Antibiotic Resistant Disease

Antibiotic-Resistant Disease
The Problem is Worse Than You Think!
ESBL organisms are bacteria that are found in the bowel, urine, blood, skin wounds or sputum. There are several different types of these bacteria.They produce enzymes that break down some antibiotics rendering the antibiotics useless.
ESBL organisms can be detected on routine culture of blood, sputum, urine, or stool specimens and can be detected in rectal or wound swabs. We treat infections caused by ESBL organisms with antibiotics the bacteria are sensitive to, but colonization of the bowel is not treated as it does not cause illness.
The antibiotic-resistant bacteria Extended Spectrum Beta Lactamase (ESBL) is killing both people and animals in around the world.
This bacteria has been implicated in the deaths of a number of cancer and liver disease patients. The number of infected jumped 50 percent last year.ESBL organisms can be spread directly by person-to-person contact and indirectly from contaminated surfaces to a person.
The increased use of antibiotics in agriculture may be behind the spread of the resistant strain.
What are ESBLs?
Extended-Spectrum Beta-Lactamases (ESBLs) are actually enzymes produced by certain types of
bacteria, which renders the bacteria resistant
to the antibiotics commonly used to treat them.
ESBLs were first discovered in the mid-1980s and at
the time they were most often found in the
Klebsiella species of bacteria, in hospital
intensive care units. Until recently, few people
were affected by these mutated bacteria and it
didnt appear to be a major growing concern.
That has however changed.
A new class of ESBL (called CTX-M enzymes) has emerged,which are now being detected among E.Colibacteria. These ESBL-producing E. Coli are resistant to penicillins and cephalosporins, and are becoming more frequent in urinary tract infections.
Other species of bacteria that can now produce
ESBLs include:
K. pneumoniae
K. oxytoca
Salmonella
Proteus mirabilis
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
According to a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association(2007)(JAMA), there were close to 100,000 cases of invasive methicillin-resistant Staphylococcusaureus (MRSA) infections in the United States in 2005, which lead to more than 18,600 deaths.
To put that number into perspective, HIV/AIDS killed 17,000 people that year.
Antibiotic-resistant disease IS a major man-made
problem. This was the study that propelled MRSA into the news last year, combined with a number of school
outbreaks that took place around the same time.
Discussions focused on reducing the medical over-use of antibiotics, and proper hygiene such as washing your hands with soap and water to reduce the spread of infectious disease.
Agriculture as a Source of Antibiotic Resistance
Little has been said about the rampant over-use of antibiotics in agriculture, which is a MAJOR source of human antibiotic consumption,and hence increased antibiotic resistance.
Both MRSA and ESBL are being traced back to animals raised for food production, especially pigs.
These animals are often fed antibiotics at low doses for disease prevention and growth promotion.
Animals receiving antibiotics in their feed gain 4% to 5 % more body weight than animals that do not receive antibiotics, but the price is high for you, the end consumer, because the practice also creates the perfect conditions for antibiotic resistance to flourish.
Denmarks health officials claim theyre unsure of
how farmers and veterinarians, who have not consumed infected meat, are becoming infected.However, according to research cited on Johns Hopkins website, the main reservoir of these organisms is in the lower digestive tract, and they can persist within the gastrointestinal tract for months or perhaps even longer.
Perhaps the answer doesnt have to be all that complicated.The meat industry practice of using antibiotics is indeed a driving force behind the development of antibiotic resistance in a now wide variety of bacteria that cause human disease.
The long stalemate on this issue constitutes a
struggle between strong science and bad politics.
The FDA finally banned the use of fluoroquinolones
- a widely used class of antimicrobials -- from
agricultural use August 1997, but not without the
Bayer Corporation kicking and screaming in vehement
opposition.
After all, antibiotics for livestock
use is big business. It constitutes about 70 percent of ALL antibiotic use! They couldnt replace that market with human consumers even if they tried.
Another heavily tainted meat product you should stay away from is conventionally raised chicken. A 2006 study published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases found that bacteria from conventional chicken and from people who ate the chicken became resistant to Synercid, a strong antibiotic used to treat antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
In essence, it can cause resistance to the last lines of defense currently available in the modern medicine cabinet.
It also found that it was rare to find resistant
bacteria among antibiotic-free chicken, while the
majority of bacterial isolates from conventional
poultry were resistant.
But, the ramifications of using antibiotics in agriculture dont end there. Antibiotics filter down through the food chain in sometimes non-suspecting ways. Antibiotics are also being transferred, via manure, into your food supply.
A 2007 study in the Journal of Environmental Quality looked at whether food crops will accumulate antibiotics from soil covered with antibiotic-containing manure.
In a greenhouse setting, corn, lettuce and potatoes were grown on soil that contained hog manure with a commonly used veterinary antibiotic added.
The antibiotics were absorbed by all three crops, into both their leaves and tissue.Meanwhile, the antibiotics also transferred to the potato tubers, suggesting that root crops like carrots, radishes and potatoes may be particularly at risk of antibiotic accumulation.
These findings unfortunately also have implications for organic farmers, who often use manure as their main source of fertilizer. And,as it stands, manure that contains antibiotics is still allowed under the organic label.
So how can you ensure that the food you feed yourself and your family is pure and healthy?
Apart from growing it yourself, your best option
is to get to know a local farmer near you -- one
who uses non-toxic farming methods. If you live
in an urban area, there is an increasing number of
community-supported agriculture programs available
that give you access to healthy, locally grown foods even if you live in the heart of the city.
If you are looking for a safer alternative to
commercially raised beef please be sure to check out grass-fed beef. Grass-fed cattle are not routinely fed antibiotics. They may occasionally receive them for an infection, but that would be the rare exception, and even then they are only used for a few days.
Natural is best, organic is superior, and to learn how to undo the negative effects already suffered you, visit:
http://www.fortune8one.com

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