The Danger Of Unnecessarily Taking An Antibiotic

How many times have you been prescribed an antibiotic that may not have been necessary? Of course you don't know because you are not a physician. In fact your physician may not have been aware that the antibiotic he has prescribed was not medically necessary. Or perhaps it was prescribed because of an expectation on your part that you wanted a pill to make you feel better.

This happens more than you might suspect. In fact a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association states that about 1/3 of all the antibiotic prescriptions in the sampling reviewed were unnecessary and not appropriate. This decision was based upon accepted medical guidelines for treatment.

 Will taking an antibiotic for the flu or for allergy help?. Of course not. Does this really matter? Of course it does. For one thing there are potential serious complications from any medication. Another reason it matters is that overuse of antibiotics increases the development of drug resistant bacteria. Some day you may really need that antibiotic and it may not work. In fact it may be difficult to find an antibiotic that will be effective against the bacteria that are causing your symptoms.

So think carefully before you pop that antibiotic pill. It may hurt more than it may help.