Great discussion. Thank you.
Good comments Salusa.
Joe
All of our attempts to be 100% safe have become counterproductive, whether in the field of terrorism, antibiotics or anti-bacterials around the house. Attention to safety has taken the form of obsessive neuroticism, bordering on insanity. We pay the price in so many ways in the dimunition of quality of life.
To combat a few possible terrorists, we have given up many our freedoms. To combat a few germs, we engage in a futile attempt to sanitize our homes, resulting in exposure to many chemicals, and clearing the biological niche for new and resistant forms. We insist on cheap meat, and so accept inhumane conditions for animals, and high levels of anti-biotics in our food, which ultimately favors new and resistant strains of bacteria. My community rejected this year's annual coat drive because of fear of bedbugs (a slight risk), thus leaving many without winter clothing (an assured danger). We have become sniveling, joyless cowards in so many ways.
All of you who have spoken of playing in dirt as children are on to something. Joy is important. Normal cleanliness allows a few bacteria or virus to survive, which triggers a normal immune system response and a healthier organism adapted to the real world. Nutrition, soap, clean drinking water and china dishware, and a few key immunizations historically provide most of the health protection we need.
Of course there always those who line up waiting to profit from our hysterias. 100% safety is an illusion; there are only risks and benefits to any activity. We need reason and balance. Let's be more brave and joyful. It is the safest way.
Joe
There's truth in what you say. We also need to account for the great increases in population numbers as a huge factor in spreading disease and engendering superbugs.
Well said, Joe.
George Carlin had a hilarious bit about America's fear of germs. Here is the link on youtube. If you haven't already seen this I think you will enjoy it a lot.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CnmMNdiCz_s
Mark
I hadn't seen it. That was funny. Thanks.
Joe
The overuse of antibiotics in this culture is a perfect example of what happens when you ONLY address the symptoms, while ignoring the root causes... the problem is alleviated, but not cured, and continues to get worse and worse.
About 11 years ago (when I was 23 and clueless about diet and health) I got a sinus infection. I had a rough winter that year and was getting sick all of the time. I knew I had a sinus infection and wanted to get antibiotics to cure the problem. So, I had to pay a $50 co-pay to see a doctor to confirm what I already knew. He wrote a prescription for the 'best' antibiotic because I thought my insurance covered all prescriptions. When I went to the pharmacy I found out that my insurance wouldn't cover the antibiotic and it would have cost me $125 out of pocket. So, I asked the pharmacist if I get get the cheaper generic choice. Well, in order to do that I had to go back to the doctor to get a new prescription.
At this point I was so pissed off with my insurance and the whole game you have to play to get a 'cure' that I decided to stop by the local organic whole foods store. I asked the guy if he knew of any alternative ways to cure a sinus infection and he introduced me to the Neti-Pot. I bought the Neti-pot for $12 and a bottle of distilled water and went home and tried it out. What you know!?! I was all better the next day, and just had to get over the minor cold symptoms that were left over.
Since this day I have never even thought about taking antibiotics. What I learned with this episode in my life was that there was alternatives out there, and - more importantly - that the root cause of my illness was poor diet, poor nutrition and a lack of rest when I was about to get sick. I have improved my diet and nutrition drastically and have rarely gotten sick throughout the past decade. When I do come down with something I generally recover in a few days.
On a side note: I have avoided all western pharmaceutical drugs until recently when I had an inner ear problem and they prescribed a form of steroids to help the swelling in my ear go down. I was at the mercy of the doctor's opinion of using western drugs because when your equilibrium goes down trying to do anything is impossible without getting nauseous. The western drug worked and I am thankful for that and can see some value in western medicine... but guess what? They still didn't treat the root cause of WHY my ear canal wouldn't drain. According to a alternative method... It turns out that taking Bee propolis and jumping on a small trampoline for 10 minutes once a week helps your lymphatic system stay healthy, which in turn has helped keep my ears healthy.
Yes, markpaddles. My grandmother would have us sniff warm salt water for a sinus infection. It works quite well. Remember the science experiment in which one celled animals shrink when in a salt solution? Why are such simple things ignored in favor of a $125 prescription?
Is bee propolis like tea tree honey? Tea tree honey turns out to be an effective treatment for MRSA. So there you have an example of how our overuse of controlling substances like pesticides and herbicides, and our killing of plants whose virtues have yet to be discovered (aka weeds) endangers bees, whose honey has so many benefits.
