Introduction
Antibiotics are a class of drugs that are mostly used to treat infections caused by bacteria. Uncountable bacteria live in various parts the human body. These include the gut, skin, mouth and throats (Gelband et. al, 2015). Some of these bacteria are harmless. However, there are others that are pathogenic (disease causing) and can cause infections. These infections are known as bacterial infections and doctors prescribe antibiotics as mode of treatment.
Antibiotics were introduced in 1940 and since then they have been significant to modern medicine. The core role of antibiotics was to treat infections caused by bacteria. However, the roles of antibiotics were increased to preventing infection after surgical procedure, protecting cancer patients and people with compromised immune systems (Gelband et. al, 2015). The first antibiotic to be discovered was known as penicillin and it was discovered by a scientist known as Alexander Fleming. In his research, alexander discovered that penicillin produced a substance that was able to kill a species of bacteria known as Staphylococcus (Tan, 2014).
Antibiotic resistance has emerged due to overuse and misuse of antibiotics in the recent past thus; making it difficult for bacterial infections to be cleared. This resistance occurs as a result of new bacterial strains that cannot be cleared by use of antibiotics. Gelband et. al (2015), argue that antibiotic resistance is as a result of direct use of antibiotics. When large doses of antibiotics are used, there is a greater chance that antibiotic resistant bacteria will dominate. It has been revealed that the world wide increase in consumption of antibiotics is due to rising income and increased access to antibiotics (Gelband et. al, 2015).
Ways of developing more antibiotics are drying up whereas; new strains of bacteria develop daily due to misuse of antibiotics (MacGowan and Macnoughton, 2013). Overuse and misuse of antibiotics has resulted into a serious worldwide problem of antibiotic resistance. Scientists have revealed that bacterial infections are becoming difficult to treat due to evolving of new resistant bacteria (Tan, 2014). This implies that more deaths will be caused as a result of new bacterial infection. Therefore, medical practitioners need to exercise caution in order to curb this disaster before it is too late.
Background information
Antibiotics were invented to cure bacterial infection. They are a great invention because they are used by medical practitioners to save lives. However, overuse and misuse of antibiotics has led to development of new and dangerous bacterial infections that are difficult to treat. Antibiotic resistance is a worldwide problem and it is termed as very dangerous to human health. (Tan, 2014).
Studies reveal that there is a rapid emergence of resistant bacteria all over the world, hence making the efficacy of antibiotics to be lowered. Ventola (2015) states “other than misuse and overuse of antibiotics, lacks of new drug development by pharmaceutical industries also contribute to antibiotic resistance”. Reduced economic incentives and challenging regulatory requirements are reasons why there is lack of new drug development (Ventola, 2015). There are various bacteria strains that have become resistant to antibiotics and these include; strains that cause meningitis, sexually transmitted diseases, pneumonia, skin infections and respiratory tract infections. This explains why some infections such as respiratory tract infections recur after administration of several doses of antibiotics.
Tan (2014) explains, “Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial infections and not viral infections, therefore not effective in treating cold and flu. However, viral infections can turn into bacterial infections”. This has brought confusion amongst medical practitioners especially when the infection has no physical signs or symptoms. In this case the doctors just decide to prescribe antibiotics not being sure whether the antibiotics will clear the infection or not. This is the start of overuse and misuse of antibiotics among humans.
Antibiotics are not only used in saving people’s lives, they have also played a critical role in achieving major advances in medicine and surgery. Antibiotics have been successful in treating infections that are cause during chemotherapy and in patients who have chronic diseases such as diabetes, renal disease and rheumatoid. Antibiotics have also been used to treat infections that occur after complex surgeries such as organ transplant, cardiac surgery and joint replacements (Ventola, 2015).
Antibiotics are not good for people
Doctors have to reduce the dosage and use antibiotics properly because antibiotic resistance is making people sick. There is a danger due to the fact that there is an overuse of antibiotics by physicians. MacGowan and Macnoughton (2013), state; “that antimicrobial resistance is increasing yet ways of developing new antibiotics are diminishing. Over the years, the bacterial infections that were easily treated are becoming untreatable”.
The rapid emergence of resistant bacteria is occurring worldwide, thus Center for Disease Control and prevention (CDC) has classified several bacterial infections as presenting urgent and concerning threats, many of which are placing a substantial financial and clinical burden of the health care systems, patients and their families (Ventola 2015). In an article by Ventola (2015), it is stated that antibiotics were first prescribed to treat serious infections in 1940s. Penicillin was among the first antibiotics to be used on soldiers during World War II. It was successful in treating infections; however, resistance was discovered shortly thereafter. Antibiotic therapy was very useful until 21th when there were some changes that were made to the antibiotics.
