Augmentin, not nectar

A few days back, I stopped by at a pharmacy to buy some medicines. I overheard two other customers talking.

"Augmentin 625 mg - 10"

"Oh Augmentin. It's a very good medicine."

"You've taken it?"

"My uncle had an infection in his feet. He took this for five days. He was totally cured."

"Ok. I have been asked to take it for a cough."

Well, nothing wrong with that. Except that the second guy's tone was very casual. He sounded like he would take Augmentin for any minor problem.

Many people don't realise the dangers of taking antibiotics without actually needing them. Several studies have shown that bacteria are becoming resistant to several antibiotics. This has a lot to do with indiscriminate use of these drugs.



India, especially has been blamed for allowing pharmacies to dispense antibiotics and several other drugs without prescriptions. Some doctors too are known to prescribe antibiotics where they can be avoided. Patients are happy with the quick-fix they offer.

Apart from having some undesirable side-effects, these drugs could become ineffective over a period of time because they have been used where they need not have been used due to bacteria developing resistance to them.

Scientists would need to go on developing stronger antibiotics which may not always be possible. This, like many other problems of our times is not one that affects us immediately but has disastrous consequences in the long run. We must sit up and take notice.

Here is a very interesting video from Harvard Medical School that demonstrates how bacteria mutate to develop resistance to increasing dosages of antibiotics:


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