When you try to over-engineer nature, which has developed balances and relationships over millenia, you take a lot of risks. By giving up our common sense and traditions in favor of industrial and profit making solutions, we are often shooting ourselves in the foot.
Joe
Hey Joe,
"Why are such simple things ignored in favor of a $125 prescription?"
-- I'm assuming that's a rhetorical question. :-)
"Is bee propolis like tea tree honey?"
-- I have never heard of tea tree honey... so I looked it up and I like what I read about it. I think bee propolis is kind of similar in that it has anti-bacterial properties.
Bee propolis is a substance produced by the honey bee and used to seal the hive against predators and disease. It's made by collecting a sticky resinous substance collected from the buds and damaged bark of certain trees and mixing it with wax flakes, pollen and saliva.
It has been known to be high in anti-bacterial, anti-microbial and anti-inflammatory properties. Studies have shown that it stimulates the immune system by increasing the formation of antibodies to build our body resistance to diseases and by stimulating our body to release chemicals that protects us from cellular deterioration.
Jumping on a mini-trampoline helps increase the circulation of the lymph system which then helps detoxify your body. The lymph system relies on body movement , exercise, to circulate lymph around the body. The lymph system becomes stagnant and blocked without enough exercise which doesn't allow your body to efficiently dispose of toxins and bacteria. The mini-trampoline is an excellent way to get the lymph system working well.
Take care
Mark
Dr. Mehta is the one to thank for the Neti-Pot. It's one of many natural cures to common colds and it sure beats having to take Zitromax or whatever pharma pills they call it anymore.
The trick to these drugs is minimizing the use as much as possible and finding as many natural healing/medicine replacements as much as possible. We would ironically win that real war on drugs and yet the same drugs czars wouldn't want that war to end. It ironic that Big Pharma is the Halliburton on the "War on Drugs". The good news is that rising crude oil prices will make those pills more expensive and hopefully enough to encourage more natural medicine and healing. The bad news is that unless those crude oil prices stay up and until we're past the point of Peak Oil, winning it for the naturals will be a tough battle.
There's also a problem in the Southwest of people going across the border and buying antibiotics, allowing them to keep supplies on stock in their own medicine cabinets. Then, at the first sign of a sore throat or any other illness, they take meds. Try telling anyone that they shouldn't take medication unless they know for sure they have a bacterial infection. Most people refuse to listen because "you're not a doctor."
Antibiotics have been of great benefit to mankind, and are no doubt a big reason that life expectancy has increased. It's sad to see such an overuse of them, and the administering of them when they have no benefit or where alternative treatments are available. My sister died years ago from an aplastic anemia caused by Chloramphenicol, when it was not necessary. The doctor carelessly ignored the warning on the label, or thought it was a minor concern. That said, when my little girl recently acquired pneumonia, I did not hesitate to administer the antibiotic prescribed. Her condition improved almost immediately. Just remember to eat yogurt to replenish the 'good bacteria' in your gut.
So sorry about your sister.
And happy that your daughter was saved.
and kissing is the best way to get new healthy bacteria into the system
in fact, that may be the origin of of why we kiss
It's nice too.
Very sorry to read about your sister Chessgames56. Chloramphenicol is one of the first antibiotics discovered and certainly among the most toxic. It is rarely perscribed anymore for exactly that reason. I hope you sued the quack for what was clearly negligence. May he reincarnate as a cockroach!
Oh wow. Why would anyone prescribe chloramphenicol in this country? I'm a medical student, and they taught us that chloramphenicol is basically no longer prescribed in rich countries because it causes an aplastic anemia that is rare but irreversible and fatal. It's still used widely in poor countries because it's extremely cheap and good at killing bacteria, so I guess they're thinking that it's better to have fewer people die of aplastic anemia than to have more people die of infections, but why would anyone prescribe it to someone able to afford something better? The other day I happened to be idly flipping through the old pharmacology textbook of the attending physician who's currently supervising me, from when she went through medical school in the early 1980s, and even back then the chapter on chloramphenicol says do not use this drug.
I was happy to see this article. The man better be in good health cause that's pretty much all there is to potentially vote for come next election. Hope too many of you didn't get caught up in all the "hope" and "change" last time around. Democrats and Republicans are destroying America, if you don't see it by now you never will!
