BBC Morning Live doctor issues urgent antibiotics warning amid fears of reinfection
BBC Morning Live doctor issues urgent antibiotics warning amid fears of reinfection
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BBC Morning Live's resident GP, doctor Punam Krishan, has said that people need to be careful about how and when they take antibiotics. If you get it wrong, you could be putting yourself at risk of life-threatening illnesses like sepsis. The GP, who was on the latest series of Strictly with her professional dancing partner, Gorka, said on the show on Friday (February 7) that "this is not new information" and that we have known for "decades" about antibiotic resistance.
Talking about why it's become an issue - and why it can be detrimental for our health - the expert explained: "There are reasons for why it’s become a problem, which is the over-prescribing and misuse of antibiotics in people - but also the overuse and misuse of antibiotics that are commonly used in animals and plants. "What's happening is these super bugs that have developed are resistant to many different types of common antibiotics that we use that can be life-saving. So when you’ve got the super bugs are developing it means that when you do become infected, then you’re more likely to end up in hospital - blood infections, sepsis - they’re all a risk.".
Warning people that "we don’t always need antibiotics" and that "we need to reduce the misuse" of the medication, she also noted that people were making one big mistake when they needed to take them - and that is not taking them for long enough. Talking about the mistake, the expert explained people, understandably, think if they feel better, they can stop taking them. But if you do this, stop. The doctor warned no matter how good you feel, you need to keep taking them or else you risk getting sick again. She stressed: "The thing is, we [doctors] give a prescription course for a reason and completing the course means that if there is any bacteria left, the antibiotics will get in there and kill that bacteria.".
If you stop, "the bacteria that’s left in there continues to have an opportunity to multiply and grow, which means you’re more likely to end up ill again with that current infection which means if you then get that antibiotic that you were initially prescribed, you might have develop resistance to that and you'll need another antibiotic". She cautioned that people need to finish the course, no matter how good they feel. So if you've been told to take it for seven days but feel great on day three - keep taking it.
