Antibiotic Resistance
Are Germs Getting the Upper Hand?
Presented by Consumer Health Interactive  Antibiotics were thought of as miracle drugs when they first appeared. Not only were they used to treat the wounds of soldiers in World War II, but they made it possible for people to survive raging bacterial infections that ordinarily would have killed them. Until the use of penicillin -- the first antibiotic -- became widespread, it was common for people to die from strep throat and bacterial pneumonia -- infections that today we think of as eminently treatable. In order for antibiotics to continue to save lives, however, they have to be used correctly. Unfortunately, they're not. Many people fail to take the full course of the drugs, allowing some germs to survive and flourish in a form resistant to antibiotics. As a result, many first-line antibiotics, including penicillin, are no longer able to cure infections. New antibiotics are being developed, but they, too, are rapidly losing their power as a result of overuse and abuse. Some experts warn that if we continue to take antibiotics when we don't need them, or use them incorrectly, we'll end up in the dark ages of medicine, when a minor cut could result in a deadly infection. In this report, reporter Laurie Udesky talks with Dr. Stuart Levy, an international expert on antibiotic resistance, about what consumers can do about this critical health issue. Levy is a professor of medicine and microbiology at Tufts University School of Medicine and president of the Alliance for the Prudent Use of Antibiotics. He is also the author of The Antibiotic Paradox: How the Misuse of Antibiotics Destroys Their Curative Powers.
Click to listen to Consumer Health Interactive Radio's in-depth report. If you'd like to read the radio script, click here.
Digital Audio Team
Reporter and writer: Laurie Udesky
Producer: Laurie Udesky
Script Editors: Elaine Herscher and Diana Hembree
Sound Engineer: Laurie Udesky
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Last updated October 26, 2009
Copyright © 2004 Consumer Health Interactive
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