Use and Abuse of Antibiotics

It is vitally important that we understand the mistakes we have made with antibiotics in the past so that these errors will not be repeated in the future. We need to be aware of where we have gone wrong and why.

Antibiotics are often prescribed for viral infections, such as colds, flu, glandular fever, herpes infections, and gastroenteritis. However, antibiotics have no role to play in the treatment of viral infections, as they neither kill nor stop the multiplication of viruses. Sometimes a viral infection can weaken the immune system, particularly in certain "at-risk" groups like the elderly, the very young, and post-surgery or other trauma patients. As a result, a viral infection may sometimes lead to the development of a secondary bacterial infection. It is this secondary bacterial infection that is often the reason why antibiotics are prescribed to patients with viral infections. Surely it would make more sense to wait to see if a bacterial infection develops and, if concerned, to boost the immunity of the person at risk first with natural means. Antibiotics should be used only if absolutely necessary in the prevention of a secondary bacterial infection.

In very simple terms, bacteria can be described as single celled organisms. They have a cell wall and a plasma membrane, and they contain genetic material. Antibiotics can kill bacteria by damaging different parts of the bacterial cell (for example, penicillin damages the cell wall).

Viruses are not living cells. They have no cell wall and no plasma membrane. They are not able to carry out chemical reactions; therefore, they cannot reproduce or multiply by themselves. As viruses do not contain structures that antibiotics can attack, these drugs are useless against viruses. Now you can understand why antibiotics are effective in the treatment of infections caused by bacteria, yet ineffective in the treatment of viral infections.

Antibiotics are also prescribed for relatively minor infections that could be treated with simpler methods. Very often an infection requires no treatment at all, as your body will fight the infection on its own. But, if necessary, this fight can be assisted by natural means. It is important to let your body fight an infection, since this will allow you to build up a natural resistance to that particular infection. Only when the body is clearly not winning the battle should one intervene. Remember also, that many antibiotics do not kill bacteria outright as is commonly believed, they only stop their growth. Your immune system must do the rest.

Antibiotics are highly effective in treating bacterial infections. Unfortunately, they are being prescribed and taken far too carelessly. Patients often place pressure on their doctors to prescribe antibiotics; and the physicians, who should know better, are all too eager to comply; even when the cause of their patient's complaint has no relation to a bacterial infection. This carelessness, on the part of both doctor and patient, is the primary cause of the phenomenon of bacterial resistance that is now rendering antibiotics useless.

Antibiotics are potentially life-saving drugs. They represent a wonderful advance in medical science. When they first came on the scene, it was thought that the scourge of infectious disease would be gone forever and that humankind could live in a virtually infection-free world.

The truth has turned out to be rather different. Antibiotics are now being rendered useless by the very bacteria they were intended to destroy. Bacterial resistance is developing at an alarming rate. In fact, many hospital-based doctors are deeply concerned about the future.

Doctors throughout Europe have also warned about the alarming increase in bacterial resistance to antibiotics and have urged general practitioners to be much more cautious in the way they prescribe antibiotic drugs. You, as a potential patient, can assist your doctor by discussing the alternatives with him/her and by asking for natural medicines.

The frightening truth of the matter is that the misuse of antibiotics has become a major public health hazard, and in the very near future, common infections may not respond to antibiotic treatment at all. Because of this overuse and abuse of antibiotics, we have lost sight of the fact that nature has its own methods of fighting back-producing multiresistant strains of bacteria. Ironically, it is to nature and natural medicine that we must look for a way out of this predicament.

The dangers of excessive antibiotic use

Overuse of antibiotics can cause many problems. Their use may even cause life-threatening problems for some.

If antibiotics, such as penicillin, are used inappropriately or for a too short period of time, bacteria can develop resistance to them. Resistant strains are then able to counteract the effects of penicillin when they next come into contact with it. In this way, the drug begins to become ineffective. When many types of bacteria start to develop resistance to a drug, the drug begins to become useless. As a result of this, more powerful antibiotics have to be synthesized and manufactured. However, the pace at which bacterial resistance is developing is much faster than the pace at which drug companies are able to produce new antibiotics.

Because of the overuse of antibiotics, allergic reactions to these drugs are increasingly common. It used to be that only 5 to 10 percent of people developed allergic reactions to antibiotics, mainly penicillin. Now, as more and more individuals are exposed to antibiotics more and more often, increasing numbers of people are developing allergic reactions to the drugs. These allergic reactions can range from a skin rash to edema (tissue swelling), to anaphylactic reactions, including bronchospasm (constriction of the airways) and shock. These reactions are not limited to the use of the penicillin group of antibiotics, either. They may occur also as a result of the use of the cephalosporins and tetracyclines.