Overuse of antibiotics is the major cause of antibiotic resistance. Research has revealed that viruses cause more infections than bacteria. However, medical practitioners prescribe antibiotics to treat any kind of infection without first trying to identify whether it is a viral or bacterial infection (Llor and Bjerrum, 2014). Most doctors prescribe antibiotics to help people. They do not pot into consideration the risk of antibiotic resistance arising. Some patients believe that antibiotics can treat any infection and that they can be used any time. Therefore, they ask the doctor to prescribe the antibiotics and the doctors give in to the patients demands thinking that they are helping the patient.
A study done by Pechere (2001) revealed that patients represent a significant source of antibiotic misuse in the society. Most common infections treated by antibiotics are respiratory tract infection. Some patients exaggerated their symptoms to get a prescription. Other patients were willing to take antibiotics even for conditions that were likely to occur from viral infections (Pechere, 2001). All these are risks for antibiotic resistance which makes antibiotics not good for people.
Overuse of antibiotics imply that bacteria around have increasingly been exposed to antibiotics. The overuse of antibiotics also destroys all bacteria whether they are causing harm or not. Bacteria are somehow clever and have understood that antibiotics work by killing them, hence have developed defense mechanisms to protect themselves from antibiotics (Tan, 2014). This results in antibiotic resistance. There are risks that have been associated with antibiotic overuse. These include; increase of more severe diseases, increased in mortality rate, increased antimicrobial resistance, increased healthcare costs and risk of health complications (Llor and Bjerrum, 2014).
On the other hand, antibiotics are good and they help to treat bacterial infections but only if properly used. Introduction of antibiotics into the medical field led to reduction of deaths that were caused from bacterial infections. Some of the infections that are treated using antibiotics include; respiratory tract infection, urinary tract infection and skin infections (Karen et. al, 2013). Antibiotics improved health care in modern medicine. Major surgical procedures such as organ transplant and joint replacement were made effective by introduction of antibiotics since antibiotics were used to prevent infections that might arise from surgical procedures.
There are different types of antibiotics and they treat different types of bacterial infection. Doctors sometimes use antibiotics to treat common cold and flu. However, this is not advisable since cold and flu are viral infections and cannot be cured using antibiotics. Other than saving lives, antibiotics have played a role in achieving major advances in medicine and surgery. They have also been useful in extending expected life spans by changing the outcome of bacterial infections (Ventola, 2015). However, they only help if used in the proper way and to treat the infections that they are intended to treat.
Penicillin is an antibiotic that was in invented in 1928 by Alexander Fleming. It is an effective antibiotic that can save lives and it was termed as most effective in the 20th century (Vlakovits, 2013). Its invention was a success in treating bacterial infections. Its use has been well documented in ancient Egypt as it was used to combat respiratory infections. The invention of penicillin was the beginning of improved health care since the bacterial infections that were initially difficult to treat were easily treated by penicillin. The effectiveness of penicillin is proof that antibiotics are good for people since they save lives by treating bacterial infections if properly used.
Ways of combating antibiotic resistance
This paper has outlined how antibiotics are not good for people and also how they are important to people. The negative aspects of antibiotics outweigh the positive aspects and this can be due to various factors. One of the factors that make antibiotics to be bad for people is because more people are using antibiotics than in the past 100 years. Nowadays antibiotics are easily available over the counter and one does not need and prescription to buy the medication. This is known as self-medication.
Eggleston et. al (2010), states that people often think that any infection can be treated using antibiotics thus the high usage of antibiotics. Antibiotic resistance is therefore attributed to behavior of numerous diverse individual consumers, patients, healthcare providers and distributors. Antibiotic resistance becomes a health issue when bacterial infections become less treatable or untreatable. According to Tan (2014), the problem of antibiotic resistance is coming to a point where when this useful class of medicine will be needed, it may not work effectively or it may not work at all.
Government agencies have collaborated with Food and Drug Agency (FDA) in order to come up with initiatives that help combat antibiotic resistance. The agency has come up with regulations that advice health care professionals to prescribe antibiotics only when clinically necessary. The regulations also encourage healthcare givers to counsel patients on proper use of antibiotics. FDA has also encouraged the development of new drugs, vaccines and improved tests for infectious diseases (Schizonberg, 2011).
There are some infections that disappear on their own and do not require ingestion of antibiotics. For instance, Pink eye (which is an infection that attacks the conjunctiva causing redness of the eye) can clear after a few days and does not need antibiotics. Use of antibiotics any time a person has a pink eye, can damage the immune system. There are also some infections that cannot be treated by antibiotics. These include skin infections such as eczema. Eczema is a skin condition that causes irritation and itching, thus taking antibiotics may not help relieve the itching. Therefore people are advised against using antibiotics to treat conditions that do not need antibiotic treatment.
Conclusion
There are some problems we need to focus on about antibiotics such as overuses, drug resistance and new drugs. These problems are interrelated because they are all dangerous to human health. Antibiotics are specifically used to treat infections caused by bacteria. They can have both negative and positive effects depending on how they are used. Research has shown that antibiotics are not good to people and it has also proved that they are good and save lives. However, the misuse and overuse of antibiotics has made antibiotics negative effects to outweigh the positive thus the argument of whether they are good for people or not. We have focused on reasons why antibiotics are not good for people.
