This antibiotics problem has me more concerned about the future than anything else.

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/may/27/us-reports-first-case-of-bacteria-resistant-to-antibiotic-of-last-resort


I don't actually worry that much about stuff like this but it plays into why I don't want kids.. We've grown up without people dying around us because of antibiotics but those days seem to be numbered.

I fully expect that in the next 50 years, something will spread that can't be treated. It's a far bigger issue than global warming in my opinion.

Tipperary Fairy

It's funny how you mention global warming... The whole antibiotics - beef - emissions thing.

But anyway, yeah it's very concerning. Though I did read just the other day how GPs are being praised for their severe reduction of prescribing antibiotics. Though for some reason my Google feed gives me UK news so might not be indicative.

sullivlo

It's beyond scary. I say this as a scientist too, now whether that makes me more concerned I don't know. But it's scary how ignorant a certain % of the population are about antibiotic use.

Ach, in my 42nd year and don't think I've ever been prescribed an antibiotic.

sullivlo

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Ach, in my 42nd year and don't think I've ever been prescribed an antibiotic.

I'm likely only alive because of antibiotics. I had a very bad run of illness when I was 6 and I ended up being on antibiotics for around 6 months. That's 24 years ago now - medicine has advanced. Perhaps now it could be treated without AB, but back then I needed them.

It's a scary prospect tbh. I know that it's currently unlikely that people will have a resistant infection. But bacteria are rapidly mutating to evade death. There is now not one "kill all bacteria" drug - for every antibiotic, there are resistant bugs.

I'm hopeful that over the next 15-20 years we will make a breakthrough on resistance, either through a new drug discovery, a new usage for an existing drug (viagra not just used for heart trouble ) or the development of a co-treatment of antibiotics that work in a staged approach.

12Phase

Humans suffer a lot from short term thinking. Antibiotic research isn't being invested in because people see it as not profitable.

Almost all the antibiotic research was done decades ago and most of what we take is off patent, genetic at this stage.

The stock markets don't like to see pharma investment in what are seen as "low margin" drugs and big pharma companies are generally totally focused in bio pharma products that are mostly about dealing with diseases like cancer and heart disease.

Also agricultural use of antibiotics and GPs handing them out like smarties has totally undermined their usefulness by increasing bug resistance.

Yet, despite prescribing guidelines, people who allegedly should know a lot about science as doctors, continue to bow to patient pressure and prescribe antibiotics for viral issues and so on.

I'm very worried myself as I have a history of ear infections. If there's ever an antibiotic resistant version of the bugs that cause those... It's back to the era befit the 1950s which meant a lot of hearing loss, major invasive surgery to remove infected mastoid bones and so on.

Bongalongherb

Well I'm one of the lucky ones so... I only took antibiotics once in my life so they will still work wonders for me, sorry about the rest of the folk out there but they should have respected antibiotics instead of taking them every-other week for a sore toe.

I only use them in really bad cases, but it makes me laugh how so many folk take them like party-pills for a sore toe or a sore finger or any hint of a cough.

zl1whqvjs75cdy

Bongalongherb wrote: »

Well I'm one of the lucky ones so... I only took antibiotics once in my life so they will still work wonders for me, sorry about the rest of the folk out there but they should have respected antibiotics instead of taking them every-other week for a sore toe.

I only use them in really bad cases, but it makes me laugh how so many folk take them like party-pills for a sore toe or a sore finger or any hint of a cough.

Just because you only took antibiotics once doesnt mean you won't be infected with a resistant bug if one develops. It will evolve in someone else and make its way to you.

LordSutch

What worries me is the amount of people who ask their GP for antibiotics as cure for a virus!

I have lost count of the people I hear talking about "Oh I'm on antibiotics for the flu" or I'm on antibiotics for my sore hip, eye etc . . . and the fact that in many cases the GP will agree to the patients request for said drugs. That's the worrying thing.

