Antibiotic resistance is worldwide and increasing. Meanwhile, in big pharma, researchers in novel antibiotics are being laid off as those programs close, or reassigned to work on drugs that actually make money-those that treat hair loss, erectile dysfunction and depression: WHO report on antimicrobial resistance

No sir, we cannot cure your infection, but we can provide medication that will return you to your adolescence: hirsute, potent and unconcerned.

Don't forget the relentless hawking concerning "low T," whether or not it is significant....

I like what one doctor's office had for a sign by the front desk... basically it stated in no uncertain terms that the doc did *not* meet w/drug reps.

One reason is that people get a prescription for antibiotics for any sore throat or whatever, even though many times these ailments are viral, and antibiotics have no effect at all. People demand antibiotics and too many physicians comply. Meanwhile, some really nasty bugs are evolving.

EDIT: Deleted Doonesbury link to avoid offending anyone.

Like Peak Oil, a true post-antibiotic era is a milestone that I fear many of us will experience within our lifetimes. So many medical and even dental procedures will no longer be "routine." Gangrene, septicemia, and even TB may become commonly used words again.

A part of me feels dread about that eventuality, but then again, maybe this is simply helping to restore some balance to things and is not the apocalyptic situation that it sounds like, at least not for us in the industrialized world. Historically, the bulk of the reduction in deaths from infectious disease were due to wider availability of food, clean water, and sanitation. Antibiotics and vaccines, at least in the West, primarily just mopped up what little was left.

So even without any effective antibiotics left, humanity would reset to a new equilibrium with bacteria. Yes, many more people than we are accustomed to now will likely die from infections and we will again suffer through more diseases, but people will carry on and humanity overall will not face extinction like in some Hollywood pandemic movie.

Really, that was more an attempted slight against creationists than a commentary on antibacterial resistant TB (as responded to here, for example). But I guess getting into that falls well outside the scope (and rules) of these forums .

Deleted link.

Okay, I emailed the deleted link... to true... not that believe one way or t'other

Realistically, bacteria are always in the ascendant; we only engineered a lull.

And then we blew it.

I assessing responsibility, we should not overlook short-sighted head-banging quick-buck idiocy such as antibacterial dish soap and feeding low-level antibiotics to farm animals.

Drug-resistant bacteria are a well-known issue. I wonder why people continue to buy anti-bacterial hand soap? It doesn't really do anything useful for the purchaser, it's a marketing gimmick, but it helps contribute to resistant strains of bacteria. Such soap might be useful for a surgeon getting ready to stick their hands inside your guts, but for the everyday person, useless. And potentially harmful to the herd in the long term.

not sure that this is true. Antibiotic resistant bacteria are not necessarily resistant to chemical disinfectants like alcohol, triclosan, listerine and clorox. Reducing the bacterial load on hands, raw vegetables, uncooked meats and the environment in general is a good thing, unless you subscribe to the "farm kids are healthier than city kids because they are less sheltered from bacteria and animal dander" school. Any thoughts on this, MDinana, Blast, scientists and wisemen?

It used to be thought that chemicals that attacked bacteria from multiple fronts would not easily produce resistant bacteria, but that didn't necessarily turn out to be true. This is a 2006 paper but it already mentions triclosan resistant strains. The same metabolic adaptations to disinfectant chemicals can also work against the chemicals in antibiotics in some cases, too.

However, this type of cross-resistance probably evolves much more slowly than the evolutionary pressure of direct exposure to antibiotics produces, so exposure to antibacterial products like soap is probably more of a secondary problem to overuse and misuse of antibiotics themselves.

Switching to virus talk, but along similar lines, the "common wisdom" is that Norovirus, which causes all those sick cruise ship passengers, is pretty much impervious to alcohol (and therefore, alcohol hand sanitizers) but that's still debated.

You are supposed to eat a peck of dirt before you die, but not a bushel.

I let my kids roll in dirt but I make them wash up before meals.

No offence was taken ... just making an observation .

Bacteria can develop some resistance to alcohol, triclosan, listerine, etc... Each individual bacteria has a different susceptibility to these chemicals, some having higher, some lower. Most people don't follow the directions for using this these cleaners, often just giving a sloppy, quick wipe so the dosage the bugs get can be lower than needed to kill the "strongest" bacteria. These survivors reproduce...

As for needing to be exposed to a bacteria to build up a strong immune system, I firmly believe this to be true. Some studies I've looked at recently tie the higher occurrence of Lupus in females (x9 than males) may be due to girls aren't allowed to play in the dirt as much as boys.
-Blast

Sterilize your water, wash your hands regularly, keep away from rats and people (the usual vector) i.e. places such as restaurants and hospitals, keep fit and healthy and well nourished and if all else fails there is always the catchy great plague song

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse don't usually turn up at the same time they appear sequentially after those that precede them attempt to do their worst. Keep the Grim Reaper away. Don't eat the Salmon Mousse. Try not to be poor (the greatest actuary to premature death).

As children my sisters and I used to play on a huge horse manure tip. We'd roll down it. I'm still alive, at least I think I am.

Intestinal parasites may be useful pets, too: pig parasites for treatment of ms