Nader totally missed the mark on this one - the biggest culprit that is leading to all these antibiotic resistant strains of bacteria is the use of antibiotics for the sub-therapeutic administration to livestock feed. About 70% of all antibiotics sold go into animals at low dose levels that don't kill the bacteria, but keep them down so the animals show increased weight gain. Nice discussion article here entitled:
Killing Us Softly: How Sub-Theraputic Dosing of Livestock Causes Drug-Resistant Bacteria in
Humans
http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1057&context=ealr
Indeed.
Maybe he will do another article about that topic.
Nader and beyond
Must admit Nader and Public Citizen are the vanguard of consumer protection but not here.
For all who dont know, Nader and his sidekick Sidney Wolfe of Public Citizen are at the forefront of persecuting doctors. Their publications are touting states who dish out the harshest actions against doctors. But No not against biofeed companies and bigPharma for pouring antibiotics indiscriminately in animal feed, polluting nearly all agricultural runoff, menacing rivers and streams.
This old rant against excessive antibiotic overuse is off the mark. A misplaced topic, which ties in with Pharma and Lawyer (read lier) groups demonizing doctors, but never themselves. Hey if you want to strengthen the doctors hand in refusing pesky patients demanding prescriptions, there is another way. Pass Tort reform and protect doctors. And here is what is missing in Naders piece. Cant get antibiotics from your doctor, hell go get em from your Nurse practitioner and physician assistant running their un-minded shop at Target. But dont lecture Nader. On this topic he has a closed mind.
"This old rant against excessive antibiotic overuse is off the mark."
Nonsense!
The understanding of the serious problems caused by overuse of antibiotics is well established science. Please cite some scientific sources for your assertion.
did you not catch jbrs link
http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1057&context=ealr
you are responding to "well established science" like the climate denier "science"
this antibiotic ruse is just a PR coverup to blame doctors and the public which does have some role but the real issue is agricultural misuse and pharma profits. Most of us are not impressed with this "science"
i am well aware of, speak against, do not dispute, the horrific problem of antibiotic overuse in industrialized meat production.
That DOES NOT MEAN that antibiotics use by humans is not also contributing to the development of antibiotic-resistant pathogens.
Just doing a quick internet search, the first penicillin-resistant staph was noted in 1947, just four years after penicillin went into mass production.
But the first note that sub-therapeutic doses of antibiotics led to increased growth in animals was also in 1947.
Drug-resistant bugs were already developing and had been identified by scientists prior to the widespread introduction of antibiotics in animal feeding. This development of drug-resistance was caused by human use of antibiotics.
Human use of antibiotics contributes to the development of drug-resistance in pathogens. This is straightforward science. This does NOT deny or attempt to refute the role of massive overuse of antibiotics in industrial meat production.
Sounds like you have other purposes than simply denouncing industrial ag. Is there a doctor in the house? Just asking.
talk to insider researchers, those who cannot talk in catchy soundbites
you cannot learn the facts and the science behind overblown rhetoric about human misuse by surfing the net
Ask any Nader zealots if they intend to join the uproar against thimerosal in vaccines, is there any science that debunks mercury is NOT a neurotoxin. Will Nader go after Pharma and his lawyer groups like he went after GM. Yeah, there is a rigorous campaign in the corp press suggesting this vaccine mercury preservative is safe. Far greater human impact accepting the pharma PR campaign than antibiotic misuse. But yet you may say "the science" suggests vaccines are safe.
Well, if you are arguing against what i MAY say, i'm pretty sure you will always win arguments against straw men.
But as to what i DO say, you are not offering any refutation.
your point is reasonable but the impact of human overuse is overblown. The problem of commercial industrial and ag misuse dwarfs all those self-medicated antibiotics. You cant be refuted on human misuse, but the emphasis on human misuse is exaggerated to hide the true culprits.
I agree human antibiotic misuse should be addressed but who better to address it than the clinicians you personally trust. Why second guess them, why do we demonize them. Why nit-pik an imperfect relationship between pesky patients and liability fragile docs. Overuse in mexico and 3world - problem yes ofcourse, but the only way to fix that would be better regulation and medical manpower. The human misuse problem ranks low among other far serious factors such as industrial misuse.
Triclosan, the antibacterial agent in soap is now embedded in human tissue and soil samples, long term consequences are unknown. Why are retailers allowed over the counter sale of topical antibiotic creams.