Antibiotics will not cure a cold, they will not make the flu (virus) disappear either!

Antibiotics are designed to tackle infection.

gctest50

Bongalongherb wrote: »

.............
I only use them in really bad cases, but it makes me laugh how so many folk take them like party-pills for a sore toe or a sore finger or any hint of a cough.

While China ordered about 12,000 tonnes of colistin this year to put into animal feed

12Phase

Yeah, it's not you who becomes resistant, it's the bacteria.

The fact that you haven't taken many antibiotics is totally irrelevant.

The bugs become resistant and are resident in the general human and other animal populations.

Bongalongherb

donkeyoaty0099 wrote: »

Just because you only took antibiotics once doesnt mean you won't be infected with a resistant bug if one develops. It will evolve in someone else and make its way to you.

Well that's just great, After myself treating antibiotics with respect I now have to put up with mutant folk infecting me. I'm going to drown my sorrows now later and pick up a weeks supply each two weeks to catch up with the rest of the mutanties.

crazygeryy

Ads by Google wrote: »

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/may/27/us-reports-first-case-of-bacteria-resistant-to-antibiotic-of-last-resort


I don't actually worry that much about stuff like this but it plays into why I don't want kids.. We've grown up without people dying around us because of antibiotics but those days seem to be numbered.

I fully expect that in the next 50 years, something will spread that can't be treated. It's a far bigger issue than global warming in my opinion.

You could be hit by a bus tomorrow.relax

stoneill

LordSutch wrote: »

What worries me is the amount of people who ask their GP for antibiotics as cure for a virus!

. . . and the fact that in many cases the GP will agree to the patients request for said drugs. That's the worrying thing.

I have often wondered this too.
You can't get antibiotics over the counter, the only source is from a doctor.
If they are being overused then that is medical professions fault.

12Phase

The biggest issue has been agricultural use as "growth promoters".

Basically, antibiotics have been what allowed the development of very intensive pig and chicken farming. If you put animals into those intensive conditions without antibiotics, infection spreads and kills them.

A lot of the antibiotics of last resort are old ones that had unpalatable side effects or high toxicity in humans so they were basically handed over to agriculture as they were deemed to be low tech it obsolete.

Many of them ended up being used as low dose growth promoters which are basically like the ideal way of producing long term bug resistance - use across a massive population of animals in low concentration that doesn't kill all the bugs quickly, giving them time adapt and come up with strategies to get around the antibiotics or even thrive on them where the antibiotic might kill off competing strains of bacteria allowing only the drug resistant one to survive and prosper.

http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2016/01/06/colistin-r-6/

Ultimately, we are going to have to change how we produce meat to get this under control.

The most likely major impact would be antibiotic resistance in intensive farming resulting in deaths of livestock and birds which could lead to a very sudden food crisis in developing world countries in particular.

Bongalongherb

stoneill wrote: »

I have often wondered this too.
You can't get antibiotics over the counter, the only source is from a doctor.
If they are being overused then that is medical professions fault.

Doctors will give them for anything a person has as to keep making profit for big pharmaceutical companies they get them from. If they don't push out as much big pharma will be on their case as to why regarding profits.

It's treated like candy.

12Phase

Bongalongherb wrote: »

Doctors will give them for anything a person has as to keep making profit for big pharmaceutical companies they get them from. If they don't push out as much big pharma will be on their case as to why regarding profits.

It's treated like candy.

Big pharma don't produce most of them. It's mostly low margin genetics.

The conspiracy is actually that patients will go to a GP with a cold. The GP says : Little Egiteen has a cold - rest and plenty of warm drinks"

Mammy/Daddy Eegiteen says "Medicine make little Eegiteen Better !"

"Bad doctor won't give Eegiteen any medicine!!"

Doctor eventually stops arguing.

Also when someone pays for GP's fees, they tend to see a prescription as a "a result". Being told "you'll be grand! Pull yourself together! That'll be €60" doesn't go down well.

omicron

12Phase wrote: »

The biggest issue has been agricultural use as "growth promoters".

