Antibiotics

Pencils and penicillin, camp and campylobacter. Back to school often means back to the doctor as well and one of the problems you may be faced with when you are sick, is whether antibiotics are needed or not.

The value of antibiotics is immense. We have enjoyed such relief and lifesaving benefits from them. But a real concern over the emergence of dangerous antibiotic resistance strains of bacteria due to improper use is important to consider.

Antibiotic resistance is not new. Penicillin was mass produced by drug companies in 1943, and less than a decade later, resistant organisms were isolated in hospitals, and then in the general public.

In order to slow this dangerous trend towards losing the ability to combat bacterial infections with antibiotics, it is important to know when they are needed, and how to help yourself need less of them.

Antibiotics are often prescribed for children suffering with ear pain. For middle ear infections, the number of prescriptions written rose from 15million in 1985 to 23.6 million in 1992. Many physicians are convinced that the use of antibiotics to treat otitis media (middle ear infections) can be reduced. In 2002, a hearing on the problems of antibiotic resistance was presented to the California state assembly and physicians were asked to speak about the severity of the problem and the options that are available to help patients who are sick but don’t need antibiotics.

Pediatricians were especially adamant about antibiotic abuse. Dr. Quynh Kieu stated that “95% of otitis media cases in children do not need antibiotics to be resolved”. Kieu, along with the other physicians in attendance expressed a need for alternative treatment to address the discomfort felt by children suffering from otitis media.

If you have been involved in trying to improve your life with a holistic approach to health, you have probably considered the pitfalls of antibiotic use and misuse. If you are just starting out on a holistic path to wellness, you may need more information about how to decrease your susceptibility to infection and improve your healing time when you do get sick.

Properly washing your hands with simple soap and water is still the single best way to limit the spread of disease from person to person and food to person. A good daily routine to follow is to wash your hands when you arrive at school or work, before you eat, after you finish eating, and before you leave school or work. Sing the “Happy Birthday To Me” song to ensure you have given the mechanics of hand washing enough time to get rid of harmful disease causing pathogens. (You may want to sing silently to your self to limit the spread of rumors about you as well!)

Thoroughly wash all fruits and veggies before you eat them. Even packaged, pre-washed salad mixes should be washed by you before eating. Not only are you washing away pathogens, but also harmful chemicals and pesticides. Reducing these in your foods helps to reduce the stress on your body to eliminate them. Any reduction of stress to your body will help your immune system work more efficiently to handle the “bugs” you do come in contact with.

Approximately 55% of antibiotics used in the United States are given to food animals. It would be nearly impossible to eliminate this source completely from your diet, so try to reduce the load somewhat. Changing to organic diary products is an easy and readily available source of antibiotic-free food for you and your children.