Facts About Antibiotics

• Antibiotics are meant to fight off bacterial infections such as pneumonia (e.g. legionnaires’ disease), meningitis, cystitis, ear infections, abscess, Lyme disease (tick-transmitted), leprosy and tuberculosis. They cannot be used against viral infections.
• The first antibiotic discovered by Alexander Fleming, a Scottish scientist in 1928 is penicillin. It was only in 1941 that penicillin made its public debut.
• Antibiotic drugs are grouped into families such as cephalosporins, fluoroquinolones, penicillins, erythromycins, polypeptides, tetracyclines, aminoglycosides, quinolones, streptogramins and sulfonamides. Each family comprises of many members.
• Antibiotics are classified as narrow-spectrum drugs when they are effective against a few types of bacteria and as broad-spectrum drugs when they are effective against a wider range of bacteria.
• Combination of antibiotics are sometimes used to treat certain infections like leprosy and tuberculosis.
• They are sometimes prescribed to treat conditions such as acne, food poisoning, gout and nosebleed.
• Preventive antibiotic therapy is meant to prevent bacterial infection, e.g. to reduce the risk of endocarditis (inflammation of the lining inside the heart chambers and heart valves) or to reduce the risk of contracting traveler’s diarrhea or to protect people who have a weak immune system because of AIDS or undergoing chemotheraphy treatment for cancer.
• Different antibiotics kill different bacteria differently.
• Though antibiotics can kill off sensitive bacteria, the resistant ones survive and even prosper (i.e. grow and multiply).
• Animals like chickens, pigs, turkeys, cattle also receive their dose of antibiotics in order to either promote growth or to treat and prevent diseases. Fruits and vegetables are also not spared as antibiotics are sprayed to prevent bacterial infections.

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