World renowned scientist Alexander Fleming said, “It is the lone worker who makes the first advance in a subject, the details may be worked out by a team, but the prime idea is due to enterprise, thought, and perception of an individual” (“Alexander”). Following his own advice, Fleming noticed something inhibiting bacterial growth in his petri dish and extracted the substance. Fleming discovered penicillin, the world’s first antibiotic that would eventually save countless numbers of lives (“Discovery” par. 4). Since then, many new antibiotics have been introduced in the market; however, they are misused frequently, thus creating a shortage of effective antibiotics as bacteria develop resistance to overused antibiotics. Many people believe antibiotics
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As stated previously, many people believe that antibiotics cure all infections, but in reality, antibiotics are not effective towards viral or fungal infections. Despite this fact, antibiotics are being prescribed inappropriately and are being misused frequently. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), antibiotics are prescribed improperly in 50 percent of cases, usually for viruses like colds and the flu (“About” par. 4; “Antibiotics” par. 1). In fact, research conducted by Public Health England suggests 40 percent of people assume antibiotics are effective against viral infections. In addition, 60 percent of people admitted to consuming antibiotics for throat infections, but according to the University of Wisconsin, 85 to 95 percent of throat infections are caused by viruses; therefore, most throat infections should not be treated with antibiotics (“Entrenched” par. 5; “Sore” par. 4). Further, 17 percent of people assume antibiotics can combat inflammation, and 26 percent of people believe antibiotics can fight against fungal infections (“Entrenched” par. 5). The idea of antibiotics curing viral and fungal infections is extremely flawed, but the misconceptions do not stop …show more content…
The word “antibiotic” literally translates to “against life” because antibiotics are used to kill living organisms and treat bacterial infections; however, if antibiotics are used irresponsibly, the results may be harmful (Textbook 53). For instance, because antibiotics do not have the ability to discriminate between malignant (harmful) and benign (beneficial) bacteria, antibiotics kill beneficial bacteria along with the harmful bacteria. Both the benign and malignant bacteria in the human body are known as microbes, and all the microbes together are referred to as the human microbiome. The human body hosts ten times more bacteria cells in its microbiome than actual human body cells. Humans have approximately 100 trillion microbes, but only 10 trillion human body cells (Johnson par. 7). Most of these microbes are benign. The benign bacteria are important because they compete for space and nutrients against harmful bacteria, produce compounds that kill harmful bacteria, and lower the pH level so malignant bacteria cannot grow (“Normal par. 4). Since antibiotics cannot differentiate between benign and malignant bacteria, they terminate beneficial bacteria, along with the harmful bacteria. This eliminates competition for the harmful bacteria and motivates them to take control of the human microbiome. These bacteria are known as opportunistic organisms because they take advantage of a
As stated previously, many people believe that antibiotics cure all infections, but in reality, antibiotics are not effective towards viral or fungal infections. Despite this fact, antibiotics are being prescribed inappropriately and are being misused frequently. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), antibiotics are prescribed improperly in 50 percent of cases, usually for viruses like colds and the flu (“About” par. 4; “Antibiotics” par. 1). In fact, research conducted by Public Health England suggests 40 percent of people assume antibiotics are effective against viral infections. In addition, 60 percent of people admitted to consuming antibiotics for throat infections, but according to the University of Wisconsin, 85 to 95 percent of throat infections are caused by viruses; therefore, most throat infections should not be treated with antibiotics (“Entrenched” par. 5; “Sore” par. 4). Further, 17 percent of people assume antibiotics can combat inflammation, and 26 percent of people believe antibiotics can fight against fungal infections (“Entrenched” par. 5). The idea of antibiotics curing viral and fungal infections is extremely flawed, but the misconceptions do not stop …show more content…
The word “antibiotic” literally translates to “against life” because antibiotics are used to kill living organisms and treat bacterial infections; however, if antibiotics are used irresponsibly, the results may be harmful (Textbook 53). For instance, because antibiotics do not have the ability to discriminate between malignant (harmful) and benign (beneficial) bacteria, antibiotics kill beneficial bacteria along with the harmful bacteria. Both the benign and malignant bacteria in the human body are known as microbes, and all the microbes together are referred to as the human microbiome. The human body hosts ten times more bacteria cells in its microbiome than actual human body cells. Humans have approximately 100 trillion microbes, but only 10 trillion human body cells (Johnson par. 7). Most of these microbes are benign. The benign bacteria are important because they compete for space and nutrients against harmful bacteria, produce compounds that kill harmful bacteria, and lower the pH level so malignant bacteria cannot grow (“Normal par. 4). Since antibiotics cannot differentiate between benign and malignant bacteria, they terminate beneficial bacteria, along with the harmful bacteria. This eliminates competition for the harmful bacteria and motivates them to take control of the human microbiome. These bacteria are known as opportunistic organisms because they take advantage of a