Superbugs — the deadly threat we need to build our defenses against NOW

Zachary Doubek is your typical 12-year-old boy. He’s obsessed with baseball, football and just about any other sport you can imagine.

And he’s awfully lucky to be alive.

Because last year Zachary was nearly killed by a MRSA infection that started in his knee. The kind of bacterial infection that could have been nipped in the bud just a few years ago with a simple antibiotic.

But one by one — after years of overuse — the antibiotics we’ve relied upon for years are becoming worthless. They’re failing to stop a deadly rise of antibiotic-resistant “superbugs” that are a greater threat to our lives than ever before.

And with a key member of Congress even admitting that our government isn’t trying to keep us safe, now is the time to take matters into our own hands.

A plague of our own making

Zachary was one of the lucky ones. It took a medically induced coma and six surgeries, but he survived.

But antibiotic-resistant superbugs are going to kill nearly 40,000 Americans…young and old… this year alone.

Before long, experts are warning that superbugs could kill one out of every six people who undergo a hip transplant and could turn even a simple infected cut or abrasion into a death sentence.

Just think about that for a moment. Twenty five years ago, superbug infections were practically unheard of. Ten years ago, you rarely saw them outside of hospital settings.

And now, superbugs are only a couple years from becoming one of the 10 leading causes of death in the United States — right alongside heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

It’s a problem that even Alexander Fleming, who discovered penicillin, saw coming 70 years ago. He watched as certain bacteria became resistant to penicillin, and warned about the coming “evil” of superbugs if antibiotics were overused.

But now that evil is here, and our government isn’t doing much to stop it.

A few months ago, President Obama released his big strategy to fight these superbugs. But even though the plan will cost us taxpayers $1.2 billion, it’s still a day late and a dollar short.

And the biggest place it fell short was down on the farm. Obama had the chance to stop the rampant, unnecessary use of antibiotics in farm animals — a major source of our exposure to the drugs. Only he didn’t.

Believe it or not, 80 percent of all the antibiotics sold in the U.S. are given to livestock. The drugs make animals gain weight quickly so they can be sold for more money at slaughter. But all those antibiotics head straight for the food supply and our stomachs, and they’re a major contributor to the rise of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.

And while Obama claimed he had developed a “comprehensive plan” to fight antibiotic resistance, all he proposed was a voluntary policy that lets the beef and poultry industries police themselves.

I’ll give you one guess how that’s going. Antibiotic use in livestock is actually increasing, not decreasing.

As Congresswoman Louise Slaughter put it, “your government is not going to protect you” from antibiotic overexposure and superbugs.

Which is why we have to learn how to protect ourselves. Here are a few simple… but potentially life-saving… steps that can get you started:

• Don’t take antibiotics unless absolutely necessary. Doctors and dentists will often zip off an Rx when it’s not needed, and many patients will even ask for antibiotics on their own.
• If you really do need an antibiotic, ask your doctor for one that targets your specific infection, not a broad spectrum one. That may require a bacterial culture be done, but it’s well worth it.
• Antibiotic creams like Neosporin should also be used sparingly. In fact, a study published in the CDC’s monthly journal said that Neosporin is likely contributing to a new, antimicrobial resistant strain of MRSA.
• When buying beef and chicken, either go the organic route, or look for a label that says “No antibiotics.” Steer clear of meaningless claims such as “All Natural.”

Superbugs are so much in the limelight now that Consumer Reports will be running a three-part series called “The Rise of Superbugs,” explaining in detail how antibiotic overuse has led us to where we are today.

To check out the first part of the series, click here.

Sources:

“The rise of superbugs” June 25, 2015, Consumer Reports, consumerreports.org

“Administration drafts plan to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria” Sarah Wheaton and Chase Purdy Politico, politico.com,

“New Jersey boy recovering in hospital from battle with rare strain of MRSA” Toni Yates, ABC7, 7online.com