Introduction of antibiotics to modern medicine was termed as successful due to the fact that antibiotics were able to cure bacterial infections. The core purpose of antibiotics is to treat and clear bacterial infections. However, patients and medical practitioners decided to misuse antibiotics. This misuse is one cause of antibiotic resistance and is one reason why antibiotics are not good for people. One of the way in which antibiotics are misused is through treating colds and flu. Colds and flu are viral infections and do not get cured by using antibiotics. Medical practitioners prescribe antibiotics to people with cold and flu with the hope that the antibiotics will work.
Misuse of antibiotics is also exhibited when doctors bow to the demands from patients and prescribe antibiotics. Some patients exaggerate their symptoms and plead with doctors to prescribe antibiotics. Since the doctors want to please the patients, they end up prescribing antibiotics when they are not really needed. Antibiotics are nowadays used by people more than the past years. This is attributed to the fact that antibiotics are easy to get over the counter without prescription. This is self- medication since no tests were done to confirm the presence of bacterial infection.
Improper use of antibiotics such as not completing a dose can lead to antibiotic resistance. Under dose causes bacteria to form a defense mechanism. This provides protection to the bacteria and antibiotics cannot destroy them. This is one of the reasons why some infections usually recur after a dosage of antibiotic. There are infections that do not require treatment by antibiotics. These include skin infections (such as eczema). The itching and irritation caused by eczema cannot be treated by antibiotics, thus using antibiotics for the wrong purpose compromises the immune system.
Antibiotic resistance is a major health problem worldwide and studies show that antibiotic resistance has led to increased mortality rates, recurrent of infections, compromised immune systems and high costs of treatment to the government, patient and family members. Although scientists argue that antibiotics are not good for people, they also agree that antibiotics are good for people and can save lives. For instance, antibiotics have been used to treat infections that were initially not easily treatable. Antibiotics have also been used to improve modern medicine such as treating infections that can occur after major surgical procedures. Antibiotics have also been used in cancer patients and in patients whose immune systems have been compromised.
Since the negative effects of antibiotics outweigh the benefits of antibiotics, we can conclude that true antibiotics are not good for people. All these put into considerations there are ways that have put forward to aid in combating antibiotic resistance. FDA is a body that has collaborated with government agencies and come up with regulations that can be practiced by both patients and healthcare givers. Some to these regulations include; encouraging medical practitioners to prescribe antibiotics only when it is clinically necessary. They are also encouraged to offer counseling to patients on how to use antibiotics and the effects of misusing and overusing antibiotics.
In summary, antibiotics are not safe for use nowadays; people overuse antibiotics and drug resistance is the most common problem. People want healthy lives but they become sick due to misuse of antibiotics. Doctors should reduce the use of antibiotics and people should not rely on antibiotics too much. We can end the conclusion by stating that antibiotics are critical to people. The benefit of antibiotics is a double- edged sword. People cannot stop using antibiotics; however, caution should be taken when using antibiotics.
REFENCES
Eggleston, K., Zhang, R. and Zeckhauster, R. J. (2010). The global challenge of antimicrobial resistance: Insights from economic analysis. International journal of environmental research and public health, 7, 3141- 3149
Gelband, H., Miller- Petrie, M., Pant, S., Gandra, S., Levinson, J., Barter, D., White, A. and Laxminarayan, R. (2015). The state of the world’s antibiotics 2015. Center for disease dynamics, economics and policy
Karen, B., Tieney, M. and Konkin, J. (2013). Combating antibiotic resistance in Canada. Retrieved on June 19, 2016, from http://healthydebate.ca/2015/12/topic/health- promotion-disease-preventions/antibiotic-resistance
Llor, C. and Bjerrum, L. (2014). Antimicrobial resistance: Risk associated with antibiotic over use and initiatives to reduce the problem. Therapeutic advances in drug safety, 5(6), 229- 241
MacGowan, A. and Macnoughton, E. (2013). Antibiotic resistance medicine, 12(3), e141. Doi:10.1016/j.mpmed.2013.08.002
Pechere, J. C. (2001). Patients interviews and misuse of antibiotics. Clinical infectious diseases, 33(3)
Schizonberg, J. (2011). Combating antibiotic resistance- consumer health information, Retrieved on June 19, 2016, from http://www.fda.gov/downloads/forconsumers/consumerupdates/ucm143470.pdf
Tan, J. (2014). Antibiotics are good for us. Retrieved on June 18, 2016, from http://www.argel.co.uk/health/immune-system/blog/antibiotics-are-good-for-us/
Ventola, L., C. (2015). The antibiotics resistance crisis. P&T, 40(4)
Vlaskovits, P., (2013). Why penicillin was a small idea that saved 100 million lives. Retrieved on June 18, 2016, from http;//vlaskovits.com/why-penicillin-was-a-small-idea-that-saved- 100-million-lives/
