Sunglasses using pencil tool

Following Martin Perhiniak's drawing lesson in his Illustrator CC Masterclass!

From Zero To Adobe-Certifed - Day 1

Here's what I did today:

1. Try to break down different aspects of Graphic design/Illustrating apply deliberate practice. (Btw: can anybody please tell me the difference between a graphic designer and an illustrator?)

2. Set up accounts on Dribble and Behance (I think I'll be addicted)

You might be consuming superbugs everyday. What can you do about it?

Antibiotic - the holy grail of modern medicine, the only cure for many bacterial diseases, one of the most important discoveries of mankind in the 20th century.

Ever since the discovery of penicillin in the 1940s, scientists have developed more than 150 different types of antibiotics of different strains and strengths, working towards making death by common infectious diseases a thing of the past. Antibiotic quickly became the second most commonly used class of drugs, after only simple painkillers. Because of its potential and power, a lot of people think of this “miracle drug” as a one-shot-cure-all.

In reality, the drug is far from magical, and the misuse of antibiotic is becoming more problematic. When you don’t take the full dose prescribed by the doctor for your ear infection, or when you take antibiotic for something non-bacterial related such as cold or the flu, you are promoting antibiotic resistance. Consequently, the bacteria in your body, when surviving the bout of treatment, can mutate and pass on their genes to create super-bacteria that cannot be treated with common antimicrobial drugs.  The European Food Safety Authority estimated that every year, 25,000 people die of a direct result of antimicrobial resistance, and causes a 1.5 billion euro loss annually in the EU alone.

Source: WHO

Public-health officials are now naming antibiotic resistance as one of the leading threats of our time, but this is hardly any news. Most adults know that they need to be responsible when it comes to the use of antibiotics (as well as all other drugs on the market). The dark side of the story is the fact that most people are consuming antibiotics every day, promoting resistance, and yet they have no clue. In accordance with the vision of the World Antibiotic Awareness Week 2016, let’s uncover this puzzling story, so that we all can make better, more informed choices in the future.

So, where do we get our "daily dose" of antibiotic, you ask? In the food that you eat, day in, day out. Animals, just like human, carry a lot of bacteria in their intestine, many of which are enormously beneficial and crucial for the wellbeing of the hosts. In this sense, the use (or misuse) of antibiotics in animals can lead to the same detrimental effect observed in human. Unfortunately, while most humans might know better than to take antibiotics on a daily basis, animals do not; they ingest anything their owners provide. Consequently, because the standard practice of treating farm animals with antibiotics is widespread, the food that we eat everyday contains a large amount of the same drug that we were told not to abuse.

The reasons for this are plenty. Food animals are usually raised in cramped space, which is ideal for the growth of harmful bacteria and the quick spread of diseases when they arise. To keep their livestock “relatively” healthy, farmers frequently administer doses of antibiotic to treat and prevent infectious diseases, ultimately keeping the cost down by reducing the amount of sick and dead animals. The drug also promotes animal growth, which is crucial in the pay-per-pound meat industry. In the dairy industry, cows are continuously impregnated and milked, and therefore are treated with drugs to prevent breast infection.

Source: WHO

When animals are given antibiotics, the drug eliminates most bacteria (good and bad), only leaving behind the strongest and most malignant of all.  These bacteria contain the resistant genes, and will multiply, spreading the super-bacteria to other nearby hosts, including humans who dine on them; an example of survival of the fittest. Consumer Reports did a test in recent years, which revealed that more than ⅔ of their chicken samples were contaminated with Salmonella and/or Campylobacter, more than 60% of which were resistant to one or more antibiotics.

These bacteria make their way to human hosts through many different pathways. Direct contact with raw meat might be enough for contraction, as well as the contamination of surfaces used to prep the food. Not only meat, but milk and eggs are also affected by the antibacterial strains. Sadly, it doesn’t stop there. Contaminated animal manure used to fertilize crops will spread even more of the germs to vegetables, food, and even water that are then distributed widely. Through these media, the superbugs not only multiply, but can also exchange their resistant genetic material with other bacteria, which creates further complications.

Source: WHO

 This irresponsible use of antibiotic in farming is damaging, and health officials have backed the claim. In 2010, the two big public health agencies, the U.S Food and Drug Administration and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, as well as the US Department of Agriculture, all testified before Congress regarding the matter. According to their testimonies, there is indeed a link between the use of antibiotics in meat production and the resistance of the drug in people. 

It is, therefore, important to understand that even with our effort to prudently use antibiotics, it might not be enough to stop the threat of antibiotic resistance; the pandemic cannot be treated in isolation. Rather, a concerted effort in all three sectors - hospital, household, and agriculture setting - is needed in to slow down the rate of bacteria’s resistance.

Even though we cannot do a lot but to count on legislators to regulate the use of antibiotics in raising farm animals, there are certain things we can do to reduce the chance of getting infected with contaminants from food. Below is the advice taken from CDC website on how to lessen the chance of infection with resistant bacteria from foods:

Follow FoodSafety.gov’s Clean, Separate, Cook, and Chill guidelines:

• Cook meat, poultry, and eggs to a safe minimum internal temperature.
• Prevent animal products from contaminating other foods by washing your hands, utensils, and kitchen surfaces during meal preparation.
• Don’t drink raw milk.
• Wash your hands after contact with stool, animals, or animal environments.
• Review CDC’s Traveler’s Health recommendations when preparing to travel to a foreign country.

Or, you can choose to reduce the amount of meat consumed in your meals. After all, less meat, less problems, right?

Source: gcmag.com

*Article first published on Suffolk Voice