Antibiotics factory farming & resistant germs

Antibiotics in factory farming threaten health

05/03/2014

The number of multidrug-resistant germs, against which antibiotics can not cause any more, is constantly increasing. The World Health Organization (WHO) warns that antibiotic resistance poses a serious threat to public health. One reason for the problem is the use of drugs in factory farming.

Serious threat to public health
In its first global monitoring report on the problem of resistant microorganisms, the World Health Organization (WHO) concludes that antibiotic resistance is on the rise worldwide and poses a serious threat to public health. Keiji Fukuda, WHO Vice Director, said the consequences are fatal: „Hospitals all over the world report infections that are difficult or impossible to treat.“ WHO has collected data on seven major bacterial species in a total of 114 countries, which can trigger a range of common diseases. As it turned out, large parts of the world's population now carry germs that do not respond to antibiotics. „The exact numbers may vary from region to region, but overall there is a consistent picture“, so Fukuda. „The ability to treat serious infections is decreasing in all parts of the world.“

A daily recurring problem
The report on the extent of antibiotic resistance is welcomed by experts. He was also long overdue. This is how the aid organization showed itself „Doctors Without Borders“ makes it easier for WHO to finally put the topic high on the agenda. „This is a recurring problem in all our operations around the world“, said Jennifer Cohn of the „drugs campaign“ the „Doctors Without Borders“ according to a report from „German wave“ (DW). „In Niger it occurs in children suffering from malnutrition and in Jordan we see it in patients with injuries. Wherever we look, we see different types of bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics.“ The German infectologist Benedikt Huttner in the University of Geneva also has to do according to the DW with patients who have infected with multidrug-resistant germs against which no more antibiotic helps. „The extremely resistant germs that we see here often affect patients who may have been in an intensive care unit in another country, for example, after a car accident in India or Egypt - and then relocated here“, so the doctor.

Complications of common diseases
When drugs are no longer effective, blood poisoning, pneumonia, sexually transmitted diseases such as gonorrhea or diarrheal diseases can become as life-threatening as before the invention of penicillin. The extent to which the danger can be taken can be seen by looking at the numbers of illnesses. Fukuda explained: „Around one million people worldwide suffer from diarrhea every day.“ The WHO already warns of one „post-antibiotic age“. More and more, it comes in complications of common diseases. Although many pathogens are safe for healthy people, if these germs become resistant to antibiotics and get into a patient's body, they can cause serious illness there. Among other things, the intestinal bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae is one of these pathogens, which can cause fatal pneumonia in hospital patients with weakened immune systems. Often the bacteria are not only resistant to common antibiotics but also to the reserve antibiotics.

Treatment becomes more expensive due to resistant germs
Another problem that arises in this context is that the resistant bacteria make treatment much more expensive in both developed and developing countries, Fukuda explained. And not only that; In some regions of the world, drugs against diseases such as malaria, AIDS or tuberculosis are becoming increasingly ineffective. „We're about to lose the key malaria drug, Artemisia, in Asia“, so Fukuda. Because the weak health systems fail to monitor the use so that they are always taken as prescribed by physicians, AIDS drugs become ineffective. Since the free AIDS drugs are often the only value of what some patients have, these are often sold in poor countries. In addition, the study states that half of the tuberculosis cases detected worldwide are no longer treatable with traditional medications.

25,000 dead every year due to antibiotic resistance
In Europe alone, WHO estimates that every year 25,000 people die as a result of antibiotic resistance. Since many countries do not take the health threat of resistant germs seriously and therefore do not collect data, there is no information available on the global scale. There is widespread agreement on the causes of resistance formation: the careless handling of antibiotics. The widespread use of medicines in factory farming is also a major problem. „Antibiotics are over-prescribed, not only in humans, but also in animals: about 80 percent of antibiotics are given to animals“, so Huttner. But antibiotics are not only in the meat, but are also flushed with the slurry from the animal fattening farms on the fields and get into the drinking water.

Hand washing against infections
To curb the problem, it would be very helpful if antibiotics were given only under medical supervision and taken by patients correctly. However, as Fukuda explained, measures that reduce the risk of infection from person to person are even more effective. There are sometimes the simplest ways and means. „There are vaccines that can help reduce infections. Another method of fighting infections is washing hands.“ Experts now hope that the WHO report raises awareness of the dangers of antibiotic resistance. Huttner also pleads for determined and coordinated action: „It has always been seen in the past: if you do not recognize that early and do something early, it becomes much harder to control. Once the resistances are there, they usually do not go away so easily.“ (Ad)