Antibiotics and painkillers

Antibiotics, such as penicillin, are medicines used to treat bacterial diseases by killing infective bacteria inside the body. However, different antibiotics are effective against different types of bacteria, so it is crucial that specific antibiotics are used to treat specific bacterial infections. The widespread use of antibiotics has greatly reduced deaths from bacterial diseases, but the development of antibiotic-resistant strains is a serious concern.

Antibiotic Resistance:

• Bacteria can undergo mutations (changes in their DNA) that make them resistant to antibiotics.

• When a patient is treated with antibiotics, the non-resistant bacteria are killed, but the resistant bacteria survive.

• These resistant bacteria then reproduce, increasing the number of resistant bacteria in the population.

• The emergence of resistant strains, such as MRSA, is worrying, which is why doctors may use a combination of antibiotics to reduce the chance of resistance developing, as it’s unlikely that bacteria will be resistant to many antibiotics at once.

It's important to remember that antibiotics cannot kill viruses, as they only target bacteria. Developing drugs to kill viruses without damaging the body’s own tissues is much more difficult.

Painkillers