Peter has an upset stomach, and as mommy suggested he popped a pill.
Peter’s body is now aching, so he pops a pill.
Peter sneezed and he pops a pill.
Peter now has a fever and he popped another pill.
Someone, please tell “Peter – The pill popper” to stop!

We all have a “Peter – The Pill Popper” in our lives. We don’t even hesitate when Peter recommends an antibiotic to us, because when it comes to antibiotics, Peter knows it all. We often tease him asking, “From where did you receive your MBBS?”. Your question to Peter itself arises a grave concern, “Should you be consuming antibiotics recommended by Peter?”, “Is it safe for Peter to have so many antibiotics all the time of the year?” and “Is having so many antibiotics saving Peter from bacterial resistance?” Well, to find out the answer I insist you read on.

What is antibiotic bacterial resistance?

Antibiotic Bacterial Resistance or antibiotic resistance is when the bacteria in your body become resistant to the antibiotics that are designed to kill them. For example – Let’s say for 10 days, you have been witnessing a headache and you took a pill each time to soothe the pain. Now, there is a high probability if you continue the same practice for 100 days of pain, the 101st day – the antibiotic might not work, on the contrary, it might further worsen your condition.

What are the side effects of antibiotics?

As per the World Health Organisation, Bacterial resistance is one of the major threats to development, food security, and global health in modern times.

Digestive Issues

Each antibiotic works differently on the body, but sometimes a chemical composition is so strong it leads to digestive issues harming your gut health. In most cases, the doctors will inform you about the side-effects and many, unable to find the next best alternative will choose to continue consuming antibiotics. The symptoms include – blood or mucus in stool, severe diarrhea, intense stomach pain, fever, vomiting, indigestion, nausea, bloating, and loss of appetite.

Fungal Infection

Not every anti-biotic lead to a yeast or fungal infection but if at all there is a reaction, your throat, vagina, and mouth are what gets affected the most. To know the symptoms, see if there is itchiness in the affected area, burning sensation, abnormal vaginal discharge, fever and chills, loss of taste, pain while swallowing, and dryness in the mouth.

Drug Interactions

Most common in case of people who are on regular medication like blood thinners, birth control pill, antacids, antifungals, diabetes medication, steroids, migraine medication, multivitamins, and supplements, make you more prone to bacterial resistance.

Drug Dependency

It has been seen in most of the cases, the clients once the prescribed medicine helps positively tend to extend their doze. In such cases, especially when someone is in pain or is having medicines for stress and anxiety most of them become more dependent on the antibiotics. Drug dependence or addiction is something most of us do not even realize until it’s too late.

Allergic Reactions

These reactions can be physical starting with as normal as hair loss, patchy skin, dryness around the lips to as severe as acne breakouts, pigmentation to rashes.

Teeth and Bone staining

If aesthetics is one of your key features, this is a point you should worry about. Consuming antibiotics can lead to bone and teeth staining. The staining is irreversible in adults because their teeth do not regrow or change. Bones stains caused by antibiotics are typically reversible.

Kidney Failure

Overburden of antibiotics or bacterial resistance can damage the kidney. In the case of people with kidney conditions, this is one of the reasons why doctors avoid over-loading their clients with antibiotics. This is also a reason why one should avoid antibiotics whenever possible.

Interferes with your Immunity system

Our immunity system is designed to function in a certain way. Antibiotics in most cases treat the symptoms, interfering in the functioning of the immunity system. The overload of antibiotics in many cases is the prime reason for the poor immunity system.

What you can do at a personal level to fight bacterial resistance?

• Take medicines only when prescribed “for you”.
• Ask the doctor, if there is an alternative therapy and medicines can be skipped.
• Do not ask for antibiotics, if your doctor is not recommending one for your condition.
• Stop sharing the medicines prescribed for you with your friends and family.
• Over the counter pills and google doesn’t help if you wish to treat the root cause of your problem.
• Go all-natural, give your body some time to heal whenever possible.

While there are multiple causes of bacterial resistance and this affects people of all age groups and gender, with the ongoing trend of “pop-a-pill” culture, it will not be wrong to say that all of us are prone to bacterial resistance. One of the prime reasons being our dependency on antibiotics, less awareness of the alternate solution and our body’s innate power to heal itself naturally. Metabalance Healthcare echoes to how WHO responded to tackling the issue of bacterial resistance with a global action plan, as a holistic center we aim to-

-Make people aware of bacterial resistance
-Optimize the use of antibiotics
-Promote natural healing
-Ensure the delivery of world-class alternate therapies to counter bacterial resistance.

The misuse of antibiotics in humans and animals accelerates the process of bacterial resistance. If one wishes to increase mortality, reduce hospital stays and medical bills one should focus on avoiding antibiotics whenever possible. There are not just one but multiple factors that can help in monitoring the use of antibiotics. It is about time that the policymakers, health professionals and pharma companies join hands to control antibiotic-resistance if they care about the well-being of their clients.

So, don’t be “Peter – The Pill Popper”; Talk to our experts to know more about natural healing!

Disclaimer: The tips and suggestions mentioned in the article have been written for general awareness and should not be considered as professional medical advice. We strongly recommend you consult your doctor or an expert before starting any fitness regime, diet changes, or making any lifestyle changes that affect your physical or emotional health.