Basically, antibiotics have been what allowed the development of very intensive pig and chicken farming. If you put animals into those intensive conditions without antibiotics, infection spreads and kills them.

A lot of the antibiotics of last resort are old ones that had unpalatable side effects or high toxicity in humans so they were basically handed over to agriculture as they were deemed to be low tech it obsolete.

Many of them ended up being used as low dose growth promoters which are basically like the ideal way of producing long term bug resistance - use across a massive population of animals in low concentration that doesn't kill all the bugs quickly, giving them time adapt and come up with strategies to get around the antibiotics or even thrive on them where the antibiotic might kill off competing strains of bacteria allowing only the drug resistant one to survive and prosper.

http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/2016/01/06/colistin-r-6/

Ultimately, we are going to have to change how we produce meat to get this under control.

The most likely major impact would be antibiotic resistance in intensive farming resulting in deaths of livestock and birds which could lead to a very sudden food crisis in developing world countries in particular.

We aren't going to have to change meat production as the EU has very strict laws around antibiotic use and growth pro,toros, however we're going to have to start applying the same standards to imports that we already have for domestic production.

12Phase

omicron wrote: »

We aren't going to have to change meat production as the EU has very strict laws around antibiotic use and growth pro,toros, however we're going to have to start applying the same standards to imports that we already have for domestic production.

The rules aren't strict enough in the EU to prevent this nor do bacteria carry EU passports and stop at the border.

The majority of the damage is being done elsewhere but the EU isn't perfect either.

The production techniques will have to be antibiotic free. That will mean less and more expensive food. That's going to cause massive problems in some places that have expanded because of access cheap food.

It means bigger, less intensive farms, producing less and more expensive meat.

It's horrible, but that's the kind of existence we have.

Chicken for example moved from being a relatively expensive once a week thing to being so generic a source of cheap, bland protein that it's nearly not seen as meat anymore at all.

What we import is mostly irrelevant too other than it *might* speed up spread.

It's not the meat that's the problem it's the bacteria which will move into human populations from farms (not so likely from cooked meat or healthy animals) and bang: you've a global crisis.

You're looking at a situation really that is precarious because it is unsustainable and nobody listened for decades.

Bongalongherb

12Phase wrote: »

Big pharma don't produce most of them. It's mostly low margin genetics.

The conspiracy is actually that patients will go to a GP with a cold. The GP says : Little Egiteen has a cold - rest and plenty of warm drinks"

Mammy/Daddy Eegiteen says "Medicine make little Eegiteen Better !"

"Bad doctor won't give Eegiteen any medicine!!"

Doctor eventually stops arguing.

Also when someone pays for GP's fees, they tend to see a prescription as a "a result". Being told "you'll be grand! Pull yourself together! That'll be €60" doesn't go down well.

Well in that case a plan should have been put in place many years ago to educate parents on the uses of antibiotics. If they knew that antibiotics would not work for a cold/flu and other little things then they would not ask or give them to their child or take them themselves.

How folk did not understand this is beyond me, every-one in Ireland has access to the internet and can easily find this information. It's a crazy world.

gctest50

12Phase wrote: »

.............

What we import is mostly irrelevant too other than it *might* speed up spread.

It's not the meat that's the problem it's the bacteria which will move into human populations from farms (not so likely from cooked meat or healthy animals) and bang: you've a global crisis.

The resistance that some bugs have is in its plasmids

It's more or less like the bugs have a bug themselves, with the handy side effect of being resistant

These can jump from bug to bug just for the craic horizontally etc

Until now, polymyxin resistance has involved chromosomal mutations but has never been reported via horizontal gene transfer.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26603172

.

12Phase

Bongalongherb wrote: »

Well in that case a plan should have been put in place many years ago to educate parents on the uses of antibiotics. If they knew that antibiotics would not work for a cold/flu and other little things then they would not ask or give them to their child or take them themselves.

