What you need to know about antibiotic resistance
What you need to know about antibiotic resistance
By Dr. Anusha Ammu and Dr. Prem Sai
Infectious Disease at Midland Health
“Antibiotics cure every infection.”
“If you’re sick, you should always ask for antibiotics.”
“You can stop antibiotics once you feel better.”
You’ve probably heard statements like these before, but they aren’t true. While antibiotics are life-saving medicines that treat bacterial infections, their overuse and misuse are leading to a dangerous problem: antibiotic resistance. This happens when bacteria and fungi learn how to survive the drugs meant to kill them.The result? Infections become harder and sometimes impossible to treat. According to the CDC, antibiotic resistance causes more than 2.8 million infections and 35,000 deaths each year in the U.S. alone. Globally, it’s one of the biggest threats to modern medicine.
What exactly is antibiotic resistance?
Antibiotic resistance does not mean your body is resistant to medicine, it means the germs have adapted. When antibiotics are used too often or incorrectly, some bacteria survive, adapt, and pass along their “survival skills” to other germs. This makes infections stronger, harder to treat, and more likely to spread.
Why should you care?
Resistant infections can:
· Require stronger medicines with more side effects.
· Keep you in the hospital longer.
· Interfere with treatments like cancer therapy, organ transplants, and joint replacements.
· In some cases, leave doctors with no effective options at all.
Simply put, if antibiotics stop working, many of the medical advances we rely on every day are at risk.
What can you do?
Antibiotic resistance is a global problem, but everyone has a role in fighting it:
· Use antibiotics responsibly: Take them only when prescribed, never share them, and complete the full course.
· Prevent infections: Wash your hands, stay up to date on vaccines, practice safe food handling, and maintain healthy habits.
· Talk to your healthcare provider: Ask if antibiotics are really needed. Remember, they don’t work against viruses like colds and the flu.
· Travel smart: If you’ve recently been abroad or received care in another country, let your doctor know. Resistance spreads across borders quickly.
· Properly dispose of medications: Don’t keep or use leftover antibiotics.
The role of stewardship
This is where infectious disease specialists play a vital role. As an infectious disease doctor, we work closely with hospitals and healthcare teams to:
· Guide the correct selection, dosing, and duration of antibiotics.
· Reduce unnecessary antibiotic use while ensuring patients with serious infections get the treatment they need promptly.
· Monitor patterns of resistance in the community and hospital.
· Educate both patients and clinicians on safe and effective antibiotic practices.
These efforts, known as Antibiotic Stewardship Programs (ASPs), help improve patient outcomes, reduce side effects, and preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics for future generations.
The bottom line
Antibiotics are one of the greatest medical discoveries of all time, but they only work if we use them wisely. By taking steps to prevent infections and using antibiotics only when truly needed, you’re protecting not only yourself but also your community and future generations.
To learn more, visit the CDC’s Antibiotic Use website: www.cdc.gov/antibiotic-use.