Bacteria resistance keeps rising

According to researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, bacteria resistance is on the rise, contributing to more aggresive skin infections, post-surgical infections, treatment-resistant salmonellosis, recurrent urinary tract and heart infections, and a 58% rise in infectious diseases between 1980 and 1992. Superbugs, strains resistant to multiple antibiotics, are emerging as even greater threats. Even tuberculosis is now resistant to multiple antibiotics. 41% of strep infections today are resistant to penicillin, while 15% are resistant to three or more antibitoics. Of the estimated 2 million patients each year who develop infections while hospitalized, 90,000 will die, mostly from staph infections, which are now resistant to penicillin and other standard antibiotics. The drug of last resort, the powerful antibiotic Vanomycin, is not immune. Doctors reported the first case of vanomycin-resistant staph last May.

Unfortunately, as infection rates rise, the interest of Big Pharma in developing antibiotics is decreasing, a trend with long-term implications. Big Pharma does not consider antibiotics to be lucrative.

Researchers at U of I are discovering the root causes of resistance. According to microbiologist Abigail Salyers, "your colon is like a singles bar. Bacteria are passing around DNA like there is no tomorrow." Bacteria swap genes freely and mutate for survival.

Recent findings show that the gene swapping is actually stimulated, in some cases, 100- to 1,000-fold by tetracycline, a common antibiotic used to treat acne. According to the Centers for Disease Control, one-third of antibiotics prescribed for humans are unnecessary. Even when prescribed properly, they can foster the growth of resistant bacetria for up to six months in people taking the prescription as well as those they contact.

Antibacterial soaps and some household products are culprits as well.

Salyers hopes her research will cause physicians and the agricultutral community to rethink how and which antibiotics they administer.

Courtesy of University of Illinois at Urbana-Champign Fall/Winter 2005-2006 LAS News

Bonnie - this is compelling data. Who would have thought that some antibiotics can act as "aphrodesiacs" for bacteria gene-swapping. The moral of this story...eat as healthy as you can to keep the gi tract as healthy as can be, so you do not have to take antibiotics. In addition, take your probiotics! Healthy-infused flora battle to keep a healthy balance in the gut.