Antibiotic pollution and super-bugs

You must have heard from your doctor or some other wise person that antibiotics should be taken only when needed and not overused. You must have also heard that if it does become necessary and you are under antibiotic therapy, then you must follow the treatment till the very end. But many of us don't follow this advice. We start feeling good during initial phase of treatment and then we leave taking antibiotics, well before the prescribed course is over.  

Why is it harmful to take antibiotics improperly? The problem is that when you start taking antibiotics, you kill weak disease causing bacteria and also a lot of good bacteria in your body. But if the treatment is incomplete, tough bacteria do not get killed and are able to grow and multiply quickly. Now, this tough bacteria is drug resistant and can spread to other people also.

This can also happen when you take antibiotics in much lower concentration then required to kill bacteria. In this case, bacteria is exposed to antibiotics in amounts which don't kill it but instead offer it a better opportunity to mutate and become resistant.

It is quite unfortunate that people themselves insist on antibiotics. One third of people believe that antibiotics are effective against common cold. It is the most common reason for which antibiotics are prescribed and people also go for self medication, even though antibiotics are useless against viruses. 

Antibiotics use in livestock- In the 20^th century, rising population gave rise to the problem of shortage of meat. In 1950, scientists found that adding antibiotics to animal feed increases growth rate of livestock. Since then, antibiotics are being used in animal farms to increase the growth rates of livestock, poultry, and other farmed animals. Although, proper use of antibiotics in farms prevents a lot of diseases in animals and stops them from spreading to humans but the real problem is overuse of such medicines. Similar to misuse in humans, it gives rise to drug resistant bacteria. When such animals are consumed by humans, these bacteria get an opportunity to spread among human population. 

Are vegetarians safe?- If you are congratulating yourself for being vegetarian, unfortunately, you are also not safe. This is because animal feces are used as manures for crops. And finally, from crops such bacteria can reach your guts.

Antibiotic pollution- About 80% of an antibiotic dose passes straight through the body. So, it is obvious that most of this medicine intake, both by humans as well as animals, ends up in waste water. Most water treatment plants also do not remove them. Waste water from hospitals and antibiotic factories are also a major source of this pollution. According to most researchers, antibiotics usage in world exceeds 250,000 tonnes each year. And this does not take into account release from pharmaceutical plants. Much of these antibiotics find their way into rivers, lakes and other water bodies.These ultimately give rise to the growth of drug resistant bacteria or super-bugs.

So, next time you are having common cold, think twice before popping that pill as it might give you an immediate relief but it might also convert you into a better breeding ground for super-bugs. We know now that improper medication can convert an antibiotic into an anti healthy body.

References-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibiotic_use_in_livestock
http://phys.org/news/2015-03-antibiotic-pollution-waterways-superbugs.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antimicrobial_resistance
http://www.wired.com/2014/12/oneill-rpt-amr/
https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/issue/feb2014/feature1