How folk did not understand this is beyond me, every-one in Ireland has access to the internet and can easily find this information. It's a crazy world.

Always bear in mind the *average* IQ is 100 (that's how it works) and a few points lower and tying shoelaces is a challenge.

A significant % of the population are not very analytical at all. If they were advertising would be much more difficult, populist political parties would face tough questions and nobody would be having arguments about the risks of smoking!

The medical profession itself though was prescribing antibiotics "just in case" to stave off possible secondary infections but also because they didn't want to spend money and time on doing proper labwork either.

It's easy enough to swab many infections, get a lab report and prescribe exactly the right antibiotic. However, in reality doctors tend to just prescribe broad spectrum antibiotics based on observing signs, reports of symptoms and their experience and habit too.

Bongalongherb

omicron wrote: »

We aren't going to have to change meat production as the EU has very strict laws around antibiotic use and growth pro,toros, however we're going to have to start applying the same standards to imports that we already have for domestic production.

Yeah, produced in Ireland doesn't mean it was made in Ireland from our own livestock. This needs to be sorted out as well. Much more stricter labelling laws to prove it is actually Irish beef or chicken. Lots of processed chicken folk here eat in Ireland even comes from China. It's like a box of chocolates, you just don't know which one you're going to get.

12Phase

The food industry mostly doesn't care as long as their last quarter's results are sufficiently good.

The horse meat scandal shows exactly how good European traceability was in reality as opposed to legal theory.

gctest50

How much are flights to Mars these days ?

12Phase

gctest50 wrote: »

How much are flights to Mars these days ?

The bacteria would likely go with you on the flight. Then, due to lack of any natural enemies, run totally riot and colonise Mars.

qo2cj1dsne8y4k

My GP would give them for a wooden leg if he could.
Beginning of May I started a course, finished course but was very unwell, went back, he listened to my chest. "Chest infection", he says. Another week of anti biotics. 4 days later, no better. Went to the out of hrs dr. "Your chest is clear". 2 weeks. Way to run someone down even more.

CruelCoin

Bongalongherb wrote: »

Doctors will give them for anything a person has as to keep making profit for big pharmaceutical companies they get them from. If they don't push out as much big pharma will be on their case as to why regarding profits.

It's treated like candy.

Not so.

It's a cultural thing and varies wildly by country.

Map showing how Antibiotic use varies by country -

http://cdn-02.independent.ie/incoming/article31009816.ece/e9f6f/AUTOCROP/w620/NEWS-antibiotic-consumption-rates.png

Superhorse

Not worried in the slightest.

CruelCoin

12Phase wrote: »

The bacteria would likely go with you on the flight. Then, due to lack of any natural enemies, run totally riot and colonise Mars.

Too cold for them.

We need to nuke the place first to warm it up a little.

_Brian

As such a small and uninfluential country there is little point in worrying about this.


Yes, the food production standards here are superior to many and most other countries but that won't protect us from this problem.

Big nations like the US are the problem and they aren't going to change because their administration is populated by and financed by big business who ensure they get their way regarding food production techniques above the actual public good.

All we can hope for is a patch for the problem in that if an outbreak happens a fix will be found before it becomes a problem here. Being an island nation would actually work on our favour in the event of a serious epidemic as we could quickly close borders and the sea is a good barrier, in all likelihood human to human would be the spread so this would somewhat protect us. Hopefully big pharma would produce a fix before things get bad here. That's as good as we can hope for.

People are saying that farming worldwide has to change to less intense methods. As a part time farmer I actually agree, I think the whole exponential expansion for lower margins is hurting food production quality and everyone looses when that happens. However, realistically there is no way to get this to happen. Farms are being pushed to lower and lower margins and all advice is to expand and increase intensity to compensate, get bigger or get out. There are subs there to farm organically but they are not sufficient to actually encourage enough farmers into the system, and I don't believe there is sufficient appetite in the general population to pay more for their food.

