This week, November 12-18 is World Antibiotic Awareness Week.
About 75 years ago, science brought penicillin to the public use, and this event opened a new era in infectious disease control. Infectious diseases such as pneumonia which had commonly been fatal were tamed but only for a while.
In the next generations, life expectancy leaped by 25 years and infectious diseases fell from number one death threat to humans.
But, having cheap, abundant and effective antibiotics at their disposal, people became more and more anxious to control infection when they say the tiniest sign of an illness. Things, unfortunately, led to something else.
Bacteria and microbes evolve to survive antibiotics
These will continue to adapt, and they will definitely succeed unless humanity builds new layers of defense which could take the form of new antibiotics and all kinds of creative approaches.
Governments of the world recognize the crisis, as they affirmed at a special high-level meeting of the United Nations General Assembly in 2016 and at the G20 in 2017.
The most troubling part of it all is that people have to create new antibiotic therapies and even this seems incredibly hard there are already alternatives to older drugs and even more are being developed.
One of the most critical impediments in producing new antibiotics is the economic model which trusts the market to meet the demand.
Anyway, without the proper intervention, the end of antibiotics’ efficiency will be devastating for humanity. This will happen gradually, but it will definitely happen.
Now, even common procedures such as dental hygiene appointments and joint replacement surgeries are canceled permanently due to infection risks.
Closing words
People of all ages are starting to die again from illnesses that we believed we’ve managed to treat with $10 worth of pills.
Life expectancy could drop where it was back in the 1900s, and the shiny golden era of antibiotics could turn out as a mere window in the history is something doesn’t change.
I have been blogging and posting articles for over eight years, but my passion for writing dates back in 2000. I am especially enthusiastic about technology, science, and health-related issues. When I’m not researching and writing the latest news, I’m either watching sci-fi and horror movies or checking out places worth visiting and building deep memories for later in life. I believe in empathy and continually improving myself.