Contributing Writer for Wake Up World
You have probably heard about antibiotic resistant infections. But did you know that two million people per year in the US are acquiring this type of infection and 23,000 Americans per year are dying because of this?
On top of that, 250,000 people in the US require hospital care for Clostridium difficile (a unique bacterial infection directly related to antibiotic use and resistance) infections each year and 14,000 people in the US die from C. difficile infections each year.
The evidence that proves how harmful this practice can be has been available for a while now. Taking routine course of antibiotics and moreover pouring them into our food has been leading to serious and dangerous side effects, which greatly affect everybody’s health and well being. There are instances when antibiotics can save lives, so they have their place. But switching from specific, well determined and occasional use to a broad use – and even worse, to a ”preventive” measure in humans and animals – is totally insane.
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Antibiotics Overuse in Medicine
Dr. Natasha Campbell McBride (Master of Medical Sciences in Neurology and Master of Medical Sciences in Human Nutrition) offers a well-researched summary of the most common disastrous health effects which directly involve antibiotics:
– they destroy beneficial bacteria in the human body, not only in the gut but in other organs and tissues
– they change bacteria, viruses and fungi from benign to pathogenic, giving them an ability to invade tissues and cause disease
– they make bacteria resistant to antibiotics, so the industry has to work on more and more powerful new antibiotics to attack these new changed bacteria. A good example is tuberculosis, where wide use of antibiotics has created new varieties of the Mycobacterium Tuberculosis resistant to all existing antibiotics
– they have a direct damaging effect on the immune system, making us more vulnerable to infections, which leads to a vicious cycle of more antibiotics and more infections
Antibiotics in Food
The problem of antibiotics overuse actually grew to proportions because it comes not only from prescription drugs, but from conventional food everywhere as well! This way, we are exposed indirectly to antibiotics since we are born and their negative effects are real.
Many large producers of meat and poultry feed antibiotics to their healthy food animals simply to offset the effects of overcrowding and poor sanitation, as well as to promote faster growth. Every year, nearly 30 million pounds of antibiotics are sold for use in food animals. In fact, up to 70 percent of all antibiotics sold in the United States go to healthy food animals.
Farmed fish and shellfish have antibiotics added, as well as a lot of fruits, vegetables and grains, legumes and nuts, which are sprayed with antibiotics to control disease.
Anti-Bacterial Cleaners
Modern times brought along the common belief that everything has to be disinfected and sterilized. But it’s been proven by numerous studies that constant use of conventional sanitizers and antibacterial soaps is also killing the beneficial bacteria on our hands – which are meant to actually protect ourselves from disease. In other words, resistant bacteria – “superbugs” – will develop, and a former common cold will morph into a much more virulent and harder to treat infection.
Facts Of Antibiotic Overuse: How Serious Is This Matter?
More Things You Can Do to Avoid Antibiotic-Resistant Infections
- STOP taking antibiotics with the first infection, rely on NATURAL, effective, safe and powerful antibiotics with NO side effects. My favorites are raw propolis, grapefruit seed extract, oregano oil, echinacea, Manuka honey. When you really need to take a course of antibiotics, always follow with a course of probiotics, to counteract the negative effects and maintain a healthy gut flora.
- Buy and eat only ORGANIC meat, eggs and dairy or at least those that haven’t had antibiotics added (you can find this on many product labels now).
- Stay clean using natural, green cleaners for your body and house, and avoid anti-bacterial soaps, as well as harsh, toxic chemicals.
- Live a healthy life, eat whole food and take responsibility of your own precious health so you don’t end up in hospitals and long-term care facilities, which are the most exposed environments to never-ending disease.
Resources:
http://onlinemphdegree.net/antibiotic-resistance/
http://articles.mercola.com/overuse-of-antibiotics-spurs-vicious-cycle.aspx
http://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/threat-report-2013
http://articles.mercola.com/dr-natasha-campbell-mcbride-on-gaps-nutritional-program.aspx
Recommended articles by Raluca Schachter:
- Vitamin D Supplementation: This is Why It Can Be Wrong
- Hypothyroidism or Hashimoto’s? What You Need to Know and Why It Matters
- Understanding Cannabis Oil
- 6 Steps to Solve Your Blood Sugar Problems Permanently
- Antibiotic Resistant Infections: The Dangers… and How You Can Avoid Them
- What Really Happens When You Take Antibiotics?
- Understanding Inflammation and How to Eliminate It Naturally
- Listen to Your Body. Correct Food Ratios. Reverse Disease.
- Cholesterol Myths Debunked
- Follow The Money In “Sick-Care”: What’s Behind The Drugs And Needles?
- What Happens In Your Body When You Suffer From Thyroid Disease?
About the author:
Raluca Schachter is a dedicated Clinical Nutritionist / Natural Health Practitioner a.k.a “The Health Detective”. Raluca was able to naturally reverse chronic health conditions she was struggling with most of her life, and now uses her knowledge to help as many people as possible do the same. Her health programs and diet plans offer a very unique and comprehensive approach to health, where individual nutritional and biochemical requirements are firstly met using specific nutrients and foods that each metabolism thrives on. Raluca offers her services to international clientele and her practice is fully online based. You can connect with Raluca at www.metabolicenergy.net and https://www.facebook.com/raluca.schachter.metabolicenergy
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