I think the genie is well out of the bottle regarding antibiotic over use and all we can hope for is that a quick fix is found for any serious strain of superbug that emerges.

12Phase

It's kind of inevitable though.

Farmers being incentivised to become increasingly intensive while pharma is being incentivised to focus on anything other than low margin antibiotics.

Perfect storm really.

CruelCoin

Superhorse wrote: »

Not worried in the slightest.

You should be.

Before penicillin was discovered, people died of very simple infections.

When bacteria becomes globally resistant to penicillan and collisten, then we're back to the days when a scratch on your leg is a very very dangerous thing.

New anti-biotics aren't being found. It's not something you can just make in the lab. There are even initiatives now where people from around the world are being asked to send in soil samples from weird places and climates, in an effort to try find a new antibiotic.

CruelCoin

CruelCoin wrote: »

You should be.

Before penicillin was discovered, people died of very simple infections.

When bacteria becomes globally resistant to penicillan and collisten, then we're back to the days when a scratch on your leg is a very very dangerous thing.

New anti-biotics aren't being found. It's not something you can just make in the lab. There are even initiatives now where people from around the world are being asked to send in soil samples from weird places and climates, in an effort to try find a new antibiotic.

Why worry about something that scientists are baffled over?
Will worrying keep these tiny rascal superbugs away?

If we become extinct, it will be the best thing to happen to Mother Earth.

CruelCoin

_Brian wrote: »

All we can hope for is a patch for the problem in that if an outbreak happens a fix will be found before it becomes a problem here. Being an island nation would actually work on our favour in the event of a serious epidemic as we could quickly close borders and the sea is a good barrier, in all likelihood human to human would be the spread so this would somewhat protect us.

With our bureaucracy?
With air travel the way it is, by the time you realise that there is an outbreak serious enough to shut the borders, it'll already be in the country.
That's not even counting the time it would take for all the reviews/debates/surveys/etc to be done before the dail holds a nice leisurely vote on whether or not to close the borders, followed by an equally leisurely pace of enforcement by gardai and customs.

Also, given we have only the one surface to air missile for the whole country, and no airforce, how would you prevent people fleeing the disease from coming here? "Please go away" "ok".........

No, closing the borders would do nothing, zip.
The best thing to do is to dramatically limit the rate of prescription via law, and to throw money at finding the next set of antibiotics.

PhoneMain

Bongalongherb wrote: »

stoneill wrote: »

I have often wondered this too.
You can't get antibiotics over the counter, the only source is from a doctor.
If they are being overused then that is medical professions fault.

Doctors will give them for anything a person has as to keep making profit for big pharmaceutical companies they get them from. If they don't push out as much big pharma will be on their case as to why regarding profits.

It's treated like candy.

Ridiculous ill informed post.

What actually happens is patients have a flu, Go to the doctor, pay 50euro and want to feel as if they're getting their money's worth so demand an antibiotic. Doctors cave in then

_Brian

CruelCoin wrote: »

With our bureaucracy?
With air travel the way it is, by the time you realise that there is an outbreak serious enough to shut the borders, it'll already be in the country.
That's not even counting the time it would take for all the reviews/debates/surveys/etc to be done before the dail holds a nice leisurely vote on whether or not to close the borders, followed by an equally leisurely pace of enforcement by gardai and customs.

Also, given we have only the one surface to air missile for the whole country, and no airforce, how would you prevent people fleeing the disease from coming here? "Please go away" "ok".........

No, closing the borders would do nothing, zip.
The best thing to do is to dramatically limit the rate of prescription via law, and to throw money at finding the next set of antibiotics.

But really were not he problem, Amy changes here while well intentioned would essentially be meaningless in the overall scale of the problem.

I agree with your point about bio security being unlikely, but I really think we're passengers in this trip and best we can do is cross our fingers and hope it gets sorted before it gets to us.

