Is your gym locker room crawling with drug-resistant bacteria?
With the other bacteria out of the way, the resistant bacteria (i.e., the superbug) can multiply and sometimes cause problems.
This will help reduce the transmission of antibiotic-resistant bacteria from colonised wounds to susceptible patients.
Scientists believe that excessive exposure to antibiotics can make drug-resistant bacteria spread more widely.
Into some bacteria they inserted genes for resistance to particular antibiotics; the idea is that only the antibiotic-resistant bacteria are carrying the real message.
Fabric softeners, disinfectants, shampoos and other household products are spreading drug-resistant bacteria around Britain, scientists have warned.
The system has some ability to track cholera and flu, but it is particularly weak at “fingerprinting” antibiotic-resistant bacteria and linking hospital data.
The finding suggests antibiotics such as penicillin may be leaching into the environment and spurring drug-resistant bacteria to evolve and multiply in the oceans.
Overuse of antibiotics can lead to drug-resistant bacteria that have to be treated with more powerful and often more expensive drugs.
In this way, we have created an ideal environment for the emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in our drains and sewers.
We would never think of trying to keep our children healthy by adding antibiotics to school water fountains, because we know this would breed antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
