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unnecessary antibiotics used for non-fatal conditions such as acne, intestinal infection, skin infections, ear infections, and so on. Egger further warned that, in America, the current crowded and unnecessary antibiotics used for non-fatal conditions such as acne, unsanitary methods of animal farming support constant stress and intestinal infection, skin infections, ear infections, and so on. infection and are geared toward high antibiotic use. He said that these conditions would have to be changed, and antibiotic use — The Problem with Antibiotics: They Are Anti-Life would have to be cut back. On September 17, 2003, the CDC relaunched a program, started In America, over three million pounds of antibiotics are used in 1995, called "Get Smart: Know When Antibiotics Work".* every year on humans. With a population of 284 million This is a US$1.6 million campaign to educate patients about the Americans, this amount is enough to give every man, woman and overuse and inappropriate use of antibiotics. Most people child 10 teaspoons of pure antibiotics per year. involved with alternative medicine have known about the dangers Egger says that exposure to a steady stream of antibiotics has of overuse of antibiotics for decades. Finally the government is altered pathogens such as Streptococcus pneumoniae, focusing on the problem, yet is only putting a minuscule amount Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus, to name a few. of money into an iatrogenic epidemic that is costing billions of Almost half the patients with upper respiratory tract infections dollars and many thousands of lives. in the USA still receive antibiotics from their doctor.*' According The CDC warns that 90% of upper respiratory infections, to the CDC, 90% of upper respiratory infec- including children's ear infections, are tions are viral and should not be treated viral—and antibiotics don't treat viral with antibiotics. infection. More than 40% of about 50 In Germany, the prevalence for systemic million prescriptions written for antibiotics antibiotic use in children aged 0-6 years is each year in physicians’ offices were 42.9%. inappropriate.* And using antibiotics when Data taken from nine US health plans not needed can lead to the development of between 1996 and 2000 on antibiotics use deadly strains of bacteria that are resistant to in 25,000 children found that rates of drugs and cause more than 88,000 deaths antibiotics use have decreased. Antibiotics More than 40% of due to hospital-acquired infections.’ use in children aged three months to under sre However, the CDC seems to be blaming three years decreased by 24% from 2.46 to about 50 million patients for misusing antibiotics, even 1.89 anrbiotic prescriptions per Patient mr prescriptions written though nese drugs are on'y available on year. For children aged three years to under shes prescription from a doctor who should know six years, there was a 25% reduction from for antibiotics how to prescribe properly. Dr Richard Besser, head of the Get Smart program, says: "Programs that have just targeted physicians have not worked. Direct-to-consumer advertising of drugs is to blame in some cases." He says the Get Smart program "...teaches patients and the general public that antibiotics are precious resources that must be used correctly if we want to have them around when we need them. Hopefully, as a result of this campaign, patients will feel more comfortable asking their doctors for 1.47 to 1.09 antibiotic prescriptions per patient per year. And for children aged six to under 18 years, there was a 16% reduction from 0.85 to 0.69 antibiotic prescriptions per patient per year [ Pediatrics, September 2003].* Although there was a reduction in antibiotics use, the data indicate that, on average, every child in America receives 1.22 antibiotic prescriptions annually. Group A __ beta-haemolytic Streptococcus is the only common cause of sore throat that requires each year in physicians’ offices were inappropriate. antibiotics; penicillin and the best care for their illnesses, rather erythromycin being the only recommended treatments. However, than asking for antibiotics." 90% of sore throats are viral. And what does "the best care" constitute? The CDC does not The authors of this study [ JAMA, September 12, 2001 elaborate and patently avoids the latest research on the dozens of estimated there were 6.7 million adult annual visits for sore throat nutraceuticals scientifically proven to treat viral infections and between 1989 and 1999 in the US; antibiotics were prescribed in boost the immune system. Will its doctors recommend vitamin C, 73% of visits. Furthermore, patients treated with antibiotics were echinacea, elderberry, vitamin A, zinc or homoeopathic given non-recommended broad-spectrum antibiotics in 68% of oscillococcinum? No, they won't. The archaic solutions offered visits. The authors noted that from 1989 to 1999 there was a by the CDC include a radio advertisement, "Just Say No — Snort, significant increase in the newer and more expensive broad- sniffle, sneeze — No antibiotics, please". Its commonsense spectrum antibiotics and a decrease in use of penicillin and recommendations, which most people do anyway, include resting, erythromycin. If antibiotics were given in 73% of visits an drinking plenty of fluids and using a humidifier. should only have been given in 10%, this represents 63% or a The pharmaceuticals industry claims it is all for limiting the use total of 4.2 million visits for sore throat that ended in unnecessary of antibiotics. In order to make sure that happens, the drug com- antibiotics prescriptions between 1989 and 1999. pany Bayer is sponsoring a program called "Operation Clean In 1995, Dr Richard Besser of the Centers for Disease Control Hands" through an organisation called LIBRA.” (CDC) said that the number of unnecessary antibiotics prescribe And while the CDC is involved with trying to minimise antibi- annually for viral infections was 20 million. In 2003, he referre otic resistance, nowhere in its publications is there any reference to tens of millions of unnecessary prescriptions for antibiotics.” * to the role of nutraceuticals in boosting the immune system nor to Neither of these figures takes into account the number of the thousands of journal articles that support this approach. This each year in physicians’ offices were inappropriate. 32 = NEXUS More than 40% of about 50 million prescriptions written for antibiotics www.nexusmagazi ne.com OCTOBER — NOVEMBER 2004