Bongalongherb

CruelCoin wrote: »

Too cold for them.

We need to nuke the place first to warm it up a little.

Ah sure, the next time I get an infection I may as well just nuke myself, problem solved. Nukes are not the answer for Mars.

Ken.

Mod-Moved to Health Sciences. Please read the charter before posting. Thanks.

Zombienosh

When I was growing up my local doctor gave out antibiotics and steroids like they were smarties. My ma wasn't the most educated so just went along with whatever the doctor said, I believe using these drugs a lot as a kid have had a negative impact on me.

Its starting....a case in the US
http://m.rte.ie/news/health/2016/0527/791312-superbug/

TheTorment

TheTorment wrote: »

Its starting....a case in the US
http://m.rte.ie/news/health/2016/0527/791312-superbug/

To the underground bunker Cletus!!!!

Wibbs

12Phase wrote: »

Yeah, it's not you who becomes resistant, it's the bacteria.

The fact that you haven't taken many antibiotics is totally irrelevant.

The bugs become resistant and are resident in the general human and other animal populations.

Agreed, though I would suspect there might be some survivor bias going on too. EG person A has had a few bacterial infections in their lives, but fought them off without any antibiotics. Person B in the same environment has also been infected by the same or similar bacterial infections but in many or most cases these infections required antibiotics because the person couldn't fight them off. If a resistant bacteria comes down the road, who is more likely to have an immune system capable of fighting it off? I'll take Person A Carol. Before antibiotics came along large swaths of humanity didn't make it past ten years of age. Childhood mortality was scarily high, but of those that did make it getting to 70 odd wasn't that unusual at all.

Actually can any learned folks inform more on this kinda point? We know that taking antibiotics in the first couple of years of life near guarantees allergic responses, hence one reason why allergies in the general western populations have exploded in the last 30 years. Antibiotics also kill good bacteria in our bodies and more and more we're seeing that a healthy gut biome is essential to general health and help fight invaders. So as well as resistance, do these drugs impact our built in ability to ward off infection?

CruelCoin

_Brian wrote: »

But really were not he problem, Amy changes here while well intentioned would essentially be meaningless in the overall scale of the problem.

I agree with your point about bio security being unlikely, but I really think we're passengers in this trip and best we can do is cross our fingers and hope it gets sorted before it gets to us.

Every single person who gets prescribed antibiotics is contributing to the problem. You can't just fob it off as a "american problem" or other.

multidrug-resistant MRSA exists in irish hospitals, and not because it got sent here in a bottle from the usa.....

_Brian

CruelCoin wrote: »

Every single person who gets prescribed antibiotics is contributing to the problem. You can't just fob it off as a "american problem" or other.

multidrug-resistant MRSA exists in irish hospitals, and not because it got sent here in a bottle from the usa.....

I didn't say no affect but statistically meaningless considering the size of the problem worldwide. Of course I support limiting antibiotic use here, but that isn't going to protect us when the actual abuse in the food chain is happening elsewhere on a scale that dwarfs what we do here.

12Phase

When you think about it though, antibiotics are mostly rather crude, chemical agents that happen to be toxic to most bacteria of certain types.

What we are forgetting is that bacteria are incredibly sophisticated, living organisms that have been adapting to overcome toxic environments for hundreds of millions of years.

Our immune systems work on a similar principle in many respects and are adaptive and can cope with most bacteria and virii must of the time.

Using these potions in agriculture was the height of stupidity but, inevitably the time will come when there won't be any chemical agents useful against common bacteria. Over using them just shortened that timeframe.

We really need to be working on new approaches, more along the lines of biotech enhancements of our own immune systems.

Bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) have actually been known about for a long time. They were used in soviet medicine for example.

There's a lot of scope to go that route.

Bongalongherb

_Brian wrote: »

I didn't say no affect but statistically meaningless considering the size of the problem worldwide. Of course I support limiting antibiotic use here, but that isn't going to protect us when the actual abuse in the food chain is happening elsewhere on a scale that dwarfs what we do here.

