Despite years of efforts to limit the use of
antibiotics to avoid developing resistant
bacteria, some people still request
antibiotics routinely. Here is a new and
significant reason not to. British
researchers have shown that bacterial
growth can actually be stimulated by
antibiotics. That’s right, the very product
that is supposed to kill bacteria can, in
some cases, make it grow faster than if no
antibiotics were used. Researchers say
bacteria have a remarkable ability to
rearrange their DNA and this can stop
drugs from working, sometimes in a matter
of days. They say this shows the
importance of using the right antibiotic as
soon as possible so we don’t see the
bacterial adaptations like those in the
study.