Antibiotics such as tetracycline and amoxicillin can disturb the intestinal bacteria, especially the "good," healthy bacteria, such as Lactobacillus acidophilus and Bifidobacterium bifidus. This disruption can lead to intestinal problems, such as diarrhea, flatulence, and abdominal distention (bloating). There is now evidence to suggest that disturbances of the intestinal bacteria may play a part in the development of bowel disorders, such as ulcerative colitis and cancer of the colon.
Another problem that can result from the disturbances of intestinal bacteria is the overgrowth of yeast and fungi in the bowel, which leads to intestinal candidiasis. This is now a major problem in the Western world and coincides with the overuse of antibiotics. Candidiasis used to be a disease seen only in people whose immunity was compromised, for example, in babies whose immunity is still developing, in the elderly whose immunity is in decline, and in patients whose immunity has been suppressed for some reason, such as the long-term use of steroids. In the 1990s, intestinal candidiasis is affecting all age groups and all types of people. It suggests that people's immunity is threatened.

Antibiotics may also have a suppressive effect on the immune system. Certain antibiotics, including tetracycline and the sulfonamides, can inhibit the activity of the white blood cells, which engulf and destroy bacteria. Other antibiotics are known to inhibit antibody production, thus lowering immunity. Antibiotics have also been shown to increase the likelihood of recurrent infections. Studies published in 1974 and more recently in 1991 have shown that children with earaches who received antibiotics, especially in the first few days, were much more likely to develop recurrent ear problems than those in whom treatment was delayed or to whom a placebo was given. In conventional medical circles, it is now widely accepted that doctors should either delay treatment of earaches or not treat them at all.
This documentation supports other evidence that shows that antibiotics can indeed suppress one's natural immune response to an infection and can set up a situation in which the infection recurs.

The dangers of the use of specific antibiotics

In addition to the general problems that overuse of antibiotics may cause, such as bacterial resistance and allergic reactions, the use of certain individual antibiotics can also be dangerous due to their specific actions in the body.

It is not uncommon for chloramphenicol to reduce the white blood cell count, particularly the type of white cell that fights bacteria invading the body-granulocytes. In rare cases-approximately one in 100,000 - it can cause death by suppressing bone marrow function. It has been taken off the market in Europe and North America, although it is still used in many African countries.

There are several tetracyclines, including demeclocycline, doxycycline, minocycline, oxytetracycline, and tetracycline. They can damage the growing bones and teeth of fetuses and children below the age of seven. Such reactions occur because tetracyclines bind to calcium phosphate, thus allowing the drug to be absorbed by bones and teeth. This damages the dental enamel of the tooth with pitting, causes yellow /brown discoloration of the teeth, and increases susceptibility to dental cavities.
Tetracyclines are known to decrease the levels of some of the B vitamins in the body by disturbing their absorption in the bowel. They can also disturb the bacterial flora of the bowel. In addition, tetracyclines can cause diarrhea, especially after prolonged use. Less commonly, they can increase the pressure around the brain in a condition called benign intracranial hypertension.
The tetracyclines are potentially quite damaging antibiotics. They are often prescribed for the long-term treatment of teenage acne and are used for three to six months, and in some cases twelve months.

Included in this group of antibiotics is the anti-tuberculosis drug streptomycin, as well as gentamicin, kanamycin, tobramycin, neomycin, and amikacin. They are commonly used to treat infections where the invading bacteria cause urinary tract infections, peritonitis, and wound infections after bowel surgery. This particular group of antibiotics is quite toxic, as the drugs it contains can cause damage to the auditory nerve and so lead to deafness. The drugs in this group are also capable of damaging the kidneys and causing skin rashes and drug-induced fevers.

Sulfonamides include sulfacytine, sulfadiazine, sulfamethiazole, sulfamethoxazole, and sulfisoxazole. They can cause some serious side effects, including allergic reactions of many kinds (such as skin rash, fever, hepatitis, low white cell count, and aplastic anemia), diarrhea, and the formation of crystals in the urine. Sulfonamides are also known to cause pancreatitis and diabetes mellitus. Less serious side effects include malaise, headache, nausea, and vomiting, but these are usually transient.

Antibiotic use precautions

Sometimes it may be necessary to take antibiotics. However, there are a number of steps you can follow to offset the negative effects of antibiotics and to maximize their effectiveness.

• Take live yogurt or other bacterial supplements, such as acidophilus capsules, with the antibiotic to prevent damage to the intestinal bacteria, which are important for a healthy bowel. When taking tetracyclines, however, be sure to use acidophilus capsules instead of yogurt because tetracyclines can bind to the calcium in dairy products, inhibiting calcium's absorption across the intestinal wall into the bloodstream.
• Use an immune booster to assist your body's immune response to the infection, as there is some evidence that suggests that antibiotics can suppress different parts of the immune system.
• Take vitamin C along with an antibiotic, as vitamin C is known to increase the blood levels of certain antibiotics, thus making them more effective. Recommended dose: 2,000 to 3,000 milligrams daily.
• Take the antibiotic for the entire prescribed period, as stopping before the course has been completed will encourage the development of bacterial resistance and make a recurrence of the disease more difficult to treat.
• Insist on knowing all of the side effects before agreeing to use an antibiotic. Your doctor or pharmacist should be able to assist you in this regard.

Antibiotics should be used as the last resort, not the first. If the measures fail, there may then be a need for antibiotics. In this way, antibiotics will become the exception rather than the rule and bacterial resistance will become less of a problem.