01/04/2025
‼️⚠️⛔️💊
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜: 𝐀𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐜 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞
I remember a 31-year-old patient who frequently bought antibiotics ‘Sa kapitbahay’, taking them for every minor illness, fevers, the occasional runny nose, illnesses that did not require antibiotics. No prescription, no proper dosing—just whatever was available. He felt fine, until one day, he wasn’t.
Pneumonia, which would have been treated with first-line antibiotics turned deadly. The usual antibiotics didn’t work. Even the strongest last-resort drugs failed. He succumbed to a drug-resistant bacterial infection that, years ago, would have been easily treatable.
The worst part? His younger sibling contracted it too, and was treated in the hospital for 16 days in the Intensive care unit.
This isn’t a rare case. Antibiotic resistance is growing, and it’s killing people.
𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐈𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠?
• Rampant overuse and misuse of antibiotics—self-medication, incomplete courses, unnecessary prescriptions.
• Unregulated sales in pharmacies and even online.
• Antibiotics in livestock and agriculture, accelerating resistance.
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲
• Drug-resistant infections already kill 1.2 million people per year—more than HIV/AIDS or malaria.
• Simple infections like pneumonia or UTIs are becoming harder to treat.
• We are running out of effective antibiotics.
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐂𝐚𝐧 𝐁𝐞 𝐃𝐨𝐧𝐞?
• Stop using antibiotics without a prescription. They don’t work for colds, flu, or viral infections.
• Stronger regulations on antibiotic sales—no more over-the-counter access.
• Better hygiene and infection control to slow the spread of resistant bacteria.
• Investment in new antibiotics and alternative treatments.
This isn’t a future threat. It’s already here. If we don’t act, we’re heading toward a world where a minor cut, a simple cough, or a routine surgery could be a death sentence.