Check on antibiotic treatment guidelines before using them
The first important maxim to remember is - no symptoms, no treatment. At the same time, some minor ailments heal over time and do not require antibiotic treatment despite prevalence of symptoms. The general principle is that antibiotics should be used with caution. Too much of antibiotic ingestion often results in the body becoming immune to the drug. Instead of curing the disease the antibiotic may actually help the pathogen to grow and multiply.
The antibiotic alternative must be exercised only on basis of sound clinical evidence of infection. Such evidence may either be localized (pus in soft tissue, frequent and painful urination) or systemic (persistent fever, increased heartbeat or low blood pressure).
To identify the most suitable class of antibiotic that should be used for treatment, it is necessary to send blood or urine samples to the laboratory. It is important to note that once antimicrobial treat has started it becomes difficult to isolate the disease causing pathogen during laboratory tests.
The choice of the antibiotic largely depends upon on the microbiological results, local sensitivity patterns and cost. The initial treatment should be with a narrow spectrum antibiotic rather than a broad spectrum antibiotic. Some factors that your doctor will consider before actually prescribing an antibiotic include:
- Contra indications.
- Side effects.
- Toxicity.
- Interaction with other drugs.
Special attention is required to be paid to the affect of the drug on liver and renal functions and pregnancy. Also certain antibiotics are not recommended for patients above 65 years.
Another factor that needs to be considered is prior history of drug specific allergic reactions. Allergy to penicillins and cephalosporins is usually associated with occurrence of low blood pressure, local swelling and intense rash immediately after they are injected or taken orally.
Strict adherence to dose and length of antibiotic therapy is recommended because a prolonged treatment increases the risk of side effects, secondary infections and emergence of immunity.
Try to avoid taking recourse to antibiotics until it is extremely necessary. It is seen that antibiotics often kill helpful bacteria, which are necessary for the normal body functions. If antibiotics have to be taken it is advisable to simultaneously use probiotics to make up for the loss of friendly bacteria and to counter the side effects. Probiotics are beneficial bacteria strands present in dairy or soy yoghurt with live cultures, unrefined whole grain bread, brined olives, asparagus, bananas, onions and numerous other vegetables and herbs.
The human body has internal systems that can effectively combat disease causing pathogens provided your immune system’s health is in optimal condition. Considering the side effects and other problems associated with conventional antibiotics, they should be used only when they cannot be avoided. Natural products like herbal antibiotics are safe and their complex compounds are difficult for bacteria to their advantage: there is no way that the body can become immune to them. At the same time, herbs for immune system, if taken regularly, strengthen the immune system, keeping disease at bay.