Thanks for the balanced reply. We are largely in agreement. My reaction was to the "off the mark" phrase which i took as utter dismissal of the significance of human use. In my initial contribution to this thread, i wrote:
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... Ralph only makes passing allusion to "domesticated animals" and is not at all clear as to whether he even understands the role of industrialized meat and dairy practices in this situation.
That said, it is also about the drugs people are taking. In many countries you can buy antibiotics over the counter without a prescription, and antibiotics for people are hugely over-prescribed in the US.
But industrialized meat and dairy are by far the largest over-users of antibiotics and generator of super-bugs...
80 million pounds for livestock use and only 3 million to treat human disease. Chinese seafood industry is using to get product to US uninfected. Think about that when eating shrimp cocktail out of the package. As in livestock, when humans consume, the competitive advantage for sugar usage goes to the human, not the bacteria in the gut dying from consumption of antibiotic-laced food. The result is an obesity epidemic in humans and livestock. Far worse than resistant strains infecting us all.
Just for my own edification, and because at the time I found the story interesting, did anyone notice the stories that Michael Jackson suffered from an advanced case of MSRA in the months before finally dying?
The reason I ask, is because I believe there is evidence of a subsequent cover-up of the true culprit in this case. If in fact Michael had contracted MSRA, it could explain his doctor's over reliance on pain medications to treat the untreatable symptoms such an infection would cause.
Why a cover-up at all? Because antibiotics are big-business. Same reason as usual. The word getting out that MSRA is commonplace in hospitals, might be the likely end result of repeated surgeries (not to mention plastic or elective surgery), or that there are legitimate reasons to doubt common medical practice, would be very damaging to the industry as a whole.
Is there an epidemic in America that the doctors and regulators at the FDA just aren't telling us about, and could Michael Jackson himself be one of its latest casualties?
For those not familiar, look up Michael Jackson, and MSRA. You will see that the reports were numerous – that is until his death. After MJ died, the MSRA reports disappeared across the board.
I'm usually good at smelling a genuine conspiracy, and something here didn't seem to add up. In this case, I'm simply interested in more evidence. Any takers on this?
On top of being a leader in reducing the use of antibiotics for humans with a fraction the infection rate of the US and MRSA virtually nonexistent, Norway has been at the forefront of reducing its use for livestock and fish farming.....results being increased and healthier production of all.
Don't eat animal products, don't drink un-filtered water, eat organic veggies/fruits/seeds/nuts/super foods wah~lah problem solved. (Works for me anyway....22 years not even a cold) AND you choke the wallets of those humans who are abusing the animals. Folks, it's a win~win situation.
And stay out of hospitals, got the worst case of bronchitis in my life from the guy hacking away in the bed beside my nephew when I went to visit. Haven't done antibiotics in fifteen years, not even for that doozey.
I, too, try to avoid hospital emergency rooms and urgent care, but sometimes have had no choice. Recently, I was diagnosed with a bad case of bronchitis when I went to Urgent care one weekend, after a chest X-Ray (which I make a point of not taking too many of, either), and an examination by one of the doctors on call, due to the fact that I felt feverish, and was hacking up nasty-looking, thick green sputum from my chest. It was found that I also had a temp of well over 101, and I was prescribed a seven-day course of antibiotics, due to the fact that I clearly had a bacterial infection growing in there.
When you feel a scratchy throat, pour 1/2 to 1 capfull of plain old 3% hyrdrogen peroxide into your ear. It will crackle and fizz and feel strange for a short time and then fade. I have done this many times, as recommended by Dr. Mercola, and the sore throat is gone by morning.
Medical ozone would take care of MRSA and any other deadly plagues of hospitals and doctors' offices. The technology is available now.
This is a crazy suggestion. Peroxide can burn you. It's a strong oxidizer and that bubbling is oxygen production as your cells attempt to destroy it enzymatically before the cells are oxidized. Your ear drum is a very thin membrane that can easily be damaged. Try soaking your finger in a cup of peroxide for an hour and watch it turn white. Now imagine your ear drum if the peroxide were trapped in your ear.
3% peroxide does not burn you. You can hold it in your mouth for some time and it loses its strength fairly quickly. It doesn't sit in your ear, it drains. Higher percentages will definitely burn.