Well, we will have to worry about that problem as well if TTIP is implemented into the EU. I'll be sitting there looking at a delicious round steak thinking it was just fresh from down the road, but I find out it was sent from El Salvador under duress = me feeling under duress not feeling too good after eating this bloated beef steak pumped with all sorts of unusuals.

screamer

CruelCoin wrote: »

Every single person who gets prescribed antibiotics is contributing to the problem. You can't just fob it off as a "american problem" or other.

multidrug-resistant MRSA exists in irish hospitals, and not because it got sent here in a bottle from the usa.....

People who are prescribed antibiotics who need them are not a problem...... they may not survive without them.

Bacteria are just able to evolve and mutate they always have been. Fighting bacteria of the future will need to be done via DNA it will become a more complex fix as the bugs capabilities become more complex.
but anyways there's always something coming to wipe out a few hundred thousand people every so often- look at the Spanish flu after world wars. It's nature's way of maintaining balance.

_Brian

Bongalongherb wrote: »

Well, we will have to worry about that problem as well if TTIP is implemented into the EU. I'll be sitting there looking at a delicious round steak thinking it was just fresh from down the road, but I find out it was sent from El Salvador under duress = me feeling under duress not feeling too good after eating this bloated beef steak pumped with all sorts of unusuals.

Yep, food security will be a big issue down the road. Few years ago we started having pigs for our own table, we have chickens now and plan in place to start killing beef for our own consumption too.
Polytunnel in the plan and have place to grow veg, have a small orchard and fruit bushes planted. In few years well have our own wood fuel supply too. We teach our kids to cook and bake, my 7yo can easily make brown bread.

There is no real need to do these things but I feel it's essential that kids see where food comes from and that producing food for a family isn't impossible at all. I don't like the way that big business is taking the production of food and it's techniques away from ordinary people, over time this just increases reliance on them and guarantees their role in feeding us.

Anita Blow

12Phase wrote: »

When you think about it though, antibiotics are mostly rather crude, chemical agents that happen to be toxic to most bacteria of certain types.

What we are forgetting is that bacteria are incredibly sophisticated, living organisms that have been adapting to overcome toxic environments for hundreds of millions of years.

Our immune systems work on a similar principle in many respects and are adaptive and can cope with most bacteria and virii must of the time.

Using these potions in agriculture was the height of stupidity but, inevitably the time will come when there won't be any chemical agents useful against common bacteria. Over using them just shortened that timeframe.

We really need to be working on new approaches, more along the lines of biotech enhancements of our own immune systems.

Bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) have actually been known about for a long time. They were used in soviet medicine for example.

There's a lot of scope to go that route.

Use of bacteriophages clinically is a long way off. They're specific to single types of bacteria, so bacteriophage therapy would have to be designed for almost every pathogenic bacteria which isn't ideal compared to antibiotics which have coverage for many different types of bacteria. Modifying our immune response is the same deal- long way off. Many studies on the area have had to be prematurely stopped because it makes the subjects very ill. Altering the balance of pro-inflammatory mediators can have serious negative consequences (See cytokine storm)

Anita Blow

I think in general, to think of outcome of antibiotic resistance as the emergence of "superbugs" does harm to the gravity of the situation. People think of it as an apocalypse-type scenario, and apocalypse scenarios rarely ever happen because smart scientists somewhere come up with a quick fix that saves the day. By thinking about antibiotic resistance in such a way, it helps people put it to the back of their mind as nothing for them to worry about which is wrong.
Antibiotic resistance doesn't just mean us fighting off epidemics of superbugs with a quick fix, it makes every day procedures we take for granted today very difficult/impossible in the future. Procedures like transplants, chemotherapy, auto-immune therapy etc. will become impossible for many people because on balance, the danger in suppressing their immune system & exposing them to bugs we cannot treat will be too great.