Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest problems in health, and so it’s no surprise that researchers are constantly probing to see if people really understand what that means.
There are two big misunderstandings:
-That general respiratory (and more so upper respiratory tract) infections can be treated with antibiotics, and
-That people develop antibiotic resistance, rather than the unfathomable amount of bacteria that make us up developing it.
The truth is, cold and flu, the most common infections this time of year, are viral. Antibiotics won’t help.
Some people think that antibiotics can prevent further infection when they have a cold. The trouble is, preventative use of antibiotics can create really bad resistance (even if you aren’t “infected” you could still be carrying staph or strep or something else). While bacterial infections can follow viral, your best prevention is self care—rest and fluids.
People surveyed generally felt that a prescription for antibiotics was the payoff for seeing a doctor when they’re sick, but unless you need a doctor’s note, have a pre-existing condition, or have severe symptoms, you can usually skip that step and get started right away on rest (because sitting in a waiting room for an hour is pretty much the opposite of resting!).
If you want to be proactive about your health, support your immune system with colloidal silver. Colloidal silver offers immune support whether you have a viral or bacterial infection, or just want to prevent it, and preliminary research has found no evidence that it causes antibacterial resistance.
And don’t underestimate the value of prevention. Handwashing does the most for prevention, short of getting sick people to all stay in bed. During cold and flu season, it’s important to wash your hands more than you normally would.
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